Chapter 21

Ishar and Mairek reached the third day of their journey. It had been most of the part uneventful, they had walked all through the first night and slept for three hours when the sun emerged. They'd woken up and drunk some water from Mairek's hide bag and both of them declared that they didn't feel any hunger and postponed eating until they actually felt the need to do so. With that they carried on through the day till noon when they ate then they repeated the routine the following day.

For the better part of the journey they'd walked in silence not because they wanted to but because Mairek had asked a series of questions that Ishar needed to ponder. "When we save Niada, how are you going to interact with her? I mean, you've never actually talked to the girl then you come out of nowhere and are probably the first Kolotian she'd have ever met, what will you say to her? Will you go like, 'Hey, I know you don't know me but I'm in love with you and I wish to rescue you so I can bring you home to participate in my daily voyeur of observing you as you fetch water.'"

"Those are actually really good questions Mairek, let me think about them." Ishar had replied. It was the beginning of the second day when he'd said so and Mairek had honored his request and maintained a silence to match Ishar's own. The silence had stretched to the third day, neither of them had said a word. At first Mairek had thought Ishar was lost in thought, he'd felt proud of himself for asking such difficult questions that required more than a day to ponder.

But with time Mairek got lost in his own string of thoughts. He wondered why he was helping Ishar rescue a girl who didn't know him. He wondered how they'd even go about rescuing the said girl and most of all he wondered if death was looming in the horizon. Mairek had always felt secure at Jamou, what could possibly harm him? He was as secluded from any forms of danger as he was to any feelings of joy. But outside Jamou was a different story, there were bandits lurking around and there was also death if they got caught defying the command of King Gans, ruler Of Talisi.

"I finally found an answer to your question." Ishar spoke when the sun reached its zenith on the third day.

"Huh?" Mairek replied.

"The answer is," Ishar paused, took a deep breath, then continued. "I don't know."

"What?"

"I don't know how I'm going to approach Niada, I've thought about it, I can say things ranging from. 'Hey, I've been stalking you and apparently it looks like I've fallen hard enough for you that I set out on a mission to rescue you from slavery and death.' or I could say 'Your father sent me to rescue you and bring you back home, I'm the greatest warrior there is and only I could be trusted with this dangerous mission.' or I could just look her in the eye and kiss her."

"Kiss her?" Mairek wondered aloud.

"Yeah, right on the lips with tongue and everything. I know it sounds crazy but I think it's the only response I could give that I might enjoy and I'd rather be enjoying the moment than to be perturbed by it." Ishar said.

"She might object to being kissed by a random stranger, she might even slap you."

"I know, that's why I don't actually know what I'll do or say. Though, to be honestly, the feel of her hand across my face even if it were through a slap could be something pleasant, huh?"

Mairek chuckled. "The way she affects your being." His chuckle elevated to a laugh. "It's very funny, it reminds me of a time when-"

"Halt! Who goes there?" A voice boomed from a bush.

Ishar and Mairek turned towards the direction the sound came from and a large man emerged from a bush, he carried with him a spear as thick as Ishar's wrist and he stood at seven feet tall with the brawn to match the height. His dark skin and shortly cropped military style white hair marked him as Talisi Green army, his light green leather attire also supported this fact. Mairek was about to speak when a dozen more soldiers emerged from the bushes all around them.

Each of them held a spear with its tip aimed at Ishar and Mairek and each of them was dressed in the same light green leather. The good news was that they were close to the Ganidan plain, the bad news was that they might not live to get there. "I asked you a question." Said the large Talisi man said. His voice carried with it a fierce sense of command and Mairek marked him as the leader of the group, the one who'd give the order to have their heads at the end of a pole.

"Forgive us great one, we are but humble merchants on our way to a neighboring village, have we lost our way if I may ask? We are so behind schedule if I may add." Mairek asked, his voice was marked by genuine confusion as if the goods he was carrying might perish if he didn't reach his destination and the merchant lingo that always had the words 'If I may' seemed nicely done.

The large soldier relaxed his stance as if in acceptance of the fact that Mairek and Ishar were of no threat. "He is lying, we are not merchants."Ishar said. Mairek turned to regard his friend and for the first time throughout the entire time Mairek had known Ishar, it was at that moment that Mairek regretted ever getting to know Ishar or to be associated with him. He felt not an ounce of guilt for this feeling, his supposed friend had just doomed them all.

"Ishar." Mairek whispered at a pitch only Ishar could register.

"You think you're so big and tough huh?" Ishar started while facing the big Talisi soldier and taking a step towards him. "Well I am not afraid of you or the puny men who surround us, come at me and I'll go down with as many of you as possible." At Ishar's words Mairek let out a soft groan that carried the weight of acceptance for he had accepted that they were indeed dead men, he rubbed at his forehead with his finger tips and wondered why he'd left Jamou.

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