Jals's POV
The whirring of the rotors filled my ears, as we slowly descended closer to our destination. The land was already covered with snow, the blanket of white only getting thicker as we ventured deeper into the lands of the North, with sparse spots of rocky land showing mostly on elevated plateaus and hills, and the edges of great mountains. Cold freezing air whipped my face, and pierced through the thick layers of clothing I had been wearing on my body. I wrapped the scarf on my neck, pulling it higher to cover my nose and ears, and put on the helmet that Amin handed over to me before putting on his own.
I observed the white landscape that concealed the horrors and ugly truth behind its treacherous beauty. The snow seemed soft from this distance, and I remembered how I longed to see it during my childhood because it didn't snow where we lived and no one had the time to take us out to such places, nor was I allowed to travel alone. What once was a dream, is now my duty, changing the nature of the trip all at once.
So much was at risk, so much could be lost, yet so much could be achieved and so much could be won. Standing side by side with my companions, each of them risking their lives to accomplish what we had set out for, and a similar purpose in their mind, gave me some comfort that I was not alone. I held Arina's hand who stood beside me, as she let out a shaky breath, from the cold or the nerves that had begun to settle down on us as the location got near, I do not know. We shared a smile, holding our hands tighter in an untold promise, that we were in this together.
Sometimes, it felt like Zohra was right when she addressed me and Salman as pawns, pieces Zulfiqar wouldn't mind sparing in search of undisputed power. I dare not voice my thoughts out loud, since I knew Arina's loyalty towards him and I know she wouldn't let the matter slide. But I also knew that gaining Khan's trust was a matter of great honor, where loyalty meant a lot to him and he rewarded his followers quite generously. No one in their right mind would think of threatening someone Khan took under his protection, unless they were of an equal or higher rank.
Salman, Amin and Arina stood by my side as the ring of mountains became visible, each of the mountains standing upright and their pinnacles facing towards the sky. The ring was nearly circular, with seven mountains in its circumference, not much in height but they provided the necessary protection (and more) and marked the territory for the Mothers base. The helicopter flew even lower, to avoid getting seen by the observatory Zohra warned us about. We landed at the foot of a mountain since the helicopter couldn't fly so high and crossing the mountain would mean getting seen and most probably, imminent death.
"Ready, flower?" Salman muttered to my right.
"As I'll ever be," I replied, smiling at the nickname he gave me, what felt like a lifetime ago.
We trudged around the mountain, our feet slipping on the rocky surface from time to time, being wet from the snow as well as our unfamiliarity towards the weather, place and experience that made the hike all the more harder. Snow had begun to fall in a steady rhythm, settling in our lashes, shielding our vision and making it harder to see across the distance. Salman helped me up a particularly steep spot on the hill, while Amin held Arina's hand from a step down to prevent her from falling off. This bond we shared made my heart melt, where we were always there for one another in times of need, but it hurt all the more since we may not be after this expedition.
I hardened my heart and continued on the tricky course, along with the others continuing to help one another when needed, until we reached the edge of the mountain that led to a path intersecting the two mountains joined together. An igloo-like structure was visible from the distance, magnificent in its structure, the smooth curved surface of its dome had an opening giving resemblance to that of an eye and I was sure that was where the telescope must have been kept. Our journey down the mountain was faster and much more fun than climbing it upwards, where we even skidded down at intervals and laughed since this face of the mountain was more level than the one we came up on, and therefore more easy to carry ourselves on, however this made the distance longer. My boots dipped ankle high into the snow as we finally set foot below its slope, the massive gate of the building just a few meters away from us opening into the building like a great maw, waiting to swallow us whole.
Our boots left imprints on the snow bed only to be covered up soon by the receding snow, as we made our way towards the entrance, the looming shadow of the building falling on our own, making us little more than entities with fates left to be decided by the will of the Mother. Our real identities were still a secret, and used the mother's contacts which we traced through Zohra's help to make our new ones, and through Salman's expertise we certified and approved our alibis. An encoded message was relayed to inform them of our arrival, and must have been accepted otherwise making it alive past the mountainous threshold was impossible.
The corridor was wide with a curved ceiling above our heads, while the walls were of a sandy white color and were sturdy and thick, seemingly smooth but had little bumps and ridges visible to the keen eye, and was coarse to touch if you ran your fingers along their surface and. The temperature increased as we walked further into the building, the indoor noises of shuffling footsteps and incoherent conversations becoming gradually more clear with each step we took inside the building. The passageway opened into a large hall with bustling activity, with men and women of hardy stature and appearance catering to their needs, while some were sitting in a corner of the room littered with a few benches and couches and seemed to be enjoying their time, drinking beer, playing music and some were even making out.
I allowed myself a moment to familiarize with the atmosphere, that seemed friendly enough, where no one really seemed to pay us much attention, occasionally sparing a side way glance but that's about it, with no effort to make a conversation. Multiple passageways were opening at either end of the room and there must be more to the base than what meets the eye. I searched for a familiar face among the crowd, since the crew led by Dawood chacha should have reached here two weeks ago, in which Hamza and other men of our clan were also present. It wasn't long until I heard a man shout from my left and I glanced in the direction only to see it was Salman he was addressing in the manner.
"What do you think you're doing here?" He said rudely.
"I'm here to make some adjustments in your security area. My boss said the Mother wanted some updates in the Base, since it was getting a bit tacky and the team was being inefficient." Salman replied in a confident, snarky tone, signature of his personality which seemed to have taken the burly guy by surprise, for a moment.
"And you suppose you're going to fix that?" He said with a smirk.
"Yep."
He advanced towards Salman, slowly and predatorily, his height even greater than that of Salman, while his taut muscles ripped through the t-shirt he was wearing. He carried a long gun in his hands and an open army vest on his shoulders, indicating that he must have either been on training or on duty. My feet instinctively began to move in the direction, out of anger and the urge to protect my friend from the bully, before someone grabbed me by the shoulders and turned me around in the opposite direction.
"Lost, my child?"
"Dawood chacha?!" I half whispered, half shouted in disbelief. The place instantly felt more homely now that I found him and had him by my side.
"Happy to see you too kiddo, but I would advise against exposing your actual identity, right after setting your first footsteps into the enemy's territory," he said in his soft raspy voice, just loud enough for me to hear.
I could see Amin and Arina conversing with individuals in a white uniform, two of them who were women and one man. The man and one of the women were in masks and seemed to be of higher rank than the rest of the crew I was surrounded by. They most probably operated elsewhere, since Amin and Arina signed up as security officials, while I was just another member of the cavalry. My gaze wandered off in Salman's direction once again, where the two were now chest to chest and none of them seemed to be saying anything, but just locked in a deadly eye contact.
"That's Rick, the cavalry head, the one you'll be working under," I swallowed at the revelation, to moisten my dry throat. He did not look like a person I would want to cross, even in my best form. "He may come off a bit intimidating at first, but he isn't really that bad unless you push the wrong buttons. He probably won't even notice you as long as you keep your head down and train hard. The kids have been doing well so far, spread in different parts of the base and getting a general idea of the structure. Things will improve even more, now that you guys are here."
He led me out of the hall, and through a courtyard under the open sky where the activities just didn't seem to come to an end. Various people were engaged in combat , while some practiced archery. There was enough room for one to move around easily without getting in the way of others training. I was surprised at the number of people living inside the place and wondered how large and well organized it must be to inhabit them. At one side of the courtyard was a cafeteria lead by a staircase, surrounded by a few plants and trees and a small square patch of plain grass, that gave some color to the background. On the other way, the one we took was a building that stood four storeys high that overshadowed the courtyard and had a pretty neat outlook with window for display and a small, tan, metal gate that we stood before.
"The warden will help find you a room to stay and set you up," he said, removing his arm from my shoulders.
"You are leaving?" I felt a pang of anxiety in my chest at the idea of his departure.
"You want me to come to the girls' dorm with you? Because, frankly, I have no problem."
"You are such a pervert," I said, rolling my eyes, but smiling nonetheless.
"Have some rest, kiddo," He patted my head affectionately and tucked his hands in his pocket. "You must be tired."
"Take care," I told him and waved at him, before walking into the dormitory. The hallway was quiet as the warden lead me past the doors, with muted conversations and our echoing footsteps keeping us accompanied. A few fire extinguishers hung on the walls for times of emergency, while the corridors were still dim and lit up by nothing but the sunlight streaming in from the end of the hallway, making the atmosphere more eerie than was necessary. We stopped outside a room on the third floor, the third last in the row to the left.
"You'll be sharing a room with Jean. She's a fairly new recruit, so you both won't have much of a problem getting along with one another." She took out a pair of keys from her pocket and handed them to me. "Don't lose them," she warned before leaving.
I gingerly knocked on the door and turned the knob upon hearing a voice from the other side. A young girl, who looked to be about my age, sat on one of the beds placed beside the wall. She looked as if she had just returned from a work out with her skin still blushing from the blood rush and had a friendly smile upon her face. She wore a tank top, sweatpants and trainers with her hair tied back into a ponytail and baseball cap on her head.
"Raksana," I introduced myself, extending a hand towards her. "Jean," she said, taking it and shook. "As the warden must have already told you."
The room looked neat enough with two beds on either side of the room, and a drawer that stood in the middle. A cupboard was placed on the opposite side, a few feet away from the door, and a desk and stool was placed beside it. It looked neat enough with a small window in the middle of the two beds and the blinds pulled halfway through to allow the sunlight to stream in.
"So what brings you here, Raksana?" She asks, looking at me.
"Fate," I answered promptly. I've gotten used to making my way out of situations, by revealing only what's necessary, and less if that is what is needed.
"Doesn't it bring all of us?" She says laughing. "But what's your story?"
"How about we leave the stories for bedtime?" I said sheepishly. "I am kinda tired and I'd like to freshen up a bit."
Whatever delays the time to lie, I thought desperately. I would get a few more hours of being myself, or at least who I thought I was.
"Of course! Rest all you want to, and let me know if you need help with anything."
"Sure, thanks Jean," I said, sitting down on one of the beds.
"No probs, bestie," she said cheesily, before winking at me and leaving the room, altogether.
My day one inside the enemy's camp had officially begun.