WINNER OF READERS CHOICE AWARDS 2020 (Historical Fiction)
Stone hearts.
Silver to gold.
And the fierce need to prove oneself.
Highest ranks: #1 in Arabia || #3 in History || #51 in Assassin || #90 in Spiritual
A/N: apologies for the wait! This is not a super long chapter but I hope you like it nonetheless. You asked for Falaq and HUD's POV so I have put in Falaq's. I have also included Ishtar because I felt we needed to check in on her. I would like to get to know y'all a bit better! So what countries are you reading from?
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Every moment that passes in this deafening silence reminds me my heart beats for nothing. My body functions as though a perfect tool, but one with as much life as a sword. Without reason, it had no use. I am perfection without purpose.
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Recap: Ishtar is currently lost in the desert. Taimur ordered Zuhair to assassinate Marwan but Marwan foiled the attempt just in time. Falaq, Hudayfa and Nuh are travelling soundly following the trail of the army. They approach a desert village wherein the inhabitants are mightily superstitious. They do not like Falaq's eyes, fearing she is possessed. They attempt to destroy them, by asking her to wear a cloth soaked in harmful substances which causes Falaq to experience agonising pain. Falaq blacks out.
I S H T A R, رَبِيعٱلْأَوَّل T H E O A S I S
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Ishtar could not dare leave the precious water hole. Every time she ventured any further than a few yards, panic had her return. It was the only source of life in the vast oasis before her.
Three days. It had been three days since she had been made to flee the marketplace. Three days since she had seen a single, living human in any of the four directions the eye could see. The horses had settled here as well, and though they listened to her musings, they offered no solution for escape- after all, they needed sustenance too.
During the nights, Ishtar was terrified. The silence was deafening, and the sand swirled in unnatural ways. The stars above were a sight to behold, but she had never known how to use them for navigation, and now they only reminded her of how far away everything was.
She missed her bickering parents terribly. Her sisters. She missed Amaan. She was also angry at him for making her leave without him. Had he not grasped in his time around her that she had no clue how to fend for herself? As wise as he seemed to be, this sure had been a foolish move.
And she could not survive on water alone. She needed food, fast. Her stomach protested severely. She felt almost sick. The relentless heat and the cold nights did not do well for her.
It was the third evening. She had taken her hundredth sip of water, trying not to think about the muzzles of the horses that too had dipped in the small pool.
