The Journey Begins
The Black Void - Episode 6881
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Now that's what I call a lucky escape. Still, none of us want to take any chances - who knows when the next search party could come along? We all pile into the boat as quickly as possible, and begin to cross the river, Usman and Mileena pulling the oars. During our crossing, Aisha stays hunched in the stern of the boat, hands over her head, whimpering softly. Daniyah sits beside her, hand on her shoulder, whispering to her to try and calm her down. I know these two would stick together anyway - from our time in the harem, I know they both came from Sherazed, a small town to the southeast of the Vale - but there's something deeper here that I'm not sure I want to pry into. Besides, there's two groups among us with that sort of bond - the three men, and Aisha and Daniyah. They're our two islands of stability in this turbulent situation. "So, you and Usman and Munaf all seem to be old friends. How do you know each other?" I ask Teran once the search party's left. "Ah, we all fought in the same regiment in the Laralian War. Ever wonder how I lost my eye, or how Munaf lost his balls? Yeah, them Laralian gaolers could be very creative with their punishments." Teran shakes his head. "We got discharged after the Battle of Garazed. Probably our greatest failure. You might not want to ask Usman about that, he's very touchy about it."Eventually, we land the boat on the other side of the river, and we leave it in a small knot of trees. "We should keep moving," Munaf declares. "You heard what Majid said. There's other search parties out for us, and they'll not be as merciful as he was." "But we're so tired!" Aisha complains. "Can't we at least have a rest?""No," Munaf says firmly. "The guards could be right behind us, for all we know. I don't think they can get across on the boat now that it's on this side, but the next bridge is only ten miles away to the east, and it's an easy path through the hills to where we are now. We need to cover at least twelve miles before we lose them. You knew what you were getting into when you came with us, girl. We can rest when the sun comes up, but not until then." "What about Ranya?" Sefira puts in. "She's pregnant. Too much strenuous exercise... we don't want to damage the baby."As if to answer her, I feel the baby kick inside me. Sefira's awakened some doubts in me - this journey shouldn't be too difficult, but that's for me in a normal state. The baby changes everything. What should I decide?
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3/14/2012 5:58:06 PM
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