Agnes Smith AGNES & THE INFIDELS Part VI 846 A.D. Ifriquiya ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [Agnes] She watches the head roll free, and is aware of Kemal's flight. He'd stayed well clear of her in Aquitaine too: she'd forgotten that. **There must be a reason for that ...** she starts to think, and then the Quickening hits her.... .... As she starts to float down from the clouds, her mind keeps telling her to feel guilty, unholy, unclean; but her body is unimpressed by those thoughts. Sheer pleasure tingles through every part of her, making sex seem a poor substitute. The feeling slowly starts to fade, allowing regret and pity for Naz join the maelstrom of emotions that currently posses her. And then emotions subside enough for the start of coherent thoughts. She remembered the bubbling molten sand vividly, much more than she remembered it last time. The 'high' had been higher and lasted longer too. It was as if it got better, more enlightening each time ... She shudders in revulsion at the path down which her unrestrained thought was leading her, and tries to take control. **I wonder what the Berbers thought of the molten sand?** she thinks as she tries to reintroduce mundane thoughts. **Or Antonella, for that matter? At least it is over and done with Naz.** she tells his departed soul. **It would have come to a fight soon enough anyway, and at least I don't have the interim stage of constantly looking over my shoulder, to see if you are there.** She becomes aware she is being held, and wonders vaguely about how much time has passed. The sounds in her ear eventually resolve themselves into words, and then into coherent words spoken by a voice that sounded like Kemal's. She opens her eyes and through the wool that seems to shroud them, she sees that it is indeed Kemal who holds her and who is placing her on a saddled horse. She takes up the reigns, and urges the animal to follow Kemal, as she slowly becomes aware of her surroundings. She looks back at the scene she is leaving, and then rides on in silence. Initially it is because she is recovering from the Quickening. Afterwards it is because she doesn't particularly want to talk to Kemal. The Quickening had blunted the sharpness of her anger at him, but it was still there. She broods, deciding against saying anything more, especially when it might be something she would regret later. <><><><><> [GM] Kemal has Antonella sitting on the saddle in front of him, and holds her with one arm around her waist as he grabs the horse's reins with the other. She does not look good...her head lolls back and forth, and she seems barely conscious. When she makes a sound, it's a soft moan, or a whimper. Kemal whispers soothingly in her ear, but she shows no reaction. He kicks his horse forward, and you follow behind, noting that the animals are indeed behaving skittishly...you can't imagine that even a trained warhorse would be able to endure close proximity to what you just unleashed, without being somewhat distressed for a while. The Berbers withdrew, but not that far....you can see a cluster of them only an arrowflight away, and more coming from the main group, no doubt drawn by the lightshow. "Time to run for it again," Kemal sighs. He yells and urges his horse into a gallop, looking back over his shoulder to see if you're following. Behind you, the Berbers hesitate, milling around for a few moments, before breaking out into cautious pursuit. <><><><><> [Agnes] Groggily, she gallops after Kemal. She glances behind after a bit to try to estimate how many pursue them. She also looks ahead to see what opportunities there are for a stand. She suspects it will be a long ride, and Kemal's horse will be the first to falter. Antonella's best chance would seem to be if she and Kemal were to get away. As she rides, Agnes weighs up the chances and opportunities presented by the approaching ground and the numbers and spread of the pursuit. <><><><><> [GM] Like last time, the desert offers little in the way of suitable defensive ground. Between here and the Aghlabid army camp, it's pretty much flat, except for what dunes the wind might create. There are eight Berbers immediately pursuing....by their dark robes and veils, they appear to be remnants of the group that originally cornered you. Behind them, there are dozens more spread along the horizon, fanning out forward and to the sides. It looks like they are preparing for an engagement with the Arab army....but the Aglhabid camp is still miles away if you reckon correctly. (With everything that has happened in the last few hours, you're not entirely sure where you are or how far you've gone anymore.) Your horse is able to gain on Kemal's rather easily, thanks to its double burden. The Berbers are not pursuing as intently as they did before, but if the chase lasts for a long time, they can certainly catch up, at least to within archery range. And Kemal's overloaded horse will never win an endurance contest. <><><><><> [Agnes] She draws level with Kemal, and stares at him coldly. "Kemal. Drive a sword through my heart, and leave me for dead. With two horses for you and Antonella, you might stay ahead of the pursuit long enough to reach your camp. With three of us, we will never make it." She hands him her reins, and then her sword hilt first. "Do it! " "They will surely leave me for dead if there is a sword sticking out of my heart." <><><><><> [GM] Kemal looks over at you, his own face weary but determined. "That is not a bad plan," he says grudgingly. "But for one thing." He lets go of your reins and hands his own to you. "Now that you are recovered enough to ride with Antonella, I have a better chance of being able to escape the heathens if I should revive in their midst." "More importantly, I might be able to eliminate some of our pursuit before I am fatally wounded." He puts his hands gently on Antonella's shoulders, to steady her as he prepares to jump off. "Therefore, *you* should ride on with Antonella and both horses, while I stay behind." <><><><><> [Agnes] That wasn't what he was meant to say at all! She'd convinced herself that as he had stood by, content to watch her be beheaded, he didn't really care about her at all. She was the one that was to make *him* guilty of *her* sacrifice - not the other way round! She had wanted to hurt him, and now it hasd backfired. Her contrived indignation was terminally punctured. His argument made sense, and yet she struggled to find a reason to reject it. She struggled to say something right up until she had to grab Antonella, and take her onto her own horse. It would give Kemal's one a bit of a breather, anyway. Holding the girl arounnd the waist with the hand that held her reins, and dragging the other horse along behind, Agnes put on a spurt of speed. She wanted to try to get over the horizon as fast as possible. Onnce she and the continuing pursuit was out of sight of any that stayed for Kemal, she would make a series of sudden deviations in course, to try to evade at least the tardy pursuers. <><><><><> [GM] Antonella moans as you pull her onto your horse. She shudders every time there is friction against her back, and sobs, half-choking, while you try to adjust her position so you can hold onto her and ride at the same time. Kemal looks at her for a moment, with concern, then clasps your hand briefly. "I will see you again, Agnes," he says. Then he leaps from the horse, landing on his feet with his sword out. The last glimpse you get of him, he's crouching low to the ground, avoiding arrows and getting ready to leap up at the oncoming horsemen. Antonella moans something incoherent as you begin zig-zagging and trying to shake your pursuers. You pause briefly to change horses again, when yours flags. Antonella groans so loudly as you transfer her, and you feel blood soaking through her robes, that you're afraid of moving her around yet again. The Berbers stay on your trail, less than were following you before, but you still see many more stretched out along the horizon. Just when you think they are going to run you down again, you see a great cloud of dust ahead, like the one you saw last time, heading in the opposite direction. This time, the approaching army in your path is coming from the Aghlabid camp. <><><><><> [Agnes] She casts off her berber headgear and lets her hair blow free. **That might not be Kemal's Army ahead, but it if is, it would be stupid to be shot as a Berber on the approach,** she tells herself. She alters course again to ride directly at the approaching army. There seemed little point in protracting things. The faster she got to it, the faster she would get to the camp, and find someone who knew what they were doing to save Antonella. She was seriously concerned now that she had started bleeding again. As she nears the approaching riders, she asks, **Please Lord, look after Kemal for giving us sufficient time to escape.** <><><><><> [GM] As you get closer, it turns out to indeed be the Aghlabid army, confirming your suspicions that the two armies are finally coming together for a decisive engagement. A squad of cavalrymen with spears veer towards you, but slow as they come close enough to recognize that it is a pair of women. One man, whose face you've seen before but whose name you don't remember, trots closer, frowning at your bare face and head. "Sayidda Agnes!" he says. "What in God's name have you and ibn- Hakim ibn-Daud's other wife been doing?" <><><><><> [Agnes] As she gets closer, she recognises them as Kemal's troops. A feeling of relief his her. What has seemed like days of horror is almost over. Seeing the soldier's frown, she says by way of explanation, "If I hadn't taken off my headgear, you'd probably taken us for berbers, and shot us". "We went looking for ibn-Hakim ibn-Daud. He is alive. After we all escaped, he tarried to allow us to get away, caught us up, and then tarried again." Indicating behind her, she says, "He's still out there, delaying them." Turning back to look at the man, she remembers that the horror still has one last phase. She nods at Antonella. "She desperately needs a doctor. She's lost a lot of blood, and this ride hasn't helped. Can you arrange something for her?" <><><><><> [GM] "By God, Kemal ibn-Hakim is still alive!?" He looks startled, and yells at the other men, "Spread the news to the other commanders! We ride forth not only to crush the infidels, but recover Kemal ibn-Hakim ibn- Daud Hajji!" By the eager response, you know that Kemal must be well- regarded by his troops. He turns back to you. "Nabil, take ibn-Hakim's wives back to camp, quickly!" Nabil nods, looking rather unhappy at being sent away from the impending battle, and gestures for you to follow, as the rest of the men take off to rejoin the army. Nabil leads you all the way back to the camp, where those who remained, mostly the women and other non-combatants, with a small defensive force left behind to protect them, gather to witness your return. You see one young groomer in particular does not look overjoyed to see you again. He fades into the throng, while Nabil loudly calls for the surgeon. Soon you have carried Antonella into the surgeon's tent. It's hard to be optimistic. If anyone in Europe makes a serious attempt at curing an ill or wounded person at all, beyond offering prayers to God, in your experience it usually just hastens the patient's death. How can an infidel do better? The surgeon is a middle-aged man, gruff and disapproving. "Now see what your misadventures have led to?" he chides you. He asks about the nature of her injuries, and nods. "Punctured lung....that's more serious than the whipping. Not often someone survives that, but since she's lived this long, she *might* have a chance. Just how did she get stabbed, anyway?" He presses a hand to Antonella's forehead, then her cheek, then her throat, with surprising gentleness, and nods at whatever he learns by doing this. "All right....forgive me, Sayidda, but for me to treat her, we will have to disrobe her, at least down to the waist. I hope Kemal ibn-Hakim will be understanding. Please do that for me, if you will." He turns away and begins rummaging in a small chest full of potion bottles and other apparatus. <><><><><> [Agnes] She is almost overwhelmed with relief to reach the camp. She forces herself to keep going. She will not let herself rest until Antonella is taken care of. A small smile does flit across her face though, when she spots the groom. She is a bit taken aback by being taken to the middle aged man. She had rather been hoping for some wise woman, with years of experience of herbal remedies. From what she'd seen of city 'chiurgeons' they were apt to bleed the patient whatever the ailment. With the ammount of blood Antonella must have lost already, that would not be a good plan. "It was an upwards thrust towards the area of the heart with a small knife, as far as I could make out from where I was standing," She replies avoiding the full truth. "They were using her to try to get Kemal ibn-Hakim, ibn-Daud to abandon you all." Mentally, she takes a deep breath, and setting aside her own feelings about the matter, continues, "He refused to do so, even though it could have meant both his wives being killed. Instead, he freed himself, and killed sufficient of our torturers to allow me to get away with the girl. He is still alive." She hesitates at his request, but realises she has no real option and moves over to Antonella. As gently as she can, she takes off the headgear and then eases off the Berber clothing from the waist up. She stands on the far side of Antonella fists clenched. **If this charlatan oggles her, touches her inappropriately, or tries to bleed her, I'll floor him, so help me God.** <><><><><> [GM] Blood covers Antonella's chest, having oozed from the two gashes in her breast. Other fluids discolor the wounds. She gasps and sucks in a deep breath as you uncover her, and chokes as she exhales. A liquid bubbling sound comes from the wounds. "There, there," the surgeon says, patting her cheek as he turns around. His eyes move along her torso, tracing her countours, but you can't tell whether he's oggling her or just surveying the damage and looking for other signs of injury. He holds a bottle of some clear liquid, and a clean cloth, and sets a couple of other bottles on the chest by Antonella's head. "This will hurt," he whispers. "But it is necessary. Will you hold her shoulders, please, so she doesn't convulse too much?" <><><><><> [Agnes] She watches him closely. It's only when she looks to see where he's looking that she actually notices the state of Antonella's chest. The sight of the blood and other fluids bubbling out of her friend's chest is unnerving. All the more so, as it was she that struck the blows. She takes hold of Antonella's shoulders, the need to do something rather than watch the bubbling wounds is strong. She starts to pay less attention to the man and more at not thinking about blood and gore bubbling out of the chest under her nose. <><><><><> [GM] The Arab physician wipes the worst of the blood and pus away from the wounds, which causes Antonella to shudder a little. Then he pours some of the clear liquid on the cloth, and wipes that around the wounds. Antonella's eyes flutter open and she cries out, and trembles in your grasp. "Agnes....it hurts!" she whimpers. "Ohhh! Aaaah!" she cries, as the surgeon keeps rubbing the cloth against her breast, apparently trying to clean every trace of blood and fluid off. He presses a cloth-wrapped fingertip against one hole, then the other, causing a sickly reddish-grey fluid to ooze out. You have to look away before your stomach convulses. Antonella keeps crying, and struggling weakly, until the surgeon steps back, discards the cloth, and picks up another one. He unstoppers a second container. A pungent smell immediately issues forth from the brown glass bottle. He pours the dark liquid onto the clean cloth, and says "Almost over..." He presses the stained cloth to Antonella's breast, and the girl SCREAMS and almost lifts her shoulders off the ground, despite your holding her down. <><><><><> [Anges] She holds the girl tightly, trying to hold her still. Agnes feels for her: desperately sorry, now, that she had stabbed her. She struggles to keep her composure throughout the whole painful process. Her mind had drifted, and that was what was probably responsible for her no laying out the man who was inflicting so much pain on her friend. Instead of thinking of his actions and questioning why he was carrying them out, she was instead transfixed by the results of them. **It is all I can do to hold the girl to help her as she screams in agony. Once she becomes immortal, how am I going to be able to drive in a sword against these screams, and then twist it?** She suspects that she and Antonella are two of a kind. **No wonder Peter found it so difficult to run me through.** **I am not going to enjoy her full training ...** at that point her chain of thought is broken by Antonella struggling to rise in agony against Agnes efforts. She glares at the man. "Is it necessary to inflict so much pain upon her?" she asks threateningly. <><><><><> [GM] The surgeon returns your glare. "Are you knowledgeable about wound care?" he demands. "Unless you think she will be better under your care, don't question my methods, woman!" He puts down the stinging, pungent liquid, and picks up *another* flask. In a milder voice, he says "If there was a way to cleanse her wounds and try to prevent rot from setting into them, without causing her pain, I would use it. These potions are painful precisely *because* they are so strong." Antonella is fully awake now, and trembles as she sees the surgeon opening another jar. "No Agnes, please...don't let him!" she whimpers, writhing in your grasp. The surgeon sighs, and then looks at her kindly. "This one won't hurt, child, I promise. It is a soothing ointment for your back." "I'm not a child!" Antonella says petulantly. "I'm...I'm almost seventeen, and I'm married...and-" she starts crying. The surgeon's expression softens further. He looks up at you. "Please turn her over onto her side, Sayidda, gently." <><><><><> [Agnes] She winces a bit from the stinging repost from the man. She supposed that in this culture all men would be filled with self-confidence when dealing with women. His, though, was something more than that: he sounded like he *knew* what he was talking about. Other men would just sound like they *thought* they knew. At his request, Agnes gently eases Antonella over onto her side. She kneels to be at her level. "It's alright, Antonella. I'm here. This man is going to make you better." She clasps Antonella's hand tightly in hers. With the other she gently wipes the tears from her friend's cheeks. "That's right," she says softly, "you're a grown and married woman. A child would not have had the fortitude to go through what you have. You are very brave, and now the need for bravery is almost over.". <><><><><> [GM] Antonella sniffles, then winces as the surgeon begins wiping blood off her back and cleaning the welts and lacerations. More tears well up, and she asks "W..will....will I b- be scarred?" The Arab man inspects her backside clinically. "I don't think so," he says. He runs one finger down her shoulder blade, causing her to shiver, and adds "This one is deeper than the rest, and might leave a permanent mark. It depends how well you heal." Antonella stares at the ground, holding your hand, while the surgeon finishes his work. She sighs as he begins smearing the substance from the third jar on her back. When he's finished, he hands the jar to you. "I take it she was whipped.....lower, as well?" Antonella blushes. "I'll leave it to you to take care of her other wounds. Just clean any blood and dirt off, and apply this unguent." He begins wiping his hands clean. "The girl is unfortunately in a bind, because it would no doubt be more comfortable for her to lie on her stomach, but she cannot. Right now, she is partly breathing through those puncture wounds. They can't be covered until they heal naturally. For the same reason, she should wear only one light layer of clothing over her chest, lest heavy robes cause her to suffocate. Hopefully the holes will seal shut in a day or three." Antonella listens, her mouth drawing up in a frown, at being spoken about as if she wasn't here. The surgeon hands you another bottle, the one with the dark liquid he smeared on her breast the second time, which caused her to scream so. "You must inspect the wounds frequently. If you see any sign of infection...a sickly sweet odor, or puss oozing from the wounds, or the flesh turning discolored, you need to apply more of this acid." Antonella shudders, and he adds "Don't let her whimpering and pleading dissuade you, unless you want her to die to spare her some pain." He gestures at her clothes. "You can get her dressed now....I will call someone to help you carry her back to Kemal ibn-Hakim's tent. And kindly put your veils and headgear back on" <><><><><> [Agnes] The man's 'matter of fact' confidence makes Agnes stay silent. When he has completed his work, she manages a "Thank you." Despite his description of the deteriorated wounds sounding like the very things she will have difficulty dealing with, she replies, "Yes I will inspect them and treat them if necessary." Gently, she eases Antonalla to a sitting position and slips on her Berber shirt. The unravelled headgear she rips in two to provide simple cloths to cover each of their heads. The material looked course enough to see out of in the sunlight. Ensuring they were both respectable, she went out to bring in the men to carry Antonella back to Kemal's tent. She got her carried to the far end of the tent. Once they were alone again, she says, "I will get you a little something to eat and drink, clean the rest of your wounds, and then get you changed into something lightweight. Is that alright with you? Then I'll hold your hand, and tell you some tales. I'll even tell you about seventy-six years," she adds with a smile. <><><><><> [GM] Antonella nods, still looking a little numb. You feel renewed pangs of sympathy and guilt when you finally get a chance to look closely at her whipped back. Angry red lines criss-cross her pale white skin from her shoulders down to the backs of her thighs. Already torn open in some places, her flesh was rubbed raw along the lashes by your long, hard ride, and abraded by all the sand that inevitably got into her clothes and under her skin. It must have been agony for her, and lying on her back for at least the next few days is going to be no more pleasant. Her buttocks are especially red and sore, which adds to her extreme discomfort and loss of dignity. After you give her some food and water, which she desperately needed, she's recovered enough to partially support herself on her elbows, keeping her punctured chest off the ground while you gently rub the surgeon's sticky salve into her wounds. Hesitantly, she asks, "Agnes....what happened....back in the desert? After you fought the Sheykh....Kemal tried to not let me see....he even covered my face....but I saw a bright light, and lightning bolts, and I could feel something, like a prickling, all over...and there was a roaring noise. It was right where I thought you were." Her voice quavers. "I don't understand, how he could DO that! He was going to let the Sheykh kill you! And he...he let the Qaid w- whip me!" She starts choking back tears again. "Would he really have let them whip me to death? And torture you too? And then let you die? Are we really just pretty furniture to him after all, that he'll sacrifice for his...his *honor*?" She spits the word out, imitating the tone she's heard you use in similar arguments with Kemal. "Agnes, I HATE it here!" She begins crying in earnest. "I want to go home!" <><><><><> [Agnes] She rubs in the salve, as she listens in silence to the girl. After a long pause, whilst she struggles to know what to say, she replies, "Sadly, Antonella, it is my belief that he would have allowed any manner of torture to both you and I, and he would not have intervened. That hurts me to know as much as it does you. But I shall let him try to justify himself before doing anything rash." "Thank you for shouting after the Sheykh slashed my leg, Antonella. You saved my life - unlike Kemal." There is another pause as Agnes selects her words. "There is some sort of supernatural effect when an immortal dies the final death, as the Sheykh did. I wasn't really aware of what was going on around me, so I'm afraid I can't really say what you would have seen if Kemal hadn't shielded your eyes." She pats her friend's shoulder. "Once you are better, Antonella, I will take you back home." <><><><><> [GM] Antonella begins asking you other questions- "Are you really, truly immortal? Can you really live forever?" "Why didn't you commit suicide to keep the raiders in Rome from capturing you, then? Or to escape Kemal?" "If another immortal kills you, do you still go to heaven, or hell?" "How old was the Sheykh?" "Have you met many immortals? Is there a way for me to recognize an immortal?" "Does that mean ghosts and vampyres and dragons are real too? And trolls and goblins and witches and devils? I never really believed in them...well, except for devils, I know the priests say devils are real." "If you have children, will they be immortal? Why haven't you had children yet?" "Does Kemal know? What would he do if he found out?" "Do you still love Kemal?" The last question is perhaps the most difficult, and one that you sense Antonella is struggling with herself. Eventually, she drifts off to sleep, exhausted by this long ordeal. As are you, but you can't sleep until you know how everything turns out, out there in the desert..... Late at night, you awake with a start. Despite yourself, you did fall asleep. But now the Quickening has woken you again. You hear someone shaking the outer flap of your tent, and saying urgently, "Sayidda! Sayidda! Muta'asif, Wife of Kemal ibn-Hakim, but please, awaken!" "Your husband is alive, Sayidda, but he is sorely wounded, and he insists that he will only allow you to tend him! The surgeon demands you come and talk some sense into our commander!" <><><><><> [Agnes] "I'm sorry that there are only so many of your questions to which I have answers. But before I answer any, you must promise me that you will tell no-one, ever. I'd likely be tried as a witch, and if you'd let slip the true method of killing me, I would be killed. Do you understand Antonella? I'm telling you this because you are my friend, and I trust you. The fact that I am like this, may be your salvation one day." "As you saw with my efforts when I tried to kill you, I'm not very good at killing people. I'd probably have made a hsh of killing myself too. And whilst unconscious or dead, I cannot defend myself in any way." "As for living forever, that's what I've been told, but most immortals seem to die by the sword eventually. At least that's the impression from the dozen or so that I've met. As for the Sheykh ... who knows? We never got round to polite conversation about our respective roots." "I'm afraid it is not possible for ordinary mortals to recognise immortals, and immortals themselves seem to be especially chosen, by God or the Devil, from birth. It appears that none can have any children." "Kemal knows ... " she says softly, struggling with the next answer ..... "Yes. I do." are the words that eventually leave her lips. ................ At the commotion she throws on a shawl and a veil, and ventures to the tent-flap. "Send my compliments to the surgeon for his efforts with Antonella, but tell him to respect his commander's wishes. I would have my husband brough here now, thank you!" <><><><><> [GM] The man stammers for a moment, then bows. "Yes, Sayidda," he says reluctantly, and departs. Shortly, two men come walking to the tent, bearing Kemal, who has his arms around their shoulders. The surgeon follows, still arguing with your husband. "-damn fool, Kemal ibn-Hakim! I'm sure your wife is very devoted, but love and tender care doesn't fix a spear thrust to the chest!" "Your diligence...is appreciated, Mohammed ibn-Farouk," Kemal gasps, trying to sound like he's in pain (you assume it's an act, anyway). "But I will recover....really, the wound was not as bad as it looked...." "It LOOKED like you shouldn't even be alive!" one of the men holding him up exclaims. "You exaggerate, Hassan, truly," Kemal says. He smiles at you. "Hello, my wife," he says softly. The surgeon growls "Try to talk some sense into him, woman! Stubborn son of a camel!" This reinforces your impression that the surgeon must be a wise and respected man, since you don't know anyone else who could get away with talking to Kemal like that! The man help Kemal into the tent, and lay him gently down at Antonella's side, the girl now stirring. The other men avert their eyes from her, even though she's covered by a thin blanket. Eventually, they withdraw, very reluctantly, leaving the three of you alone. Kemal and you look at one another silently for a moment. Then he sighs, and begins stripping off his blood-soaked robes. "How is she?" he asks, looking down at Antonella, who looks back up at him silently. <><><><><> [Agnes] "It would be more polite and caring of you to ask her yourself." she comments pointedly. "I take it, from the commotion outside, that you are alright, Kemal." She helps him out of his bloddied clothes, but otherwise remains cool towards him. <><><><><> [GM] Kemal pauses, looks at you, and looks back down at Antonella. "Forgive me," he says, after a moment. "Antonella, how are you?" "I'm fine," she says, attempting to sound cool but sounding rather strained instead. She turns her head and faces the other way. Kemal reaches for the blanket, and moves to gently pull it back, but she grabs it. "Don't touch me!" she exclaims. After a moment, her shoulders begin shaking, while she buries her face in her pillow to muffle her sobs. Kemal stares at her for a moment, then stands, shedding the rest of his bloody garments and throwing on a clean sleeping robe. "I am fine," he says simply to you. "I will have to pretend to be wounded for a while. But we won. The heretic tribal alliance has been shattered. We can return to Tunis soon." He keeps his tone carefully neutral. He looks at you, and back down at Antonella, then back at you. "How is she really?" he asks quietly in Spanish. "And you?" <><><><><> [Agnes] She lies in the darkness, eyes open, staring at the tent-top that she cannot see. The silence hangs in the air after his question. Then in Arabic, she says, "I got the impression from your surgeon that she'll live, probably with only the slightest of scarring on her body. I appear to be unmarked." "But, inside are wounds that will never heal." "I had thought that we had become friends. I know now that I was mistaken. Antonella is a friend. Despite what I did to her, she took risks with her own life to try to save me. And save me she did. Without her shout, the Sheykh would have killed me." "I trust her enough to have told her that I am immortal. Enough that I will not speak in Spanish in front of her any more. I trust her with my life. I trust her more than I trust you." She is aware that tears are trickling out of the sides of her eyes, running down the sides of her face. "We rode alone out into the desert for you - to find you, to rescue you, to save you. Because we loved you. Yet, you were willing to sacrifice us both to torture or even to death, for your own ends, Kemal ibn-Hakim, ibn-Daud. How are you any different from the Qaid? How can you expect us to ever trust you or love you ever again?" "Once the girl is better we will leave you to your desert, your religion, your honour." The last she almost spits out. "Then you won't have to worry about troublesome wives that need to be helped to escape." <><><><><> [GM] Kemal is silent also, for a while, before he answers, in Arabic. "You and Antonella are the best, bravest women I have ever known." "I would have died for you. I still would, without hesitation." "I rode after you to save you. My only thought was to get you back to the camp safely." "To see you threatened....to see Antonella...whipped-" he takes a deep breath. "I would rather have taken a hundred times as many lashes myself. In my heart, I did." "When it looked as if Naz Akharmid was about to take your head....I almost stepped forward to smite him from behind, and damn the Rules! Had he slain you, I'd not have waited a second after he rose to his feet before taking his head in turn, regardless of whether he picked up his sword again." "Agnes, there are...three things, in all the world, that are more important to me than my own life." "God Almighty, who causes the sun to rise and set, and whose word was passed on to us through His Messenger, Mohammed, and who desires that the true faith be spread to all mankind." "My honor. The only thing that will endure longer than me...I have no kin, will never have heirs, and my worth in the eyes of God will be determined after my death, so the only thing I will leave behind in this world, no matter what my achievements during my lifetime, is my name....my reputation....my integrity." "And you, Agnes and Antonella, my beloved wives, whom I cherish more than you can possibly imagine." "To save you both, I would have died, and even died with dishonor. If that would have been the legacy I would leave behind, so be it, Allah is merciful and forgiving." "But I would not have died, I would have *lived*, knowing I had forsaken vows I made to the Prophet himself. I would have had to live, because it would have been my duty to see you both safely back to civilization, and then to continue living, because no man has the right to take his own life which God has given him. I would have lived, forever after knowing I had forsaken my God *and* my honor." He has to pause, and then his voice is more even when he continues. "As for your...duel, with Naz Akharmid. I...did not know, what exactly transpired between you before I arrived on the scene, Agnes. I did not know he had already violated the Rules. I knew he was a treacherous, dishonorable pig, but the moment he engaged you in combat....I *thought* the Rules dictated I not interfere. I was taught those rules by a man older than our civilization, older than *your* civilization, who predated even the pagan gods of Greece and Rome and Carthage. He told me they are absolute, immutable, and have been passed on since the beginning of time. Every immortal I have ever met, from every culture, has heard these same rules. How could those same laws be passed on identically to all immortals throughout the world, but that they come from God Himself?" "I did not see that I had a choice, but to pray to God that it was not His will that you lose your head." He takes another deep breath. "And it was not, Agnes!" he whispers intently. "It was not!" In a quieter voice, he adds "I may have made a mistake, Agnes. Given what you told me of the Sheykh's actions prior, I may have been justified in interfering, but *I did not know*! I pray to God for forgiveness, may it come easier from Him than it comes from you." "I....love...you, Agnes. And you, Antonella. I am only a man, I am fallible. I acted as I thought right." "You cannot ask me for more than that....you cannot ask me for more than any man is capable of." Beside you, lying on her side, Antonella breathes steadily, in and out, making a slight rasping sound with each breath. You're not sure if she's still awake and listening, and if she is, you doubt she understood more than the gist of his words. Outside, there is music, loud laughter and cheering, as the Arabs celebrate their victory and the end of the campaign. <><><><><> [Agnes] She lies in silence, listening to his words, hearing him drive the knife in deeper, making the wounds hurt all the more, making her angry. "Enough!!" She rolls over and stands up looking down at him. "You betrayed our trust! Yes, you can excuse it, because of your oath to God, or the Prophet, or yourself, or anyone. That does not alter the fact that would have let us both die! No doubt your honour and bravery would have been held in even more esteem by those outside if we had both died. Your name and achievements would have been even more well known and last longer through history. And that is what is obviously much more important to you than our well- being! I'm sorry that we never appreciated that at the time! We foolishly lowered the tone of the whole episode by whimpering and crying and pleading." Her voice has got louder throughout her tirade. There is no doubt that Antonella can hear her, and were it not for the music and singing in the camp, many others would too. "Maybe next time, now that we know, we'll be able to allow ourselves to be used with composure and bearing, to ensure you are in a position to sacrifice us on the altar to your honour and your God!" And that's the point isn't it? Antonella and I will never know when to rely upon you or when your 'higher calling' will cause you to abandon us or cast us to the wolves!" She turns, and stalks out of the tent. That she is only in a sleeping robe and isn't wearing a veil are not issues that come to the forefront of her mind. She is just ... angry! Most of the camp seems preoccupied with celebrations, and despite making no attempt at concealment as she storms away, she is almost at the edge before she is noticed. "Sayidda Agnes!" the shocked man exclaims, before, accompanied by the words, "Get out of my way!" she floors him with a haymaker. She borrows a horse, and rides and rides until the first light of dawn. For a long time, she is just riding to get the anger out of her system: anger against him, for his honour and religion; against herself for being so minded to forgive him; and even against Antonella for making it difficult for her to just abandon him and this place. After a while the anger has turned to confusion, crying and sobbing. "Why do I still love you, Kemal?" By the dawn, she has worked it all out of her system. She sits on the horse on a slight ridge, red eyed, but alert, hair blowing free in the morning breeze, watching the sunrise. "Well, horse, I suppose we could go back to Kemal now." <><><><><> [GM] When you ride back to camp, you see Kemal coming out to intercept you...he must have been watching for your return. As he pulls nearer, he wordlessly hands you a robe, with a veil. He waits for you to don it, before saying "If you are determined to get revenge by embarrassing me as much as possible, do keep in mind that I am technically NOT the highest ranking person here. To let the behavior you exhibited go unpunished- the expected punishment being a sound beating- will diminish respect for me a great deal....but I accept that, and can get away with telling my men that I will deal with you in my own way, THIS time." "However, if you continue running out of the tent half-naked and striking men, MY commander will *demand* that you be disciplined, publically. He does not want you setting a bad precedent." His voice stays calm and level throughout this speech. When he is done, he wheels his horse about and rides slowly back towards the camp, without looking to see if you're following. <><><><><> [Agnes] She takes the robe from him, and dons it. She listens to him in silence, and just when she is going to respond reasonably, he wheels his horse about and sets off back to the camp. "Oh! Don't lose the respect of your men on my account, ibn-Hakim!" She shouts after him. "After all on account of that I would have received much worse!!" "Beat me to your hearts desire! You know that's what your society demands!!" Standing on the stirrups and yelling at his receding form, she adds, "You might as well! You have nothing to lose and everything to gain!" She felt a pull, urging her to wheel the horse and just ride away. She was tempted, very, very, tempted ... but she'd promised Antonella ... "Oh, damn you Antonella, why did you have to be destined for immortality?" she sighed. She sat upon the stationary horse, watching Kemal enter the camp, from where he left her, suppressing the urge to wheel North and just ride away. But somehow, she just cannot bring herself to return to the camp that suddenly felt oh so oppressive. <><><><><> [GM] Kemal pauses, and glances over his shoulder at you, when you begin berating him. His face is somber, tries to be expressionless, but you see regret and longing in his eyes that he can't quite hide. He turns back around and resumes riding slowly away, as you continue your tirade. You see his shoulders hunch slightly, despite himself, and know that your words are striking like Berber arrows, inflicting wounds that won't heal nearly as fast. It doesn't seem to give you much satisfaction, though. He reenters the camp, and you see a few people gather around him as he dismounts, then disperse, with just a few hovering at the periphery, watching you across the slowly heating sand. <><><><><> [Agnes] Guilt. Guilt and regret. She watches him suffer at her words, and it brings her only pain. She sits on the horse, watching the camp. She watches the sun on the sand, and the heat shimmer start to form. She watches the the reflective shimmer act like water, become like a river between her and the camp, like a sea. She feels the heat rise, as the sun climbs the sky. She resists the desire to ride North. She cannot bring herself to cross the ocean that stands between her and the camp. She sits on the horse, watching. <><><><><> [GM] The heat is becoming unbearable....your robes are soon swelteringly hot. Your horse is beginning to pace and snort restlessly, and will overheat soon if you don't get it to shade. You see a trio of women trudging across the hot sands, seeming to be engulfed in shimmering silver liquid heat as they approach. Finally close enough to speak, Nabila looks up at you, and lifts her own veil to wipe at her forehead, since the only male to see her face here is your horse. "Sayidda Agnes," she says wearily. "Your husband bade us come out and ask if you would please return to camp before you and your horse expire." She frowns disapprovingly. "It's none of my business what's causing this marital dispute that you've insisted on turning into a public spectacle, but you are embarrassing him beyond measure. Any other woman would have been dragged back to camp and horsewhipped by now, for carrying on this way." "Ibn-Hakim ibn-Daud did NOT ask me to say *that*," she adds. <><><><><> [Agnes] She dismounts. "Thank you. I had overlooked the suffering I have been causing the horse." She stands holding the reins. She didn't know what to do! Walking North was out of the question ... probably. To remain here heaps embarrassment and hurt upon Kemal. The other alternative was to go back to the dreadful camp. Oh, how she savoured her time in the desert, even though it had been fraught with danger. She could do what she wanted. Defeated, she led the horse back to the camp. At the stabling area she handed him over to one of the grooms. She picks up a whip, and takes it with her. She enters the tent, pulls down her veil, aand walks over to him. She holds out the whip for him to take. "Here. I have heard I am embarrassing you beyond measure. That hadn't been my intent. You may use this on me to save face." Still maintaining an emotionless look, fighting back the desire to throw her arms around him, she continues, "You do not deserve what I have been doing to you. I will leave. You can say you have sent me back to Tunis. I will come back for Antonella when she's fit." <><><><><> [GM] Kemal takes the whip, looks at it, looks at you. His expression is unreadable. He throws the whip down on the ground. Antonella has been listening, and understood the part about you leaving. "NO!" she exclaims, in Arabic, and then switches to Latin, her voice sounding rather whiny. "Please don't leave Agnes, I don't want to be left *alone* her with...with...." she glances at Kemal, and raises a hand to wipe her eyes, fighting back tears. "We will only be here another two days," Kemal says in a low voice. "The surgeon told me the girl should be able to travel by then, albeit not comfortably." "Until then, I will stay in another tent." "When we reach Tunis, I will make arrangements to have you both safely escorted back to Rome." He turns away and kneels to pick up a bundle of his possessions....his bedroll, his armaments, and some personal items. Everything else in the tent is his as well, of course, except for your own weapons, but he's selected just those things he needs with him. <><><><><> [Agnes] She stands barring the entrance to the tent. "I cannot let you do that," she says quietly to him as he approaches with his bundle. "I will not be a party to causing you more humiliation in front of your people. You will stay here. This is your tent." Her voice catches, as she says, "We are still your wives." "I ..." it catches again and she cannot speak. "I ..." "We ..." She looks at him helplessly, her eyes pleading ... but for what? <><><><><> [GM] Kemal stops, and looks at you impassively. The two of you stare at each other for long moments, and Kemal's impassivity starts to slip. You can see traces of that same regret and longing you saw before... He opens his mouth to speak, but his tongue seems as paralyzed as yours. "Agnes..." he finally manages to say, almost a sigh, but he can't get anything else out, just looks at you helplessly. <><><><><> [Agnes] She struggles to know what to say, never mind actually get the words out. Her eyes speak for her, as the tears well up and spill down her cheeks. "I'm sorry, Kemal," she get out at last, just as the sniffles set in. She knows she is sorry. She has regrets enough about her past actions. She cannot bear to make any decisions about her future ... What if she comes to regret them too? She stuggles and fails to say anything else before she hugs him tight, her head against his chest, sobbing. <><><><><> [GM] Startled, Kemal freezes for a moment. You feel his muscles, hard and coiled like tightly-wound ropes, tense against your embrace. Then, very slowly, he relaxes. His bedroll and bundle of clothes and sword and shield falls to the ground. He puts his arms around you and holds you gently. "Agnes..." he whispers again, in your ear. "I am sorry too." One hand strokes your hair, the other rests lightly against the small of your back. You feel his breathing, slow and measured, and his heartbeat, just a little bit rapid, as you stand there holding one another, and he presses his cheek against your hair. Antonella, still lying on her side, with Kemal's back to her, watches you silently. One hand goes to her mouth as she stares, wide-eyed, speechless and probably even more confused and uncertain than ever. <><><><><> [Agnes] Her sobbing slowly subsides, while she holds him close, listening to his heart, feeling secure in his arms, and banishing to the back any lingering doubts about trust. She slowly turns her head to face him, and kisses him on the lips, a lingering kiss, that turns passionate. <><><><><> [GM] Kemal returns your kiss. The two of you sink to the ground, still embracing, and kissing. His hands slowly begin caressing you in a more intimate manner, through your robes. "Don't mind me," Antonella mutters sulkily, and pulls the blanket up over her head. <><><><><> [Agnes] Her tongue seeks out his, and her caresses are as intimate as his. It takes little time for them both to have shed their robes. She guides him to her, and then she tests his stamina, as she expunges herself of her pent up lust and frustration. <><><><><> [GM] Kemal is even gentler than usual, letting you take the initiative, but no less enjoyable. His stamina, as usual, is superb, but by the time you both sink into each other's arms in an exhausted tangle, he's probably rather glad that Antonella isn't likely to be making demands on him as well. Later, after you've both had time to recover, he runs a fingertip gently down your cheek. "So..." he whispers. "What shall we do now?" "That...is not what I meant," he chuckles, as you reach for him again. "The girl is still very angry at me. I...suppose she is justified, as she suffered the worst of all." "I hope....she will forgive me in time, also. But..." "...do you still both wish to return to Rome?" <><><><><> [Agnes] She lies in his arms, contented, safe, relaxed. "Let's see how things go when we get back to Tunis." "I promised Antonella I'd take her back home. If, after a spell of normality there she still wants to return home, then I suppose I must take her back." She puts her arms around him again. "I was very angry with you, Kemal. I'm sorry that my anger let me say things that were hurtful to you, and let me do things that were embarrassing to you." She holds him tighter still as she remembers her hurtful words, and the injured look on his face. "I love you, Kemal, ibn-Hakim, ibn-Daud." she whispers in his ear. <><><><><> [GM] Kemal responds wordlessly, holding you and caressing you, kissing your cheeks, and your lips, and your throat.... all the tension that has knotted his body for the last two days is finally released. After all your energy is spent, he is content to lie with you for the rest of the morning....until Antonella begins shifting restlessly, probably getting tired of pretending to be asleep beneath her blanket. And soldiers begin coming past the tent, clearing their throats and calling out hesitantly - "Sayid? A thousand pardons, ibn-Hakim ibn- Daud, but....the commander awaits you in his tent..." "Ibn-Hakim, the cavalry officers require the watch rotation and patrol assignments-" Kemal sighs, and kisses you one more time, very tenderly. His eyes have regained the luster they lost during the entire episode with the Berbers, and your subsequent fight. "I still have my duties," he whispers. He rises, and dresses. "When we return to Tunis, I...I will make up for this, somehow," he says...glancing at the huddled lump that is Antonella. He pauses, as if hoping she'll say something, but she doesn't, and he sighs and exits the tent. <><><><><> [Agnes] She lies where he left her, tingling all over. "I'm glad I don't have any duties", she says quietly to herself, as she lies, exhausted, satisfied. And then she realises that she does! "Damn! I'm sorry Antonella." She gets to her feet shakily, and goes over to kneel by the girl. "Let me check your wounds, and then I'll get you something to eat and drink." <><><><><> [GM] Antonella sits up, frowning petulantly at you. "You sure made up quickly enough," she mutters, sounding almost resentful. She hesitantly lowers the blanket to let you look at her chest. The wounds are still open, with a little blood oozing around the edges, but they're bubbling less, and Antonella's breathing is a little bit better. Her back is another story. The welts have become angry red inflammations, and she winces when you lightly touch her. She cannot lie on her stomach, but lying on her back is aggravating the sores there- apparently she can't stay lying on her side while she's asleep. <><><><><> [Agnes] She regards the wounds on her back. "I am going to have to rub some of the cream stuff over your back Antonella. I'll try to be gentle." As she applies the ungent, she winces with every one of Antonalla's winces. As a distraction she talks about the events with Kemal. She says, "If I hadn't made up then, I doubt that we would ever. If I had let him go to another tent, I would have caused him even more embarrassment and loss of face. I would have still been raging at him. We would have built a wall of silence and rage. Both of us would have refused to make the first move, and that's the way it would have stayed. We would have grown to hate each other. Kemal and I are too alike. I knew that my only chance to turn things around was there at the tent flap, when he was going to leave. I knew that I had to set aside my stubbornness, my determination to inflict hurt upon him in revenge, my determination that he should make the first move. Even then, I almost couldn't do it. I had to do it, or I would have lost him forever." She stops rubbing in the ungent, and looks at the girl. "Antonella - I love him. Despite his faults, despite what he did and didn't do out there in the desert, I know in my heart of hearts I love him, and I doubt I will ever find another like him." She relives the moments .... "I could feel him untense in my arms, unwind from the tension of the desert, from the barbs I had inflicted upon him." She starts gently applying the ungent to the wounds again. "When you are completely better, you can decide if you want to go back to Rome. I will come with you, as I promised, but I will be leaving Kemal on good terms rather than bad. I did not want to leave him with the two of us feeling the way we did about each other." "If you give him a chance, he'll try to make amends with you. I shan't pressurise you, it's your decision." <><><><><> [GM] Antonella, still clinging to her outrage and indignation, and pain and fear, says "He *allowed* them to whip me!" She winces as you treat another mark of that whipping. "He could...could have made them stop. How could he allow them to do that to me? How could he just stand there?" "And you were so furious last night, when you left I was afraid you were never coming back!" She shudders. "I don't know if I can forgive him, Agnes." "He can be very kind. And...and I really enjoyed....you know." "I'm just not sure if I can bear to be a Saracen's wife forever. It's easy for you, if you're going to *live* forever, you can just wait until he dies....but am *I* supposed to hide inside, and wear robes and veils whenever I go outside for the rest of my life, and never see a proper church, or a green hillside for that matter?" She turns her head, and looks back over her shoulder, trying to see her own backside. "Do you think I'm going to scar?" she asks plaintively. <><><><><> [Agnes] "Yes, Antonella, he allowed them to whip you, just like he would have allowed the sheykh to kill me. It is just the way he is. It made me *so* angry that I just had to ride it out my system. And then this morning ... well, I was sorely tempted to just ride away, but I couldn't just abandon you." "It wouldn't have to be forever. I met Kemal in Aquitaine, so it's not as if he doesn't travel. And if you do want to go back to Rome at a later date, I'm sure he would make the arrangeements." She looks at the weals with her inexperienced eye. "I don't know if you'll scar or not. I'll try to keep you on your side, rather than your back tonight. That ought to help the scars heal." Having been thinking about it to herself for a while, she says, "Antonella, I would like to stay with Kemal for a few years at least, and I would like you to stay with me. " <><><><><> [GM] Antonella is silent for a while, then turns and looks at you. "A few years may not seem like much to you, but that's a lot of my life!" She struggles to sit up, gasping for a moment. "Can we wait until we're back in Tunis for me to decide?" She rests her hands on her knees. "I am kind of hungry now. And I, umm, have to use the latrine." She regards you with youthful blue eyes. "After breakfast, will you tell me about all those years you've been alive?" she asks. The fact that she's starting to bubble with questions again is probably a good sign....her health must still be improving, and the more she thinks about other things, the more her anger at Kemal is likely to fade. Antonella isn't a girl whose mind usually stays on one thing for very long. <><><><><> [Agnes] The girl's comment stops her short. She thinks back to when she was sixteen. The summer seemed forever. The haymaking was only a fortnight and it seemed to last months. She had forgotten how slowly time passed for a teenager. "Yes, of course, Antonella. You don't have to decide right away. Shall we just leave it that we'll defer going back to Rome, until you decide that that is what you want to do?" She helps the girl to her feet, and then slips a robe and veil on her. It is only as she is doing so,that she realises she is still naked from the night. As she slips on a robe and veil herself, she remarks to herself how relaxed and comfortable she is with Antonella - a true friend. "Let me help you to the latrine Antonella. Then I'll prepare you some breakfast." Once back in the tent, she makes sure Antonella is comfortable again. As she is preparing breakfast, she starts to tell the girl about life in a fishing village in darkest Northumbria.