The sun was well above the horizon, when I wrapped the protective gauze around my hand, to prepare for my first training session within Khan's manor. I was up before dawn, a practice that I had gotten used to when I was training under the supervision of chacha Demir, since that is when we used to have our first training lesson of the day. Today I might get the chance to meet some of the boys who went with me on the mission.
So much has happened in the last few months of my life, than what happened in the past 17 years, that has completely turned it upside down. Even now I feel like a pawn, playing an extra role to fill out the missing pieces, rather than having a story of my own.
I sighed heavily as I remembered the card Zohra gave me that had been weighing down on my conscience. No one knew anything about the card, except me.
Maybe it would do more damage than good. Maybe that's why she didn't want me telling the others.
Perhaps, she was actually on our side and was a spy on the side of the enemy. After all, what she gave to me, she called it the "token of trust".
But would it be wise to trust a traitor?
"Ready to be part of Mr Khan's army?" Arina asks, startling me out of the questions in my mind.
"Straight down to business, now are we?" I asked her lightly.
"Sorry, can't help it," she answers sheepishly. "Being a personal secretary for several years will do that to you eventually, especially if you're meeting everybody with the same reference to the one man you're working for. Come, I'll show you around."
We made our way out the door, while Amira was still sleeping soundly, after taking the pills she took in the middle of the night, when she thought we were sleeping.
"How much does he pay you, anyway?" I asked as we made our way down the stairs, through the hall, and out of the back door.
"Enough for me and my family to live a life better than most around here," she replied, as we continued on the stone pathway, with the manicured lawn and circular bushes outlining it's hedges. "Working for Khan has many other advantages other than a good pay. It proved nothing but a blessing for me, so far. Let's just hope that we never have to see it becoming a curse."
A wide, open chamber stood before me, the opening that stretched from one wall to another. Few men and women dueled under the canopy shade that extended a few feet in front of the chamber, while some trained under the open sky. It was a good thing that we were in the autumn season, because I was done training in the heat of summer with the sun beating down on my neck as I sweated bullets. However, I'm sure it had less to do with the weather than it did with the physical exertion during the practice. The weather of Cairo was quite similar to the weather in Pakistan, maybe even a bit warmer, so my body would have an easy time adjusting to its new surroundings.
"One thing that I should warn you about is that Khan does not like secrets." My stomach did a nasty somersault at this revelation, as my mind instantly traveled back to the mysterious card in my coat's pocket. "He will protect his own as long as they are willing to protect him. Once the secret's out, you don't want to find out what happens to the person keeping it. Even if he chooses to do nothing with the person and simply leaves them to their fate, he knows it's nothing but a death sentence since then you're no longer under his protection, the worth of which you will only realize once it's gone."
It's like you work for him as long as you live or don't live at all. A lifetime contract, and that too with the devil.
"Anyway, good luck with your training," she said, with a pat on my shoulder, leaving me to fend for myself.
I stepped towards the chamber, taking in my surroundings, fiddling with the cloth wrapped around my hand as anxiety hit me hard. It felt like the first day at school, and in many ways it was.
I went inside and looked around for something to get me started. There was a shelf of quarter staffs adjourned in a row, along with pikes, while the knives and smaller blades and weapons hung above them. I picked some of the sticks, choosing the ones that were a bit longer in height than me, testing them and moving them around, for agility as well as sturdiness. I chose a staff, not too long or short, and a pike to practice with.
I liked sparring in open areas more than closed ones, so I went outside away from the clamor of metals inside the building and focused my attention on the training ahead. Having no partner to duel with, would prove helpful in getting into the mode and remembering all that I had learned under Dawood. It had been two to three weeks since I trained, so your movements tend to get rusty and I couldn't afford that if I wanted to to make a good first impression.
I took a deep breath and held the staff at a hundred and eighty degrees to my height, and focused on getting one with the weapon. I started with slow fluid movements to help get into the flow, before I gathered up my speed and strength. Soon, I was using my feet to jump, step back and forth, and move my body in circles, as my pace and strength increased and my movements got more deliberate. I could feel the stares of some people, as they gathered in around to watch me practice by myself. After a few more thrusts and blocks, I jumped back on my feet and planned on finishing strong.
I turned back and saw a guy advancing towards me with a staff of his own. I quickly got into a defence position, placed one feet forward and blocked his attack, holding the staff above my head. My eyes widened momentarily, as I recognized Hamza from the mission, who was now smiling. I smiled back before using the force from my legs, to push him back. Once I was back on my feet, I kicked him in the stomach, from which he quickly recovered. My intention was not to cause pain but move him back to put me into the attacking position. He responded by a thrust of his own, that I blocked and averted, leaving him undefended for a moment, and attacked from above. My next set of attacks came quickly one after the other, from different positions, which he blocked, but only just, as he continued to move back with each thrust. I was not prepared for the attack that happened mid way and managed to block it only just.
"Good to see you, too, Jala," he said, smiling. I heard he was the head of training for Khan's men, when Dawood wasn't around. Quite a crowd had gathered around to see our dangerous little play, in the middle of the ground. Then again, I have grown accustomed to crazy first introductions.
"So," I started, retrieving myself on both my feet, as he did the same. "What do you have in store for me?"
"What would you like to start with?" He asks, as we place our sticks back on the floor of the shelf. Since I'm carrying two with me, I return the bamboo stick but keep the pike by my side. I have a feeling I might need to use it later on, today.
"Most of the things that I have seen the people doing around here, are stuff that I've already tried out. I'd like a change of pace, maybe even try something new." I gestured towards the pike in my hand, and he knew I wanted to put it to use.
"Well, then maybe you could try out tent pegging? After all, it is the unofficial provincial sport of Balochistan in your country."
He took me out of what I presume was the back gate, which led to an open field. To my left were tall green crops, while the open ground that I stood on was trimmed and plowed. A ribbon was tied several meters away from where we stood. Some men and women were already there, running and throwing their javelins, desperately trying to get them over the finishing line created by the ribbon. A few managed to get across the ribbon but most struck behind it.
It may not be very useful as a training in military attacks today, but it was a great way to get your muscles working, improving your focus and will power to go further.
"How far your javelin went doesn't really depend on what your height is, but how you use your body to create momentum," Hamza told me putting one feet in front of the other, stretching back his arm that held the pike, as far as he could so that the spear was almost vertical against the ground and threw it with as much force as he could manage, which resulted in the spear flying high above the ground and landing just a little behind the ribbon. "Of course it also depends on how you are throwing the javelin, since technique is everything when it comes to reaching the target. You don't want it to be too vertical against the ground, since that will result in the spear flying high, but fall short of reaching the target. Also try and keep your hand closer to the spear head, since that allows you to create more momentum with less force of your own, but also you don't want it to be too close as that would result in reverse effects. Want to give it a try?"
I took a deep breath and mimicked his motions, drawing the spear back and throwing it with as much force as I could manage and watched the spear soar high above before landing closer to the red line than I had expected but fell a bit behind Hamza's.
After a few more throws, some archery, target shooting, and dueling with some of my inmates, my muscles were aching for rest. I rolled back my shoulders, and gulped some water down my dry throat. My calves shook as I took a seat on the chamber floor to take a break.
It was afternoon now, with the sun a bit lower in the sky, but it was still too warm to stand under the sunlight. To think that I had been training for almost half a day made me feel good about the stamina I was developing, even though I had sparred after such a long time. I had little snippets of conversation with the inmates, most of which were introductions and small talk rather than actual conversations. Perhaps, I should get used to this temporary way of life, since life itself is temporary. All who come into your life must leave, eventually.
What really matters in the end is the Greater Good. We don't know what it is yet, but the best we can do right now is to get to know the truth.
A boy who works in the manor came rushing towards the manor, and came up to me.
"Young Master told me to get you back to the manor, Miss," he informed me in a breathless voice. "He said they've called a meeting with the rest of the partners in the evening, and you are to go with them."
A strong feeling of Deja Vu gripped my senses but I made my way back to the manor with aching legs, nonetheless.