Addiction

The fire crackling in the soot covered chimney of Altair ’s quarters had now dwindled itself down to just a struggling flame. Clothed in only a pair of white shalwars, Altair lay stretched out on his side over the red rug in the middle of the room. He propped himself up on an elbow and frowned while pondering if things could get any worse. In frustration, his bloodshot eyes read over the scroll he’d received early this morning for the third time to be sure his eyes didn’t deceive him.

Apparently killing Robert de Sable had not been as effective as he originally thought and turned out to be nothing more than a vain attempt at slicing his way to the truth hidden beneath the Piece of Eden’s golden surface. Robert claimed there were ten including Al Mualim, who supposedly knew of the orbs existence, but after Jalil’s interrogation, this was apparently only more of his lies. It would seem that after Robert failed miserably in taking matters into his own hands and trying to snatch the orb from Al Mualim, he took it upon himself to find another that could... And to make matters worse, none of the Bureau leaders had been able to decipher exactly who this man was from the piece of parchment confiscated from Jalil thanks to him purposely writing it in that strange language the ones across the sea called French.

It has been quite a while since the day Altair murdered Jalil and not once has anyone heard a whisper of when his elusive ‘Master’ would try to make a move until this scroll... But judging from the evidence Altair uncovered so far, this was a situation not to be taken lightly seeing as this man went as far as to infiltrate his fortress with a spy in order to collect information on the orb.

It was not the fact that the man was cunning enough to figure out a way to slip a spy underneath Altair’s nose that angered him the most... It was the frustration of knowing Al Mualim knew what could happen should the orb fell into the wrong hands from the start and still he allowed his greed for power to overcome his reason.

Altair ran a hand through his short, messy brown hair and groaned...

When would the old man’s actions stop haunting him from beyond his grave? He couldn’t even count how many times he has dug through Al Mualim’s mess of old memoirs since his death in hopes of finding answers only to come up from the rubble with absolutely nothing. The old man had been keeping secrets from him since day one of this troublesome disaster, but this was absurd. Of all his training and education of political affairs between the Crusaders and the Saracens would never have prepared him for madness such as this. For a moment, Altair began to question if he was being put on trial by a force unknown to see how he would fair against evil such as this.

He looked over at his discarded leather belt, dagger holsters, and hidden blade stacked neatly atop the wooden chest in the corner, untouched for months since Adah last put them there. It was times like these that he truly missed being able to travel at will to get the information he desired, coming and going whenever he pleased and stalking through city streets as he saw fit. Just a blade in the crowd... But after assuming Al Mualims’ responsibilities within the Brotherhood, those days have long since passed him by...

A slight movement next to him caught Altair’s carefully trained gaze, drawing it down to the tuft of ebony hair peeping out from under the white afghan lying quietly at his side. He had been watching her sleep out of the corner of his eye for the majority of the night, unable to sleep himself.

After pulling the cloth away from her soft face, he smoothed away a few stray strands of hair from her eyelids with the tip of a finger and watched the smooth plane of her brow crease the tiniest of bits. He shook his head at her when she suddenly mumbled something that sounded a lot like a list of her favorite fruits. Only someone with an appetite like hers would have strange visions of food in her sleep. He looked on in amusement as she began to restlessly tussle and turn about in her unconsciousness until she kicked her covering completely free. His eyes found themselves creeping south along the bronze skin of the cleft of her breasts peeking shyly from the top of her robe and couldn’t help marveling at how her dark skin was such a stark contrast to his own. Adah then rolled back onto her side to face him.

After a moment, he forced his gaze lower to her round, swollen abdomen that he was thankful she was finally unable to hide any longer below her clothing as though she were ashamed of it. At this point the size of her stomach was so great that their situation was now well known throughout Masyaf despite her efforts to keep it hidden. So even if she tried, hiding it was practically meaningless.

And it could not have happened a moment sooner because he was ever grateful when her young merchant friend Bashir, in the shop district finally put an end to his irritating advances on her as well. He couldn’t begin to describe how much his ego swelled the day the merchant discovered just how deep their relationship truly went. The look on his face was priceless.

Slowly, the features of Altair’s face softened as they usually did while he gazed at her when there was no one else was looking. Over the past several weeks, Adah’s fears were becoming more and more apparent to him. She knew the moment he had been waiting for so patiently all these long arduous months was drawing near and she would finally give birth. And she was terrified worse than any threat imaginable. She had also begun to express her anxiety towards the child being raised as an Assassin openly by pleading with him at any chance she got. Her behavior became so desperate that she, to his severe distaste, stormed out of the library in tears today during a briefing with his Bureau leaders to discuss this irritating scroll laced with threats.

After receiving the parchment this morning, his mind had been elsewhere for the majority of the day as he inadvertently began to tune out the conversation with his Bureau leaders. His attention kept drifting across the room to where Adah was playing with his messenger pigeon. The little bird would cause her to go into a fit of giggles when its wings fluttered about against her hair as it jumped from shoulder to shoulder. It had been a long time since he heard her laugh like that...

After a while she placed the bird back into its small cage and closed the door, heading in their direction to slip past and go down into the garden. But apparently one of the Rafiq noticed what gripped his attention so and asked if he would be ready to train the child as soon as it came of age and to his surprise, it seemed to set her off.

She immediately stormed up to them, upset and blurting to the Rafiq as she walked past that she wouldn’t hesitate to depart and take her son with her if Altair was still intent on not allowing her to raise the child as she wished.

And her outburst made him furious. Not to mention the awkwardness he felt as both Rafiq’s and worst of all Malik stared at him in disbelief after her outburst.

Already knowing how upset he would be with her, she decided to hide from him for the remainder of the day to avoid the stern reprimanding lectures she knew was waiting for her when she returned.

Once the briefing was over later that evening, he decided to wait in his quarters while trying to relax by the fire and think on what she had done.

To further frustrate him she didn’t even slip into his quarters until just before nightfall tonight wearing a meek expression in her hazel eyes as she tried to creep behind him in hopes of slipping away. But of course he heard her and when he called her to him, she immediately crawled down behind him and pressed her lips to his bare shoulders as a silent apology.

As soon as she was assured he was calm, Adah then told him she was only trying to get his attention in making him understand her reasoning behind it. That she couldn’t bear the possibility of one day receiving a letter that her son was killed in some distant city while away on assignment...

But as much as he hated to hurt her, he was forced to remind her that there was no hiding the fact that it is the vicious blood of an Assassin that will always flow through their son’s veins and he would be raised to fight for what he thought was right.

Altair heaved a low sigh, listening to it bounce off the walls of the all too quiet fortress that used to be so filled with commotion when suddenly for the strangest reason, his encounter with King Richard in Arsuf over a year ago suddenly drifted through his mind...


+++Flashback+++


“We come into this world, kicking and screaming, violent and unstable. It is what we are.” Richard argued, the tiresome effects of war more than present in his green, insightful eyes.

“No... We are who we choose to be.” Altair countered.

“Heh... Your kind, always playing with words. But I only speak the truth in that we cannot change what is in our nature.”


+++End Flashback+++


His half lidded eyes glanced at the serene expression on Adah’s sleeping face then back to her large, bulging belly that made her wobble awkwardly when she walked.

‘We cannot truly be who we choose to be if we have never been given the choice...Can we?‘ he thought to himself...

Should he put his own selfishness aside and allow her to have her way by choosing the child’s fate if born male? It was so uncustomary of a member of the Brotherhood to not raise their son’s as Assassin’s. Yet if he ignored Adah’s request, all his efforts to draw her willingly back into his arms all this time would definitely have been for naught.

Feeling a heavy weight on his shoulders, Altair let loose another quiet sigh and reached out to slide his palm gently down the round, firm curve of her belly. But it was not the time to worry about it now. He knew Jalil’s master was most likely lurking somewhere beyond the Assassin’s territory and may strike at any moment, foolishly demanding the Piece of Eden just like all the others had done before they too were slain... Except none of them were bold enough to try using a spy to do it, which meant to Altair that bringing this man to his knees and killing him before the entire fortress was a disgraceful death he would very well deserve.

It wasn’t just the thrill of killing the man who dared to challenge him that drove him on, it was the fact that the orb could very well destroy the entire existence of his Brotherhood if it fell into this man’s hands. Not to mention the dangers involved during the attack held a high risk of possibly losing Adah in the chaos.

And he knew losing her... would very well destroy him.

She was his only weakness.

She was the warmth around his soul that would continue to stave off the cold and unmerciful side of him that he was trained to be. She gave him a purpose that meant more to him than just being a strong leader. She was his now, constantly depending on him for his protection and he was inclined to provide it, as it was his pride and duty to do so.

His golden brown eyes finally left her face, becoming cold and hard once again as he stared at the scroll from Jalil’s Master in his hand, knowing he had made up his mind.

He would have to send her away...

Adah shifted after he removed his hand from her belly, turning onto her back at first before tossing her head from side to side as her discomfort during sleep gradually began to increase. Altair wrapped his forearm beneath her breasts and pulled her small form to him, nuzzling his face to hers. The fingers of his right hand ran through her hair and his thumb passed several times over her cheek. She stirred for a minute before instinctively burrowing into his bare chest and successfully shaking away the remnants of her dream.

Pressing his face into her neck, he closed his eyes and stole a chance to inhale the soft earthen scent of her skin that he adored.

As soon as he felt her relax, he very carefully began to untangle himself from her. He pressed his lips softly to her forehead while she slept then rose to his feet and pulled his white long sleeve tunic from the floor and back on. He stepped around her quietly, ignoring the parchments he’d read over before he became annoyed all over again with the news they held.

If this man desired to storm his fortress and attempt to take the orb, then let him come...

Altair slipped on his boots then made his way to the door and popped the latch, stopping only to steal a quick glance back to Adah’s sleeping form before sliding out the door. He glanced up at the moon above once he reached the garden, realizing there wasn’t much nightfall remaining as he made his way to the fortress library, but he was thankful Malik stayed behind earlier as he asked.

If he moved quickly, there would be enough time to arrange for Adah to leave the city.

+++

With a gasp, Adah sat upright and looked around the dimly lit room, her eyes automatically darting to her side to find Altair ’s usually occupied space next to her surprisingly empty. She ran a hand through her hair to pull the long curly locks out of her eyes and heaved a sigh. The fire continued to burn and it was clearly still nightfall out... where could he be?

“Altair?” she called out, her hazel eyes looking about as she listened for a response. Receiving none, she looked down at the papers strewn at her side, her eyes glancing over them for a second before looking away.

She usually avoided reading anything that concerned the matters of the Assassin’s, but for some reason, she couldn’t stop her eyes from sneaking another peek at the strangely written Arabic characters scrawled across the pages.

It was clearly not Altair ’s handwriting which helped her feel more at ease over her prying. She picked them up and read them over quickly, her eyes widening as she scanned it and gasped before dropping them completely. Quickly she rose up from the floor with an unsteady wobble, almost slipping on the papers she’d just dropped.

...They were coming for the orb....

She slipped on her sandals while tossing her white robe to the floor just to slip a red dress over her, pulling at it impatiently over her belly then darted for the door in haste to find Altair. She had so many questions and needed to know what was happening and what he planned to do. Picking up the pace, Adah trampled through the dark garden, making her way to the library and inside towards the sound of his voice echoing along the walls.

She huffed in frustration and slight panic, already out of breath as she climbed up the stairwell and past the dusty bookcases towards the balcony. It wasn’t as much her eagerness to find out what was happening that pushed her forward but more out of fear and she knew being near Altair was the safest place to be. Her pace slowed as she crested the top of the steps only to stop and dart into the murky shadow of a stone pillar when the sound of a quick and heated argument caught her ears.

“...that matters not, do as you are told and nothing else. Adah is to leave within the hour and no later. I want her out of the city as quickly as possible and do NOT lead her along the main route to Jerusalem. Are we clear?”

Jerusalem? The city she longed to revisit since Altair first brought her back to Masyaf... She peeped a bit further around the pillar and saw to her surprise a puzzled Malik nodding reluctantly to his given orders. He was still clad in his black robes from earlier. What was he doing still in Masyaf? Their meeting had ended hours ago. She saw his dark brown eyes lower to his missing arm.

“Altair, I am sure one of your men is more than capable to attend to her on this trip... Why have you chosen me?” Malik finally questioned, his eyes still on the empty folded sleeve where his arm had once been until the incident in Soloman’s temple. Reaching up, he then covered it with his hand.

“I have thought over this since receiving that scroll today and the decision has been made. You have been chosen Malik... “ Altair paused, looking over the balcony of the library for a moment for any signs of a passerby then continued. “...because I would trust no other with her life.”

Malik cleared his throat and let the stub of his arm go. He slowly walked over to lean back against the dusty desk behind him and looked up at Altair with half a smirk.

“Who could have guessed that the loner Altair would ever fall so heavily for a girl? You do realize that if ill fate were to befall us on this trip... I am about as helpless as her, my friend.”

Altair nodded with a smirk of his own. “I am aware, in fact I am afraid you would be even less capable of protecting her but it is not your strength I am entrusting her to, it is your wits.”

Slowly Adah emerged from the shadows and walked up to Altair quietly, her sandals scuffling over the floor. “Altair...?”

They both turned to her, Altair ’s tired eyes finding her own as the smirk fell from his face. Her mind was a scramble of questions that she needed answers to, the main one asking over and over of why would he desire to send her away? Was she not safer here with him?

“You are sending me away?” she asked, her hazel eyes darting back and forth between the two men.

Altair searched her face for a long moment while choosing his words carefully so as not to upset her. “You must prepare yourself for departure-“

“Where are we going? We can’t leave!” she interrupted hastily and closed the space between her and him. She didn’t want to openly say she read the scroll earlier, but she knew leaving now would be the worst mistake to top off all the terrible mistakes she’s ever made.

“I will not be with you and it is not a choice. I have ordered Malik to escort you away from the fortress. You will accompany him in the Bureau of Jerusalem where it is safe-”

“But I do not think this is a good idea...“ she interrupted again, her uneasiness lurching to a new height. How could he possibly suggest sending her away now?

“This must be done. You are only wasting time by arguing with me, just do as you are told.”

“No, I cannot go now... Altair, please!” she pleaded with glassy eyes as if about to cry, her fingers curling tightly into his tunic as she searched his face desperately for understanding.

Altair frowned and grabbed her wrists. He averted his eyes from her tearful gaze and pulled her hands free from his clothing. “I believe it is too dangerous for you to remain within the city walls... Now retrieve your things.”

Adah looked over to Malik for assistance, but he simply shook his head and shrugged. This was a decision he had been unable to get out of himself, nonetheless attempt to free her from as well. Her mind churned, searching for something to pull out of her sleeve, anything she didn’t care what it was as long as it could change Altair’s mind.

But she was turned around and nudged back to the stairwell. Defeated she lowered her head and took a step down as she thought over being trapped in a distant city, far away from anything she’s come to know... Not to mention, so far away from Altair but a question suddenly came to her like the last hope of someone about to lose it all...

“And what if I give birth early?” she suddenly shouted at Altair ’s back in despair. “I cannot do this on my own...”

She watched him stiffen, his steps towards Malik halting while he processed her words. He just stood there a moment then looked back. He spoke over his shoulder to save himself the guilt of staring into her sad eyes.

From the steps Adah stood still, studying his profile long and hard in fear that she would not see it again for quite some time.

He would give anything to be there when the time arose, to see his first born who may or may not take his place as the Master of the Assassin’s one day when he is dead and gone... But if he allowed her to stay when the entire city is attacked for the orb, then that day may never come...

“I have made preparations for your care in Jerusalem with Malik. He is a good man and will assure all goes well...” Altair responded eventually in a regretful tone.

And as he suspected, her sobs echoed as he watched her take off and storm back to his quarters, the iron gate to the garden slamming loudly behind her from the anger taken out on it. And this time he could not fault her for it at all because he knew that hard slam was directed at him and was her anger well deserved.

Adah pushed against the wooden door of Altair’s quarters harder than she thought and fell to her hands and knees in frustration as tears cascaded down her cheeks. She didn’t care. She felt them splatter over her hands to mix with the tiny bits of sand collected before Altair ’s door.

‘How could he let me go so easily?‘

Sure she threatened to vanish before if he didn’t let her have her way, but she did not think he would give in so quickly!

He would not even hear her out and instead insisted that it was too dangerous for her to stay here... She’s ALWAYS been here! Her nails dug into her palms as the wound of his decision ran its inevitable course, thinking of how quickly he could return to his old demanding, overconfident, and self-centered ways. She continued to weep as she fell back onto her haunches and buried her small face into her hands. For a moment her mind raced with the memories of the tall, dark haired Assassin that at one time, never left her side. He was the same man who stood by her when there was no one else left to pick up the broken pieces of her life. The same man who whispered he loved her no matter how many times she never said it back when she truly should have...

And now that same man was sending her away when she needed him most with hardly a passing glance.

She looked up and only when she saw that letter again from that wretched man and his threat to raid the fortress for the orb lying on the floor, did it dawn on her that her anger was actually pointed in the wrong direction. After a while, she wiped at the tears and forced herself to calm down. She pushed her heavy form up from the floor and crept over to the letter, feeling her anger reignite. Altair wasn’t sending her away because he wanted to; he was doing it because he had to by doing what he has always done... And that’s to protect her.

Before she knew it, she reached down and snatched up the scroll, angrily tearing it into small pieces then threw them into the dying fire in the chimney. Her hazel eyes looked on as the flames ate their way along the little bits of writhing paper and devoured the troubling words written so carelessly in red ink.

Her life with Altair was to take an entirely new turn that she must be ready to travel down the moment this child is born. Yet if she didn’t follow his orders and she were harmed during the attack, then it would be a change she may never get to see. Wiping the tears from her eyes, she slowly looked around the room to locate the items best suited for the trip as he had requested.

+++

“How much longer must we wait? Sunrise will be upon us soon and we have yet to leave the castle grounds.” Malik argued to Altair who sat atop the railing of the balcony.

Altair looked up at the moon through the stained glass window overlooking the garden and frowned... Malik was right. Quite some time had passed and STILL, she had not returned. He jumped down motioning for Malik to head out to the stable with a waving hand and took off in her direction with irritation. Why couldn’t she just do as he’d asked and stopped resisting?

Reaching the door to his quarters in no time, he pushed it open roughly with irritation to find Adah was seated right in the middle of the room on the floor with a neatly tied bundle of items next to her. Her eyes were glued to her overly bulging stomach as she absentmindedly circled her protruding belly button with a finger. She looked up at Altair as he walked up to her, her face a mask of nothingness and her eyes slightly puffy from her previous tears.

Grabbing her arm, he helped her up from the floor and grabbed her things. He took a minute to look her over to determine her unreadable mood until he finally gave up and just motioned for the door. He wasn’t in the mood for more of her defiance, time was running out...

To his surprised, she did not budge however. He looked down to her and sighed. Of course she wasn’t going to make this easy...

“Adah-“ he began.

But he never got to finish. His eyes grew large when she grabbed the front of his tunic and felt the soft, gentle press of her lips melding with his in a warm but heady kiss. Instinctively he followed her bold lead and allowed himself to be lured in when her tongue slipped innocetly passed his lips. He felt his skin come to life with goosebumps as her fingers slid up past his chest and neck to drag her nails through his short hair.

After what seemed a moment lost before Altair knew it was to begin, Adah slowly pulled away, leaving him bereft with the lasting touch of a brief suckle on his bottom lip. As soon as he opened his eyes, she grabbed his hand and placed it on her rounded belly.

“I do not know what fate is to befall me once I depart, but I want you to remember...” she paused as she looked down at her stomach and covered his hand with her own, “...that even though I could not say it, we do love you.”

And for the first time since she could remember, Adah saw Altair ’s face soften with true a smile... This one, she knew was genuine because unlike the other small smirks he usually wore, there was no malice in his eyes like she saw whenever he killed.

She couldn’t help but smile back softly and nuzzle her face to his when he engulfed her in his arms, almost lifting her up from the floor.

“Promise you won’t forget about us?” she asked once he finally let her go and she reached into her bundle of items and handed him his white robe.

Altair looked into her hazel eyes and smiled again.

“Never.”

+++

The cold streets of Masyaf were quiet as they normally were this time of morning. Wobbling quietly behind Altair, Adah stayed close at his heels as he led her by the hand down through the city towards the stable near the gates where Malik prepared his horse. She noted that even though he should be in a rush he in fact took his time, walking much slower than even his normal pace. And she knew why even though he did not say it.

He was stalling in an attempt to savor the little bit of time they had left to enjoy each other’s presence. Only she wished she realized it sooner instead of being selfish earlier and throwing that time away with her unnecessary sulking. Adah sighed to herself, her eyes quickly becoming watery when Altair finally stopped, signaling it was time to say goodbye...

Pressing herself against his back, she clung to the back of Altair’s robe and rested her head against his shoulder blade. The deep sound of Altair’s voice restating his orders to Malik rumbled through his chest and into her ear but at the same time, it was if she didn’t even hear them. Her mind was too busy trying to remember all the little things about this city that in the past, despite her sadness and selfishness had brought her joy... She looked up beyond the torches around the tall wooden gate and into the night sky that was beginning to brighten with the start of a new dawn and a new day where she would be forced to leave Altair behind.

“I thought you brought her with you, Altair... Daybreak will soon be upon us!” Malik urged, eager to get the long travel underway.

He looked on as Altair glanced behind him before stepping completely to the side, revealing the small and very pregnant young girl previously hidden from his view. Malik studied her more closely now that she was in more light, doubt churning through him as he ran a hand through his short brown hair.

“I must say, I do not think this a wise decision. Adah is... very far along. And travel will be quite hard for her.”

Adah gripped her red bundle of items and began to fidget as the two men studied her, the eyes of the guards posted on either side of the gate also looking at her curiously from underneath their grey hoods. She felt her cheeks burn and averted her gaze to her sandaled feet.

“I am very much aware of her condition...“ Altair confirmed and brushed a stray ebony curl behind her ear.

“Still stubborn as always...” Malik sighed shaking his head as he mounted the tall black and white steed at his side that suddenly began to stamp its hooves, kicking up dirt once it was guided to the gates opening.

Adah warily took several steps back from the suddenly spooked horse rearing up on its hind legs and persistently backing away from the entrance. She watched as Malik tugged at the reigns in surprise to regain control but had no effect until several of the guards ran up to assist.

Something was wrong. She watched as one of the remaining guards stepped away from his post to quickly survey the dusty path beyond the gate, peering out into the darkness in an attempt to determine what had frightened the horse. Without hesitation she turned to Altair still standing next to her and grabbed his arm, afraid to turn her eyes away from the dark trail the guard was looking down as if the darkness would reach out and snatch him into the abyss.

“Altair ...?” she mumbled, her hands tugging on his arm, her eyes still stuck to the path. She had to get away from the gate...

When he didn’t respond, too caught up in what was going on in front of him with the out of control horse, she tugged again, this time harder than the last. Then she saw it. A plain white arrow sprang forth from that same inky darkness to pierce the guards’ chest as he curiously looked out into the night.

She screamed.

The impaled guard stumbled backwards and fell at their feet, dead before his body could hit the ground as the front of his grey robe flooded with blood. Instantly adapting to the situation, Altair reached down and snatched up the scimitar from the body’s waist. Malik jumped down from the horse, watching with wide eyes as several more arrows rained down from above, striking the dead guard and barely missing his own feet.

Suddenly Adah’s view was blocked as Altair stepped in front of her, swinging the blade with sharp precision and successfully averting two more arrows. She heard the shouts of men bouncing off the rocky cliffs from the dark path leading into the city, causing the guards surrounding them to shout “ATTACK!” and the loud bell of the fortress watch tower begin to ring. Panicking, Adah screamed again the moment she looked around Altair and saw several heavily armored men clad in dark red and gold charge through the fortress gates.

Altair turned and pushed Adah away from him, his golden brown eyes meeting her hazel ones. He shouted for her to flee and turned back to halt the path of a long sword aimed at his chest with his blade. Her stress filled eyes blinked when he turned back to her and shouted again as he pushed back against the weight of the blade. Several Assassins’ tore past them and into the dark trail outside the city. The brutish cracking of broken armor and the clang of swords against swords rang out in the distance, but all she could hear was her own mind shrieking the same chant, ‘Run away! Run away! Run away!’

Finally she took off. Where she was headed, she didn’t quite know but thankfully her aching legs raced in frenzy towards the safety of the fortress. She saw several townspeople open their doors for a moment before slamming it shut in fear. Once she reached the top of the hill she looked down over Masyaf in horror as she struggled to catch her breath, watching what looked like a small sea of men in red clashing with a barrier of Assassin’s in grey.

An arrow whirred by her ear and she screamed, looking back in time to see a large burly man armored in red with odd blonde hair heading in her direction. They were moving faster than she anticipated into the city. She clutched her bulging stomach as a sharp pain unexpectedly coursed up her side. She took off again, her eyes wide with fright, her lungs raping the air of oxygen as she wobbled as fast as her legs could carry her up the final path to flee from the chaotic battle going on in the city below. Another sharp pain, stronger than the last ripped upwards between her hips and she cried out, collapsing to her hands and knees. Not allowing her a chance to recover, she felt a sudden twinge in her lower belly as a burst of fluid poured down her burning legs leaving them slimy and wet.

The clanking of heavy armor and anguished cries of men in pain could be heard nearby. Tossing her long ebony curls out of her face, Adah sat up and looked down at her red dress in confusion mixed with terror at finding the crotch of the cloth soaked completely through. She knew she was terrified but she couldn’t have wet herself, could she? Her fingers swiped at the slippery water covering her thighs to examine it and her eyes bulged in shock.

“Please...” she cringed in pain from the onset of labor, “Not now!”

Fighting the urge to curl into her belly to soothe the pain, Adah lay before the gates of the fortress, frightened and alone.


+++


To be continued and thanks for reading!

The Rusty Peach