Medina

Medieval 5: K and Y 12 Time to Go, part 2 of 3

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Yasmina

Yasmina mounted and wiped the tears from her own eyes as they walked their horses to the main gate. Al-Rahim led the procession through the streets with Ahmed beside him. Yasmina and Aisha rode side by side, and the two from the harem guards followed. After that, some thirty regular guards from the palace came two by two. That was most unusual. Normally, regular guards were not allowed anywhere near the women. In this case, al-Rahim left most of his contingent in the harem to do their duty.

As they moved slowly through the town, Yasmina saw fear on many faces. The people were not yet in a panic, but near enough. The Qarmatians laid siege to the city, and when they could not break in, their leader, Abu Tahir Sulayman al-Jannabi demanded entrance to the holy city as is the right of all pilgrims. Yasmina’s father felt he had no choice but to comply, though he had every intention of getting his daughter safely out of the city first.

Al-Rahim picked a gate where the enemy was most thinly arrayed. “Walk the horses,” he commanded. “They claim to be peaceful pilgrims. Let us give them a chance to prove it.”

The enemy stared at them in disbelief and uncertainty but made no move to stop them until the end. Someone started shouting in Persian. Aisha translated. “They are ordered to stop us.”

“Ride,” Al-Rahim shouted, and they began to gallop along the rugged path. A couple of arrows followed them, but they missed or fell short. When they got to the top of a rise, Al-Rahim stopped and turned to look back. It did not take long for the Qarmatians to get their own horses and follow. “Ahmed,” al-Rahim said and pointed. Ahmed nodded and began to shout orders. Al-Rahim started down the other side of the rise without another look back. Yasmina and Aisha followed with the two harem guards behind them.

Al-Rahim made them ride hard for an hour before he let them get down and walk their horses for a half-hour. Even without any sign of pursuit, they mounted and rode hard again. This became a pattern, and by the end of the day, Yasmina’s horse and her feet were worn out.

The guards set up a tent in the wilderness, out of sight from the path. Al-Rahim supplied them with cold food and said, “Bundle up. No fire tonight.” Honestly, Yasmina did not care. She found two blankets. She laid down on one, covered herself with the other, and fell asleep before Aisha could finish tying the tent flap closed.

In the morning, moving at a more even and humane pace, they joined the regular road to Medina. Yasmina tried hard to not say anything when she was told it would take them ten or twelve days to get there. At least they did not have to gallop the whole way.

Al-Rahim always managed to find them food, even when they camped in the wilderness. They passed some pilgrims over those days, though the pilgrim business had slimmed way down since the Qarmatians began attacking pilgrim trains. They also passed some merchant caravans. When they camped near a watering hole one evening, though not too near for fear of the wild animals that might come and water in the night, they got invited to supper by one of those caravans. The merchants were anxious to hear the news about the road ahead. They could not tell the merchants much, but they all enjoyed the little feast, so it was a good evening.

They stayed in a few villages along the way where there was a bed for the princess. Yasmina greatly appreciated that, especially since Aisha knew a spell that would cause all the insects to vacate the bed and stay gone for at least twelve hours. They also passed many farms, though they only stayed one night in a man’s barn. No one told the man who Yasmina was, and the guards had taken to wearing plain cloaks over their armor, so they looked like ordinary hired men, no doubt hired to safely escort the two women to Medina.

When they finally arrived in Medina, Yasmina sighed her relief. They went straight to the palace, and though they were a surprise visit, the servants in the palace made them welcome. Yasmina got her mother’s room and Aisha got the pick of several beds in the big room that were for Mother’s maids, or the little room beside Yasmina’s room where Mother’s personal assistant stayed. Aisha chose the single small room and invited two of the older ladies to move into the dormitory-like room so they would be close to hand if needed.

It was a relaxing time, and Yasmina played pilgrim, or maybe tourist and saw all the special places that connected to the Prophet in the first days of the faith. Sadly, it was hardly a week before al-Rahim came rushing in.

“Time to pack,” he said.

“What?” Yasmina wondered what was up. “We just got here.”

“The Qarmatians are a day out from the city. Two at most. They sacked Mecca, and I have no doubt they plan the same for Medina. Get packed.”

“But where will we go?” Yasmina shouted after the man, but he was already headed toward the stables.

“Come on,” Aisha said. “Just bring what you did last time and let’s get going.”

Yasmina changed into her riding clothes and then called for her armor. The virtue of that was when she called for her regular clothes, she would be clothed again in her riding clothes, just in case. Yasmina grumbled quietly as she changed. “But my feet haven’t recovered from the last time.”

“You will toughen up,” Aisha answered, of course having heard with her good elf ears. “Kirstie and Yrsa used to row with the men for hours.”

“I could do that. I got muscles,” Yasmina said. She showed her skinny little arm and Aisha chose not to respond.

Kirstie

Kirstie had to wait three weeks for the little ones in the far north to collect six walrus tusks and bring them to Strindlos. They also brought a polar bear skin, one expertly taken from a large animal that finally succumbed to age. They also reported seeing some frost giants in the area, which did not sound good.

The bear skin was a good addition because it made up for the fairies who could only offer one large pot of honey with the wax. That was very kind of them to offer any honey at all since honey was a big part of their diet. Buttercup insisted and Mariwood supported her. Lord Bjork grumbled, but Lady Bellflower was glad to do it, so the fairy king did not argue.

Lord Amber was the only one that teased Kirstie. “I heard you say this was a one-time deal.”

“Father!” Yrsa scolded her father with the word, but her father smiled.

Kirstie also smiled when she said, “So this is another-time deal.” She paused a second before she said, “I sound like a dwarf.” Alm laughed.

Lord Amber agreed. “It does sound a bit like dwarf logic,” he said, before he handed over a second basket of amber. “Good thing I saved the second basket.” So, all got settled and Kirstie got ready to go.

Kirstie felt reluctant to ask Yrsa to accompany her on this trip. She and Alm were so happy, and still like newlyweds, though Kirstie understood that newlywed phase for elves might last a hundred years. Yrsa interrupted Kirstie’s thoughts when she asked, “So when are we leaving?”

“Are you sure you want to go?” Kirstie asked. “I was just thinking what a great mom you will be. Don’t you want a little Yrsa baby?”

Yrsa looked at Alm and he smiled, but then she turned right back to Kirstie and spoke plainly. “We talked about it. A baby would be wonderful, but right now you are still my baby. I need to come, and help you in any way I can, and be the wild she-bear you once called me, to watch over you. I know it will be dangerous, but I have my bow and I think I’m getting pretty good at it. So, when are we leaving?”

Kirstie rolled her eyes at the thought that Yrsa was only getting pretty good with her bow. Yrsa could fire three arrows in the time it took her to fire one, and she could hit the bullseye with all three. But Alm spoke next.

“We talked about it,” he repeated Yrsa’s words. “But right now, I have two boys like sons, Oswald and Edwin. They need to be watched and taught many things before they will be ready to take over running the farm. Besides, I have a handful of dwarfs to mess things up, and a mostly troll to keep fed. The glamour we managed around Vortesvin helps, but he still looks like a giant. Not anything we can do about that.”

Kirstie nodded. “We go the day after tomorrow. Right now, we need to get Booturn, Bucket, Toodles, Buckles, and Tiny to help carry the things to the ship.”

“Vortesvin might help,” Yrsa suggested, but Kirstie shook her head.

“The whole village knows I have a giant helping on the farm. Some have seen him rip boulders and whole tree stumps right out of the ground. It is one thing to know there is a friendly giant in the distance, but it would be quite another to have him parading through the streets. Alm, I leave it to your judgment, but I think it might be best for him to avoid direct contact with the humans of Strindlos. The dwarfs at the blacksmith’s shop are bad enough.”

“Understood,” Alm did not disagree. “Besides, he is completely enchanted by Fiona. He hardly wants to let her out of his sight.”

Kirstie threw her hands up. “I don’t want to hear about it,” she said.

Medieval 5: K and Y 1 Twins not Twins, part 3 of 3

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“Where are we going?” Kirstie asked.

“You need to tell Chief Birger what you just told me.”

Kirstie nearly stumbled. She did not get dragged willingly, but she did not really resist. When they got to the big house Inga did not think twice about butting into the middle of the men. “Tell them,” Inga insisted. “Tell them what you just told me.” The older men were polite enough to listen.

Kirstie noticed the looks of sympathy that covered the men’s faces, but she quickly looked at Inga and repeated what she said, beginning with the idea that there must be a power driving the Vanlil to come and fight or otherwise they would have no reason to risk their lives for strangers. When she finished, the men nodded, like they may have been thinking something in that direction but maybe did not spell it out quite so clearly. Then Chief Birger said something to Kirstie that struck home.

“I’m so sorry.” That was all he had to say.

Kirstie felt the tears come into her eyes and she shouted for her mother. She ran out of the big house, Inga on her heels, yelling. “No. We have to go to Mother Vrya. We are supposed to stay with the Witcher Women. Kirstie! Come back.”

Kirstie ran all the way home. Inga gave up at last and walked the final leg. When Inga arrived, she found Kirstie on her knees, weeping. The house still burned. The livestock had scattered. The dead littered the ground. A dozen men, including Captain Kerga stood around staring at the destruction and talking softly about getting shovels to bury the bodies or maybe building a funeral pyre. The spring was full on, but the ground might still be too hard to dig deep. Kirstie’s mother and baby sister were gone. Dorothy was dead, her arms wrapped around Kirstie’s dead dog, Toto. The three farmhands, the lion, the scarecrow, and the tin man all died, but they took a half dozen of the enemy with them, so it was a battle.

“To make war on women,” one man yelled. “These Vanlil have no honor.”

Captain Kerga responded in a loud but calmer voice. “Their ways are not our ways.” He kicked the boot of a dead man. “But I remember this one from so many years ago. He lived in Haudr above the Skaun before King Harald came.”

“Captain,” a man interrupted. “It looks like the women picked up weapons. I would guess they tried to defend themselves.”

Kirstie sat and cried for a long time, but eventually, Inga got her to move.

Inga took Kirstie to Mother Vrya’s hut where they had a cot already made for her. The Witcher Women on that farm consisted of three older widows of the sea and the Viking lifestyle where the men lived with the constant threat that they might die on some distant shore. Sometimes, such women had no prospect of remarriage, and had no offspring to care for them. Younger women always had a chance to remarry, but some older women had nowhere else to go, and often died before their time. The Witcher Women cared for one another and stayed alive, farming a little, and making textiles for the village.

Mother Vrya was the Volve, which is the seer and something like a shaman. She had chosen Inga to teach and pass on her knowledge and skills, and Kirstie got to sit in on some of the lessons. Mother Vrya built a place on the edge of the village and invited the widows to live on her land. Kirstie was not the first orphan child the Witcher Women cared for, and she would not be the last. Caring for the orphans was another way they helped the village, and the village respected the women in return.

When Kirstie was shown where she would sleep, she fell to the cot and curled up under the blanket. She refused to get up for supper and spent most of the night in tears, eventually crying herself to sleep.

In the morning, Inga found Kirstie down by the docks. “My father should be coming home soon,” Kirstie said. “I will wait here.”

Inga frowned. “That could be months from now.”

“I will be safe here, by the fjord. There are farms and mountains with cliffs to my left. The Vanlil will not come from that direction. To my right are the docks.” She pointed to where Captain Kerga’s longship and a Karve, a fjord trading ship rested, and some men were milling about. “And beyond the docks are the ship builders. The exiled chiefs and men may come for the ships, but there are men there, workers and such to fight them while I escape. I will be safe here where the skiffs and fishing boats come to land.”

Inga put her hands to her hips and deepened her frown. “And what will you eat? And how will you shelter from the storms?”

“I will be fine,” Kirstie insisted. “You have lessons to attend and much to learn from Mother Vrya. Don’t worry about me.” Kirstie turned her head to look out on the fjord. She did not want Inga to see her tears.

Inga may have wanted to reach out and grab Kirstie’s wrist again to drag the girl back to Mother Vrya’s place, but she kept her hands to herself and opted to bargain instead. In the end, Kirstie agreed to let one of the Witcher Women bring her food in the morning, and she agreed to come to Mother Vrya’s at sunset for supper and to sleep on her cot. But otherwise, Kirstie insisted on staying by the docks and waiting for her father to return.

Yasmina

Yasmina stood by her mother looking out from the upper floor window. Yasmina waved to her father who was going to Medina, a whole host of soldiers following him. She never saw much of her father, but he was always nice to her when she did see him. She never saw much of her mother, ether, for that matter. She had plenty of duties of her own. Mother was more strict, but she generally hugged Yasmina and genuinely cared about her.

Suddenly, Yasmina began to weep great big tears. She practically wailed, and her mother was right there to say, “Yasmina, your father will be back. He has made this trip before. He is going for thirty days, and he will be right back. Why are you crying?”

Yasmina reached out and hugged her mother. “Just don’t leave me,” she said between her tears. “Don’t ever leave me.” She held on to her mother thinking Kirstie could never do that again.

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Monday

Kirstie is gifted by the gods and Yasmina does not know what to think about that. Meanwhile, Kirstie is told something important. It is a matter of life and death. Until then, Happy Reading.

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