The Jewel of Zecaj | ONC 2022

07🔸Badriya

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Time and time again during her voyage throughout Zecaj, Badriya told herself that the reward would be hers, that the gold would be in her pockets. All of it hers to keep.

Now she regretted the idea of splitting it with someone. Especially someone like Ayaz.

He is worth the trouble because of his skills, she reassured herself. He would only take a tiny portion of my gold, and besides, he's well off my ally than my enemy.

After their filling meal, Badriya and Ayaz headed out of the diner and returned to the man they paid to tend their horses. Then, with Badriya this time in the lead, they rode out of the province and into its outskirts while maintaining a light pace.

"So. . . when are you going to tell me about it?" Ayaz asked after a while.

Badriya exhaled. "Sabar, will you? I was about to get to it."

He raised his arms in surrender. "Alright, I'll wait."

Clucking her tongue, she panned her gaze at the sandy expanse in front of her. A few shrubs grew here and there, but nothing else was there to see.

They ventured further. It was late in the afternoon, but the sun was still at its highest peak. Sweat rolled off Badriya's brow. She wiped it with the back of her hand before pulling her scarf down as a hood to shield her face.

Badriya would usually be inside a shelter or some sort of shade until the sun had set, just like any other sane person who wished to live longer. She wanted to do that right now, but she needed to brave the sweltering heat if she were to get to the Jewel before anyone else.

"An acquaintance of mine knows someone who has an inkling of the Jewel's location," she said. "He told me that she lives here in the south, but he did not give me the exact place where this person resides in."

"Is your acquaintance called Rashid?" he asked.

She shot him a side glance before looking back ahead. "No, he's not."

"Will you at least tell me who are we looking for?"

"Her name's Tehzib," Badriya said. "She's a nomad, I believe."

Ayaz made a humming noise. "A nomad? I have also been told that nomads have certain knowledge about the Jewel."

"Oh," she said. "At least we now know that we are on the right track."

A couple of tents popped into view, along with a herd of goats grazing by. Badriya drove Nahar faster towards them, urging Ayaz to catch up. As they trotted into a stop near the tents, several people in simple garbs emerged from the larger of the tents, their gazes curious at the newcomers. Three children peeked from behind the tent's supports. A couple of older, identical girls stood silently as a particularly buff man in a thobe stepped forward to meet them. For some reason, he did not look very pleased.

"How many times do we have to tell you that we didn't steal the goats!" the man thundered. "We will hear none of your accusations!"

What a way to welcome someone, Badriya thought.

Ayaz dismounted from his horse. "We assure you, we are not here for your herd. We're mere travelers looking for someone."

The man harrumphed. "Whoever you're looking for, you won't find them here. None of us are too important for you to care. Go away."

"We do not wish to waste each other's time so we will be quick." Badriya jumped down from Nahar. "Do you know a woman by the name Tehzib?"

The man paused. One of the girls inside the tent looked at the other in concern.