Saif's Story

by Barbara G. Tarn

  "Surely you can test them and teach them the rest?" Saif suggested, hopeful. He knew his apprentices were good, but since he wasn't a master himself, he'd rather have Talwar check their skills.

  "Fine, tell them to come tomorrow for a test," Talwar said. "Tonight we're busy with the naming ceremony. Are there any missions for our new guild members?"

  "Ah, you will have to ask Khanda about that," Saif answered, embarrassed. "She is your right arm at the Guild, after all."

  "Indeed. Well, I look forward to testing your apprentices."

  Saif bowed and left the small office. He headed for the palace under the sun, humming to himself. The garden was empty, so he went back inside and headed up the marble staircase that led to the private parts of the palace. The royal apartments were at the end of the long corridor and Saif knocked on the heavy wooden door before entering.

  The antechamber was empty, but he heard laughter coming from the living room beyond it – girls' giggles and Karan's hearty laugh. Nimdja's voice said something that made everyone burst out laughing again and Saif smiled to himself.

  And then Prem playfully attacked him from behind. Too taken by the noises in the next room, he hadn't realized his lover had been against the wall next to the door.

  "Got you!" Prem said, jumping on his back.

  Saif shook him off and quickly hugged him.

  "Were you being antisocial?" he chided.

  "I was waiting for you to show up," Prem replied, putting his arms around Saif's neck and pressing his body against Saif's chest. "What took you so long?"

  "Talwar came back with his students and I had to talk to him. Tonight we have a private ceremony, but tomorrow Talwar will test you and Karan."

  Karan's squeal of delight startled him and he quickly let go of Prem. He didn't like to show off his affection in public, and Prem chuckled. As if his younger cousin didn't know they were lovers!

  Karan was in the doorway of the living room with Nimdja and Lalima.

  "Talwar is back?" Lalima asked, wide-eyed. "We have a naming ceremony tonight?"

  "Yes. And Aditya should go back right now to report to Talwar," Saif answered.

  Nimdja nodded and quickly headed for the main door of the apartment, vanishing into the corridor outside. Lalima hesitated and stepped forward.

  "Will you walk back with me, Rohit?" she asked.

  Saif glanced at Prem and sighed. "Sure."

  Prem grabbed his arm. "See you tomorrow," he whispered in his ear. "We won't disappoint you."

  Karan nodded, grinning from ear to ear. "See you tomorrow, Rohit!"

  Saif waved them good-bye and headed back to the school with Lalima.

  "So, if I become an assassin tonight, will you consider me?" she asked as they walked. The sun was going down and people hurried home. "I mean, you're keeping me at arm's length because of your job, right?"

  "Uh, no, not really," he answered. "I mean, I do love you like a sister, and I'm not happy that you decided to join the school, but I can't stop you."

  "I'll make you proud of me as well as your two students!" she assured him. "You won't have to protect me and we can work together and..."

  "Lalima, this is a lonely profession," he replied.

  "But we could be like Talwar and Khanda!" she insisted.

  He rolled his eyes and stopped arguing. Karan might be aware of what was between him and Prem, but Lalima obviously didn't want to see. She thought Prem slept on the floor in his room like Vikram and Manik had done. He'd have to talk to Nimdja about taking her off his back for good.

  Before dinner they all went to the armory and Talwar bestowed new assassins' names. Vikram became Kris and Manik became Bhuj. Saif noticed the two were very close now and smiled. They probably had decided to be together and work together for the time being.

  Lalima became Francisca and she beamed at him, but he just shook his head, amused. The dinner in the suddenly crowded canteen was cheerful and Saif almost didn't have time to miss Prem. He laughed so much that his belly hurt by the end of the meal.

  He retired to his room and locked the door. He went to bed and then heard Francisca knock and call him through the door, but he pretended to be asleep. He hugged the pillow, imagining it was Prem, and closed his eyes, drifting off to sleep.

  ***

  Saif awoke happy. Prem and Karan arrived together, the elder with his hand on the younger's shoulder for the walk, but Prem let go of his cousin as soon as he entered the school entrance where Saif was waiting for him.

  A quick hug and Saif took them to Talwar's office, holding Prem's hand on his arm to guide him, but also to show him his love. Talwar smiled at Karan and stared curiously at Prem. He hadn't met the other prince yet, and was surprised by his "normal" appearance – Prem didn't look or move like a blind person, which had amazed Saif almost two years earlier and now had the same effect on Talwar.

  "Saif, you will show me how you trained Karan," Talwar said, rising from his desk and guiding them all outside. "And then I'll personally test Prem." He saw Nimdja standing by the wall, near the door of the armory, and told him to bring the training weapons.

  Saif and Karan performed their sword dance under the approving eyes of Talwar, then the head of the guild invited Prem to the center of the courtyard. Saif watched proudly as Prem stood his ground with the much more proficient southern fighter, earning himself Talwar's congratulations.

  "Can I become an assassin, Talwar?" Karan asked, eager to be able to protect himself and his mother.

  "I don't think royalty should join my guild," Talwar chided. "Even though in Agharek we were very close to the former royal family, none of us ever had royal blood, or married into royal blood."

  Karan looked so disappointed that Talwar smiled.

  "But I will teach you to sword-fight," he promised. "You never had a sword teacher, and I will be that person."

  Karan beamed. "And will you teach my cousin too?"

  "He seems to be doing quite well on his own, in spite of his... limitation," Talwar replied, staring amused at Saif. "I'm sure that Rohit can take care of that, so I can concentrate on you."

  Karan proudly puffed out his chest and grinned. Saif discreetly squeezed Prem's hand, making him smile.

  "So, you two go back to the palace. We will come and give you lessons every morning from tomorrow," Talwar continued. "I assume there is some kind of armory at the palace as well?"

  "I don't think so," Prem said. "Especially since the Genn took over. Some of them are warriors, but most hate weapons, so they got rid of them. You better bring the blunt weapons from here."

  "And we will, thank you, Prem. Is there a place where we can exercise without ruining those marble floors?"

  "Actually, there was a reason to come here to learn," Prem answered, amused. "We didn't want to ruin the palace."

  "I see." Talwar smiled. "Well, then, come back here tomorrow for the morning lesson. I think we've had enough for today. I have just come back and would like to spend some time with my wife and son if you don't mind."

  "We will leave you alone," Karan assured. "We will come back tomorrow."

  "But we can hang out with your guild members for the rest of the day, can't we?" Prem added with an impish smile.

  "Of course," Talwar replied. "We all have a free day today."

  Talwar waved them good-bye and retired to the upper floor to be with Khanda and Abhaya.

  "Let's make it boy's day!" Nimdja said, coming forward with Kris and Bhuj. "Let's go have some fun! Without women around!"

  Prem, Kris and Bhuj cheered at that and Nimdja put his arm around Karan's shoulders. The teen looked puzzled, but he was also the youngest of the group.

  "Don't worry, my prince, I'll show you what I mean," Nimdja told him. "Just ignore those four ugly mugs following us!"

  He led Karan to the main door, shooting a mischievous smile at Prem, Saif, Kris and Bhuj who chuckled.

  "I sure hope he won't take my cousin on the male lovers path," Prem whispered, leanin
g towards Saif.

  "He can have both," Saif assured. "And he knows Karan loves Ramya. He might take Karan to a professional, so he'll be ready for his wedding night."

  "That's what a father should do. Or a close relative." Prem sounded sad. "I wish I could be that person."

  "Who helped you?" Saif asked. "Your father died when you were a child, right?"

  "Yes. It was an elder cousin on my mother's side. He took me out to the city."

  That was probably the first time Prem sounded sorry for his blindness. He couldn't take care of his cousin like he'd been taken care of.

  Saif put Prem's hand on his arm and guided him outside the school, following Kris and Bhuj.

  They ended up spending the day together. First they went to the river shore and swam against the current to prove their strength. Then they ate street food on the main marketplace square, sitting on the edge of the central fountain.

  The sun shone and Saif noticed Prem's eyes were the same color as the sky. Karan was delighted to have been accepted by a group of twenty-somethings who even accompanied him to a professional and waited outside as he explored his sexuality.

  "He knows what's between us," Prem said as he sat in the shadow of an olive tree with Saif, Nimdja, Kris and Bhuj outside of the prostitute's house. "He asked me once if I wanted to try women, but I told him I hadn't been impressed by them."

  "So you did try them?" Nimdja asked, curious.

  "Yes, of course. I might be blind, but I'm royal blood. They did try to match me with a bride, before giving up."

  "So how many lovers did you have?" Nimdja insisted, ignoring Saif's glare.

  "Not many." Prem smiled. "I'm sure Saif experimented a lot more, since he could go out and meet people."

  "He might have tried a few men, but I bet he never touched a woman," Nimdja teased.

  "I am not interested," Saif snapped. "And you still have to take Lalima off my back. You can't keep your promises, my friend!"

  "Francisca. I will take her off your back with her first mission, don't worry."

  "She knocked on my door last night."

  "So? Did you let her in?"

  "No."

  "See? Don't worry, I will take her off your back. I don't like watching her drooling hopelessly over you."

  Prem chuckled. "Lalima doesn't want to see what is plain obvious even in my younger cousin's eyes. I think Deepika has tried to tell her, but she is convinced eventually green-eyed Rohit will be hers."

  "I won't," Saif muttered, looking away.

  "Then kiss Prem in front of her instead of being ever so discreet," Nimdja said.

  "I don't like showing off my feelings."

  Nimdja exchanged an exasperated glance with Kris and Bhuj who chuckled and rolled their eyes. "Maybe one of you should do it. Or maybe I'll do it. We'll see."

  "I'm glad you two found each other," Saif told the newly-named assassins.

  "We found each other because you kept us both at arm's length," Kris replied with a smile. "We were both madly in love with you."

  "As much as you were in love with Talwar," Bhuj added, making Saif blush. "I'm surprised you ended up finding someone so different from our acharya."

  "After so many years of unrequited love, I was glad to finally find someone who returned my feelings," Saif said, thoughtful. "When do you think Lalima will tire of unrequited love?" He looked at Nimdja, frowning in worry. "I mean, she's had this crush on me since we were children..."

  "I'll make her forget you, Rohit. But please, be less discreet with Prem, will you? It would make my life a lot easier..."

  Then Karan came out of the wattle-and-daub house, all flushed and only half dressed, and the group of youths moved from the shadow of the olive tree. Time to finish their wanderings with a good meal.

  10.

  The Lonely Maid Inn seemed somewhat grubby but decent. A large establishment not far from the palace, the smell of its food was what drew in the six youths between the ages of seventeen and twenty-four.

  The bartender immediately glared at them, especially at Karan who looked too young to drink. Prem slapped his hand on the counter and said his younger cousin had become a man, and therefore they needed to celebrate before going home. The bartender scowled, but asked them what they wanted.

  The menu was very plain-looking, but the smells from the kitchen were so enticing, that they ordered full meals for all and some cheap red wine to go with the meat. Kris and Bhuj actually ordered fish, but they weren't used to drinking wine anyway, so they settled for water instead. None of them was particularly fond of ale or beer.

  The tavern was crowded with loud and cheerful patrons. A quick glance around the room told Saif it was a dangerous-looking crowd, with half the dark corners occupied and about half the patrons already drunk, but he was with a group of assassins and felt quite secure. Most patrons were openly armed, unlike him and his friends who had daggers and their nooses – except the princes, of course – but looked quite harmless.

  There was decent music played on a lute by a thin, depressed young man, mostly covered by the drunkenly singing soldier sitting near the entrance. The six sat in the center of the room, Saif next to Prem and Karan, Nimdja in front of him next to Kris and Bhuj.

  Two maids brought the trays of roasted meat and fish with vegetables along with wooden plates and goblets. The six distributed the plates and the food, and then eagerly attacked their meal, all hungry after their relaxing day off. Poor Yafita wouldn't have been able to feed them with what she kept in the guild's kitchen, and the cousins were glad to buy a meal for their assassins friends with their golden coins.

  The wine soon raised their spirits even more, making them laugh at nothing. They drank, they ate, they sang with the rest of the crowd, and then Karan's head started lolling and Saif decided it was time to leave.

  The sun had set and the cool air of the street helped him clear his mind. Prem counted on him to lead him back to the palace, and they were the least swaying couple. Karan leaned on Nimdja half-passed out and Kris and Bhuj sustained each other.

  "We better go back to the guild," they muttered, heading down the street the other way.

  Saif nodded, and he and Prem helped Nimdja carry Karan who had to stop and vomit up his dinner in a corner. As they rose again with the teen still dazed, they realized they were surrounded by armed men.

  Saif recognized the coat-of-arms of the late Lord Arfan, but not the other. The dozen men must have been chosen from the private guard of two noblemen and their faces looked threatening in the growing darkness.

  "What do you want?" Saif asked as Karan stared wide-eyed at the guards, still leaning against Nimdja.

  "Godwalkar has no need for royal blood," one of the men growled. He must be the captain of the mixed team, and wore the colors of the lord Saif didn't know.

  Prem scoffed. "We don't want Godwalkar's crown," he said. "Leave us alone."

  "We have our orders," came the blunt reply.

  Saif pulled out his dagger, but it was almost useless against swords. It was only him and Nimdja against fully armed guards... it was no match! He tried to protect Prem, stopping the blows with his arms, but couldn't do much. Someone's blade cut his stomach and he lost control over his legs. Prem screamed.

  He crumbled to the ground, trying to catch his breath, and passed out.

  ***

  He woke up in a room that wasn't his. The bed was comfortable and there was a window to the right that opened on the top of tall trees. He must be on the upper floor of a tall building – maybe inside the palace itself.

  The carved wooden ceiling was unfamiliar as well as the beautiful tapestry hung on the wall, representing a group of Genn singing and dancing. A small fireplace, currently empty and clean, occupied one corner across the window.

  Saif slowly moved his body. He sat and checked his arms and belly, but saw no sign of the cuts and wounds from the attack. He felt dazed still and fought to figure out what had happened.

  And then he remem
bered. The attack, the pain, the smell of blood. Prem's scream.

  Gasping, he jumped out of bed and went to open the room's door. The corridor outside was empty, but now he recognized the upper floor of the former royal palace. The Genn must have healed him... but where were the others?

  He looked left and right, but the other doors on the corridor were closed. He decided to head for the royal apartments, where surely he'd find Prem and Karan. Thank the gods, they were close enough to the palace when they'd been attacked. Maybe the palace guards had intervened and called the Genn healers.

  Before he reached the royal apartments, Saif saw Goldenstar come out of one of the other rooms that opened onto the corridor.

  "Ah, Rohit, you're up," she said. Her pale face looked tired. "I guess Aditya must be awake too, then."

  "Where are Prem and Karan?" Saif asked, worried.

  Goldenstar took his arm and guided him back to another room. "You may want to see Aditya first," she said.

  "No, I want to see Prem! How is he? We were attacked..."

  "Yes, the palace guards heard the noise," she said, stopping to open a door.

  Inside Nimdja sat on a bed very similar to the one Saif had woken up in, but seeing the Genn healer and Saif in the corridor, he sprang to his feet and joined them.

  "Rohit! What the hell... where are the princes?"

  "Like I was telling Rohit, the guards heard the attack," Goldenstar said. "You were brought here so you could be healed. You both did your best to protect your royal friends." She sighed and looked away. "Unfortunately it wasn't enough."

  "What?" Saif stared at her wide-eyed. "Take me to Prem, now!"

  She looked at them with great sadness. "I guess the death of King Naveen was in vain," she whispered. "Same kind of ambush..."

  "Goldenstar," Saif growled. "Where is Prem?"

  She sighed again and headed for the royal apartments again. Saif followed, frowning. Nimdja grabbed his hand.

  "What if they're both dead? The guard said they didn't want any royal blood in Godwalkar!" he muttered.