Chapter 3! So if you're ever bored, you can check out this huge story I'm making!
Woo! Longest chapter I've written so far! And here's another fun fact:
Linfan is a reference to the FullMetal Alchemist characters, Ling Yao and Lan Fan. It wasn't really meant to look like a shipname but it is what it is.
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I thought that the previous ending to this chapter wasn't really good so I edited it and fixed it.
"Why are we stopping?" The cowled woman asked.
"We're at a considerable distance from Zanan. Now get off."
"What?"
"I said: Get off. Now."
"You're just going to leave me here in the middle of the nowhere?"
"No. We're both going to stay here in the middle of nowhere. Until you answer my questions."
"Answer your questions?"
"You said you'd explain later. Well now it's 'later'. Explain."
"Fine, fine..Ask away."
"Let's start with your name."
"Afsa."
"Alright. Why was that man chasing you?"
"It's a little complicated."
"How complicated?"
"What is this? An interview?"
"You said–"
"Okay alright fine. I said I'd explain. I get it.
Y'know that large mansion-like house in Zanan?"
"I've seen it, yes. What of it?"
"It belongs to the landlord. And the landlord is my father."
"You're really bad at lying."
"I'm serious."
"Oh really? And what was that man doing chasing you?"
"I don't know. He must've been an assassin or something. I think he wanted the secret to my father's treasury."
"What kind of an assassin shouts at you like a mad man whenever you run away?"
"I um......I'm not....um.."
"Still lying? There's nowhere for you to go from here. Tell me the truth."
"Alright. You got me. I lied about that man. But I really am the land lord's daughter."
"Mmhm."
"My father only cares about his money while his wives and daughters clean up. I always wanted to go out there and explore and learn about the desert instead of dusting and scrubbing the floor all the time. So when I saw you going towards the stables, I knew that this was my chance to escape. So I got out but the guard saw me and tried to stop me. You know the rest."
"That has got to be the weakest lie. Ever."
"I'm serious."
"You're lying."
"No, I'm not!"
"Really? Are you really not lying?"
"Yes! I mean no. I mean, yes."
Safr glares at Afsa and says,"Fine."
Afsa lets out a sigh of relief before Safr interrupts,"But if you lie to me again. You're getting worse than being left alone in the desert. Got it?"
"Affirmative! But wait. You didn't tell me where you're going." Afsa asked.
"And I should tell you that, why?"
"I just explained myself to you. Now it's your turn."
"Well seeing as you lied, I think it's not necessary."
"Whatever you're doing, maybe I can help you."
"I don't need help. Especially not from you."
"What if I said, "Please."?"
"No."
"C'mon!"
"No."
"I'm going to keep on asking until you spit it out."
"Then it looks like I'll have to bear with it."
Eventually, Safr got annoyed and then told her about Siin because she "wouldn't shut up for a second."
"I was going to go to the Mahoor to get some supplies and prepare myself. The Northern Raiders took Siin. And I need to get her back."
"You're going to get her back? By yourself? In that condition? I saw them bring you in with that arrow in your arm. You probably haven't even healed yet!"
"My safety does not matter. All that matters is that I get Siin back from those barbarians."
"Even if you didn't have that injury, you'd still get beaten easily by them. You need help."
"I'm considering it. But I know I won't need it when I'm ready."
----------
After that friendly little chat, they rode on to Mina. The small mining town that usually serves as a pit stop for travellers between Shura and the Mahoor.
This is where Safr had worked as a child. Coming back here always reminds him of his younger days and not the good memories. Mining here is always risky. Mina has the largest coal supply in the country of Ahraq but this doesn't stop miners from dying of poisonous gases and black lung disease.
Most of the mines are outside of town. Safr and Afsa see the miners coming in and out of the mineshaft with their dirty clothes covered in coal dust(Safr shivers for a moment without Afsa noticing and then continues walking while holding the horse's lead) and some meters closer to the town, stairs that run down into a ravine where workers are mining out and digging the raw metals.
Afsa was seemingly nervous. She wore her cowl and covered her face. As they arrive in town, they can see a few residential houses, a general store, an inn with a stable and there's also another mineshaft to the far western side of town. Safr takes the horse to the stable where a a man is sitting on a wooden chair. He says,"2 silver for keeping horses in here." and Safr pays.
Afsa already went into the inn. Safr came in and saw Afsa eating bread at a table in the corner of the inn. He took a seat at the bar and ordered a drink. When the bartender saw Safr, his face lit up.
"Safr! Is that really you? It's been so long and you haven't even changed a bit!"
"I'm sorry. Who are you?"
"It's me. Conan. Remember?"
"Conan? Really? You look like a completely different person. But I thought you worked at the mines."
"I did. But I eventually I grew sick of the place. Literally. I can't spend a minute in there without suffocating! So I saved my money and built this place. Might as well do something that I'd actually like to do for once. By the way, I've heard that many parts of the mines have been collapsing and breaking down recently."
"Collapsing?"
"Yeah. Nobody knows why. According to them, whatever is causing it definitely isn't normal."
"I see."
"Yep. Just breakin' down like there's no tomorrow."
"That is unusual. But it's not what I came here for."
"Oh?"
"We're—I'm heading out to the Mahoor to get some supplies and some information."
"Information on what?"
"Northern Raiders."
"WHAT!?"
Everybody starts looking at these two.
Conan says,"Umm.....What would you like to drink, sir?"
Conan whispers,"Are you crazy!? You don't talk about the Northern Raiders! Never!"
"Why not?"
He whispers again,"Have you never heard the rumors? They're ruthless murderers. They attack all kinds of travellers. They raid caravans. And worst of all, they're everywhere! Why am I even talking about this?"
"Everywhere?" Safr replies in a low voice.
"Yes. Everywhere. You need to be careful because they're always watching.
"These barbarians have disguises?" Safr asks
"You can't tell them from someone else and they can kill you without anyone hearing or seeing it."
A loud noise came from the back as if a table was broken. Safr, shocked, looked back. A table was broken! A brute man lay on a broken table and he looked as angry as you'd look if somebody would break your computer and all of your devices for fun. Afsa was standing in front of him. And now Safr was really confused.
"HEY!" Conan called. "No fighting allowed in the inn! You wanna kill each other, go outside!"
The brute man stood up, angry, threatened Afsa,"I'M GONNA RIP YOU APART LIMB FROM LIMB AND THEN CHEW ON YOUR BONES LITTLE GIRL!"
Afsa, with a determined look on her face, took a combat pose. Now try to imagine how confused Safr is at the moment.
The man tried to deliver a punch, but Afsa dodged and hit him in the stomach and then on the face. When she tried to get at him once more with a kick, he grabbed her foot and threw her out the window. The broken pieces of glass cut her cowl and gave a cut on her palm when she tried to get up. The brute got out through the door and charged at her and she managed to dodge.
At this point people were looking out of windows, standing near their doors and making bets on who the winner would be.
Safr came out and ran to them, trying to help out. Now this was obviously a stupid thing to do, so Afsa shouted:
"NO! SAFR! STAY BACK! YOUR ARM—" Afsa got a swift punch to the face and got knocked down. "Oof!"
The brute tried to charge again at her but Safr jumped on him.
"Why don't you fight somebody your own size, you son of a-" Safr got an elbow to the kidney before finishing his sentence and fell to the ground.
Safr quickly got up and then took out his sword with his left hand(he was right-handed and this left him at a disadvantage). Seeing this, the brute unsheathed his war-axe.
The brute swung his axe and Safr tried to block with his sword but failed and he was disarmed and then kicked in the gut. The brute came and was about to go for the killing blow when he suddenly felt two sharp stings in his back.
Afsa stabbed him with two of her daggers. And then pulled them out. And the brute fell, dead, with blood flowing out on the ground.
Everybody watches in shock. Especially Safr.
People start talking to each other about what just happened.
"Did that woman just kill someone?"
"Who is that other man?"
"Who are they?"
"Maybe they're murderers. Or thieves."
"HAHA! Guess who won the bet!? That's 5 silver for me!"(I love this guy)
All the while, Conan had the worst of it. His inn in shambles. Furniture broken. Window broken. And his childhood friend is associated with a killer! Boy do I feel sorry for this guy.
Safr stood up, picked up his sword and sheathed it. He said,"You've got a knack for men chasing after you."
Afsa replied,"I think we'd better leave quickly."
"Really? So there are no amends to make?"
Afsa said in a low voice "It's not safe to stay here. We need to keep moving. I'll tell you everything that happened on the way."
Safr looked at Conan's inn and then agreed reluctantly.
From there they set out to the Mahoor.
"We're at a considerable distance from Zanan. Now get off."
"What?"
"I said: Get off. Now."
"You're just going to leave me here in the middle of the nowhere?"
"No. We're both going to stay here in the middle of nowhere. Until you answer my questions."
"Answer your questions?"
"You said you'd explain later. Well now it's 'later'. Explain."
"Fine, fine..Ask away."
"Let's start with your name."
"Afsa."
"Alright. Why was that man chasing you?"
"It's a little complicated."
"How complicated?"
"What is this? An interview?"
"You said–"
"Okay alright fine. I said I'd explain. I get it.
Y'know that large mansion-like house in Zanan?"
"I've seen it, yes. What of it?"
"It belongs to the landlord. And the landlord is my father."
"You're really bad at lying."
"I'm serious."
"Oh really? And what was that man doing chasing you?"
"I don't know. He must've been an assassin or something. I think he wanted the secret to my father's treasury."
"What kind of an assassin shouts at you like a mad man whenever you run away?"
"I um......I'm not....um.."
"Still lying? There's nowhere for you to go from here. Tell me the truth."
"Alright. You got me. I lied about that man. But I really am the land lord's daughter."
"Mmhm."
"My father only cares about his money while his wives and daughters clean up. I always wanted to go out there and explore and learn about the desert instead of dusting and scrubbing the floor all the time. So when I saw you going towards the stables, I knew that this was my chance to escape. So I got out but the guard saw me and tried to stop me. You know the rest."
"That has got to be the weakest lie. Ever."
"I'm serious."
"You're lying."
"No, I'm not!"
"Really? Are you really not lying?"
"Yes! I mean no. I mean, yes."
Safr glares at Afsa and says,"Fine."
Afsa lets out a sigh of relief before Safr interrupts,"But if you lie to me again. You're getting worse than being left alone in the desert. Got it?"
"Affirmative! But wait. You didn't tell me where you're going." Afsa asked.
"And I should tell you that, why?"
"I just explained myself to you. Now it's your turn."
"Well seeing as you lied, I think it's not necessary."
"Whatever you're doing, maybe I can help you."
"I don't need help. Especially not from you."
"What if I said, "Please."?"
"No."
"C'mon!"
"No."
"I'm going to keep on asking until you spit it out."
"Then it looks like I'll have to bear with it."
Eventually, Safr got annoyed and then told her about Siin because she "wouldn't shut up for a second."
"I was going to go to the Mahoor to get some supplies and prepare myself. The Northern Raiders took Siin. And I need to get her back."
"You're going to get her back? By yourself? In that condition? I saw them bring you in with that arrow in your arm. You probably haven't even healed yet!"
"My safety does not matter. All that matters is that I get Siin back from those barbarians."
"Even if you didn't have that injury, you'd still get beaten easily by them. You need help."
"I'm considering it. But I know I won't need it when I'm ready."
----------
After that friendly little chat, they rode on to Mina. The small mining town that usually serves as a pit stop for travellers between Shura and the Mahoor.
This is where Safr had worked as a child. Coming back here always reminds him of his younger days and not the good memories. Mining here is always risky. Mina has the largest coal supply in the country of Ahraq but this doesn't stop miners from dying of poisonous gases and black lung disease.
Most of the mines are outside of town. Safr and Afsa see the miners coming in and out of the mineshaft with their dirty clothes covered in coal dust(Safr shivers for a moment without Afsa noticing and then continues walking while holding the horse's lead) and some meters closer to the town, stairs that run down into a ravine where workers are mining out and digging the raw metals.
Afsa was seemingly nervous. She wore her cowl and covered her face. As they arrive in town, they can see a few residential houses, a general store, an inn with a stable and there's also another mineshaft to the far western side of town. Safr takes the horse to the stable where a a man is sitting on a wooden chair. He says,"2 silver for keeping horses in here." and Safr pays.
Afsa already went into the inn. Safr came in and saw Afsa eating bread at a table in the corner of the inn. He took a seat at the bar and ordered a drink. When the bartender saw Safr, his face lit up.
"Safr! Is that really you? It's been so long and you haven't even changed a bit!"
"I'm sorry. Who are you?"
"It's me. Conan. Remember?"
"Conan? Really? You look like a completely different person. But I thought you worked at the mines."
"I did. But I eventually I grew sick of the place. Literally. I can't spend a minute in there without suffocating! So I saved my money and built this place. Might as well do something that I'd actually like to do for once. By the way, I've heard that many parts of the mines have been collapsing and breaking down recently."
"Collapsing?"
"Yeah. Nobody knows why. According to them, whatever is causing it definitely isn't normal."
"I see."
"Yep. Just breakin' down like there's no tomorrow."
"That is unusual. But it's not what I came here for."
"Oh?"
"We're—I'm heading out to the Mahoor to get some supplies and some information."
"Information on what?"
"Northern Raiders."
"WHAT!?"
Everybody starts looking at these two.
Conan says,"Umm.....What would you like to drink, sir?"
Conan whispers,"Are you crazy!? You don't talk about the Northern Raiders! Never!"
"Why not?"
He whispers again,"Have you never heard the rumors? They're ruthless murderers. They attack all kinds of travellers. They raid caravans. And worst of all, they're everywhere! Why am I even talking about this?"
"Everywhere?" Safr replies in a low voice.
"Yes. Everywhere. You need to be careful because they're always watching.
"These barbarians have disguises?" Safr asks
"You can't tell them from someone else and they can kill you without anyone hearing or seeing it."
A loud noise came from the back as if a table was broken. Safr, shocked, looked back. A table was broken! A brute man lay on a broken table and he looked as angry as you'd look if somebody would break your computer and all of your devices for fun. Afsa was standing in front of him. And now Safr was really confused.
"HEY!" Conan called. "No fighting allowed in the inn! You wanna kill each other, go outside!"
The brute man stood up, angry, threatened Afsa,"I'M GONNA RIP YOU APART LIMB FROM LIMB AND THEN CHEW ON YOUR BONES LITTLE GIRL!"
Afsa, with a determined look on her face, took a combat pose. Now try to imagine how confused Safr is at the moment.
The man tried to deliver a punch, but Afsa dodged and hit him in the stomach and then on the face. When she tried to get at him once more with a kick, he grabbed her foot and threw her out the window. The broken pieces of glass cut her cowl and gave a cut on her palm when she tried to get up. The brute got out through the door and charged at her and she managed to dodge.
At this point people were looking out of windows, standing near their doors and making bets on who the winner would be.
Safr came out and ran to them, trying to help out. Now this was obviously a stupid thing to do, so Afsa shouted:
"NO! SAFR! STAY BACK! YOUR ARM—" Afsa got a swift punch to the face and got knocked down. "Oof!"
The brute tried to charge again at her but Safr jumped on him.
"Why don't you fight somebody your own size, you son of a-" Safr got an elbow to the kidney before finishing his sentence and fell to the ground.
Safr quickly got up and then took out his sword with his left hand(he was right-handed and this left him at a disadvantage). Seeing this, the brute unsheathed his war-axe.
The brute swung his axe and Safr tried to block with his sword but failed and he was disarmed and then kicked in the gut. The brute came and was about to go for the killing blow when he suddenly felt two sharp stings in his back.
Afsa stabbed him with two of her daggers. And then pulled them out. And the brute fell, dead, with blood flowing out on the ground.
Everybody watches in shock. Especially Safr.
People start talking to each other about what just happened.
"Did that woman just kill someone?"
"Who is that other man?"
"Who are they?"
"Maybe they're murderers. Or thieves."
"HAHA! Guess who won the bet!? That's 5 silver for me!"(I love this guy)
All the while, Conan had the worst of it. His inn in shambles. Furniture broken. Window broken. And his childhood friend is associated with a killer! Boy do I feel sorry for this guy.
Safr stood up, picked up his sword and sheathed it. He said,"You've got a knack for men chasing after you."
Afsa replied,"I think we'd better leave quickly."
"Really? So there are no amends to make?"
Afsa said in a low voice "It's not safe to stay here. We need to keep moving. I'll tell you everything that happened on the way."
Safr looked at Conan's inn and then agreed reluctantly.
From there they set out to the Mahoor.
Woo! Longest chapter I've written so far! And here's another fun fact:
Linfan is a reference to the FullMetal Alchemist characters, Ling Yao and Lan Fan. It wasn't really meant to look like a shipname but it is what it is.
--------------------------------------------------------------
I thought that the previous ending to this chapter wasn't really good so I edited it and fixed it.
Last edited:
