The First figure was a male skink who wore a short sword in his belt and carried a finely decorated, lacquered chest. Walking behind him was none other than King Bashar's favorite slave, Layla; her face hidden behind a veil, as was proper. The Two of them headed in the direction of the Vinolian camp.
As she walked over the dunes, the bracelets around her wrists and ankles jingling softly, Risha could feel her heart beat faster with excitement. Soon, she would stand in front of her father. Soon, her years of suffering would come to an end and the best part was that it was Bashar who had unwittingly made the coming reunion between the two of them possible.
Earlier that day, Risha had been summoned by the King to the council chamber. Surprised by this, for she had never been allowed to enter that part of the palace before, the female lynx had put the embroidery she had been working on aside and headed for the council chamber.
Upon arriving, she had found the large room empty, with the exception of Bashar himself and his Vizier. After having knelt in front of the King, she had been told to sit down on a large cushion.
Once she was seated, King Bashar had begun by reminiscing loudly about the time when 'Layla' had first entered into his service.
"I do not blame you for being obstinate in the beginning" he had said reassuringly. "After all, if you are not a born of slave, it can be difficult to accept your new role in life."
The King's voice, as he had uttered these words had made the fur on Risha's arms stand on end. She wondered if she had ever hated her master as much as she did then.
"Still" Bashar had continued. "That's all in the past; ever since your ordeal in the desert, you have
never given me cause for complaint and I have not been ungrateful, have I?"
"Your Majesty have been good to me" Risha had replied promptly, the loathing she felt masked by an expression of humble gratitude.
"Indeed." The Smile which had appeared on Bashar's face as he recalled the favors he had lavished on his favorite, had been the very image of self-satisfaction. "Of course, you have proven yourself worthy of my kindness, many times over."
Risha recalled how, having said this, the King had leant forward and caressed her cheek, as he had done many times before. She shuddered, but it was not the cool night air that brought about this reaction.
"You would do anything to please me would you not?" The King had asked, his fingers tracing a path down the side of Risha's neck, eventually coming to rest on her left breast. She had answered in the affirmative.
The King had nodded, pleased with the answer. Of course, it was the only answer he had expected to hear from her, his most prized and pampered possession.
"I have decided to trust you with a very important mission" he had said, with a look of sudden seriousness on his face. "It is nothing difficult and its success is guaranteed. Once the mission has been carried out, I shall grant you your heart's greatest desire."
Behind her veil, Risha's mouth turned into a cynical smile, as she remembered what the King had said next.
"Greatest desire" he had repeated. "Yes, my dear, as soon as everything is back to normal I shall formally announce that I intend to make you my wife."
Risha had only stared at the King, completely stunned by this announcement. She had not been alone in her surprise; the Vizier had opened his mouth as if to voice protest, but a look from the King had convinced him to hold his tongue.
"Just imagine" the fennec had said excitedly. "In a short time, you will be Layla, Queen of Guanaca and future mother to its Princes."
"Your Majesty, this is too great an honor for me" Risha had protested. "Surely, there must be other women more deserving of it than I?"
"I do not care about anyone else" the King had replied in a decisive tone of voice. "Besides, when they find out the role you've played in getting rid of the Vinolains, everyone will sing your praises. Isn't that so, Vizier?"
"Indeed, Your Majesty" the gecko's voice had been dry as the desert air.
"In that case" Risha had said, "perhaps Your Majesty will divulge the plan to his future betrothed, so that she might carry it out?"
******
Inside the largest tent in the Vinolian camp, Jeraddin, his staff and King Faljan had gathered for a meeting, when the flap of tent was pushed aside and one of the soldiers who had been on guard duty, became visible in the opening.
"Pardon me, Sirs" the soldier said, saluting first Jeraddin, then Faljan and the others in order. "An emissary from Guanca has come requesting an audience with the General and His Majesty. Alone."
Suspicious looks were exchanged throughout the tent.
"Have this emissary been checked for any concealed weapons?" Jeraddin asked.
"Yes, General. We could not find any. Her follower is carrying a short sword in his belt, but it not concealed."
"I see" Jeraddin said. "Tell him that I can not allow men in the service of the enemy be in any proximity to King Faljan. If he is to accompany the emissary into the tent, he must lay down his sword. Otherwise, he must remain outside."
The Soldier left the tent and returned shortly afterwards with the message that the conditions had been accepted. Satisfied, Jeraddin ordered the others to leave. Once he and Faljan were alone, the lynx leaned forward and whispered in the fennec's ear:
"Your Majesty, I am not sure what your cousin is planning, but we must be prepared for anything. Be careful."
"I know, General" Faljan whispered back. "Fear not, I shall follow your lead."
Nodding, Jeraddin drew himself up in his full heigth and stared at the entrance to the tent. He found himself wondering what the emissary would be like; whether she'd be young or old? Thin or fat? And what sort of anthro she would be? It felt like ages since the General had last laid eyes on a woman. Sure, there were some females in the army, but it was not the same thing. He had always considered any soldier in the Vinolian army, male or feamel as a soldier first and foremost without taking their gender much into account. At that moment, Jeraddin felt a deep, intense desire to hear Nasari's voice whisper in his ears and feel the softness of her fur.
In that moment, King Bashar's envoy entered the tent and, after bowing, first to King Faljan and then to the General, began to speak. As soon as her voice reached his ears, Jeraddin almost staggered backwards in surprise.
From out of the emissary's mouth, somewhat muffled by the veil, came the last voice Jeraddin had expected to hear in this part of the World.
"General" she said. "King Faljan. Thank you for seeing me, I am Layla; servant of His Majesty King Bashar."
Layla? Why is she calling herself by another name? Jeraddin wondered, with a frown. Then he recalled the Guanacan custom of slaves being given new names by their owners. Jeraddin could feel the anger well up in him: Had that arrogant bastard Bashar made his daughter a slave? What about his son, was he a slave too?
Those questions would have to wait though. For the moment, Jeraddin composed himself and turned to the emissary with a dignified look on his face.
"We welcome the emissary from King Bashar" he said in a formal tone. "What message does she bring us from her ruler?"
Bowing, Risha handed her father an envelope, bearing Bashar's seal. Jeraddin studied the envelope briefly, then opened it and took out the letter and began to read it.
"Well?" Faljan asked, impatiently "What's in the letter? What does the usuper want?"
"According to this" Jeraddin replied, looking up from the letter. "To surrender."
Clearing his throat, he proceeded to read a passage from the letter out-loud:
"It has become clear to me that I underestimated the tenacity of the Vinolian army. As a ruler, my first concern is the well-being of my people and with that in mind, I can see no other way to end this siege and allow my city to live again, than to step down from the throne. I ask only that the General remember what he offered me when this siege began: That I am allowed to leave Guanaca unharmed. I also require a reprieve of two days to prepare for my abdication. Finally, though I do not deserve it and knows he will most likely not give it tome, I ask my Royal Cousin's forgiveness. When I so
basely usurped your rightful place, Faljan, I was under the influence of bad advisers, advisers, whom, its become clear to me now, took advantage of my overwhelming pride for their own purpose. You may not believe this, but there has been time when my bad conscience has kept me awake at night, gnawing at my very soul. I hope that, upon restoring to you what is rightfully yours, I shall be able to sleep soundly at night, once again..."
Having listened to his cousin's words, King Faljan shook his head and let out a cynical, dismissive snort.
"A fine letter, indeed" the fennec said, sarcasm dripping from every syllable. "He must really think we are a pair of silly, gullible fools. Don't you agree, General?"
"Hold on, if it please Your Majesty" Jeraddin replied. "There's more..."
"....Since I am well aware and perfectly understanding that you may both be suspicious of my sudden turnaround, I have brought a gift for my cousin. No, to call it a gift would be wrong; I am merely returning to him, something that was always his to wield: The Royal scepter of Guanaca. As you know cousin Faljan, this scepter is the ultimate sign of the Kings of Guanaca's authority."
Having put the lacquered chest down on the tent's floor, the skink now knelt down and opened it, revealing its contents for everyone to see.
As he stared at the scepter, Faljan could feel old memories well up in him. Memories that he had almost forgotten, or had buried deep down in himself.
Memories of him and his cousin, back when they were friends and how he had always looked up at Bashar as the older brother he had never had. In Faljan's eyes, Bashar being willing to give up the scepter served as a greater proof that he was sincere in his remorse, than any words written on paper could. With tears in his eyes, he reached out to claim it.
"Don't touch that! Its been poisoned!"
The Emissary's voice filled the tent. All eyes turned towards her. Faljan, quickly drew back his paws and stared at the beautiful object that he had been an eyelash' length away from touching, as though he was afraid it would bite him.
"Traitor!" The Skink hissed his face livid with rage. He reached for his short-sword, but remembered that he had left it outside. "Traitor" he repeated once more, glaring at Risha.
The Female lynx, however, took no notice of him. She had eyes for only one person in the tent.
"Dad" she said, tearing off the veil. "Its me, Risha."
And with those words, she threw herself in her father's arms.
"I know, sweetie" Jeraddin said softly, his arms closing around his daughter in an embrace. "I recognized you at once."
"You did?"
"Of course. Well, I recognized your voice."
Father and daughter remained like this for a bit longer, forgetting about everything around them.
Then, King Faljan's voice brought them back to reality.
"Poison" the fennec muttered. "He poisoned the most revered symbol in Guanaca." Tearing his eyes away from the scepter, he turned to Risha.
"Young lady, I know not who you are, but you have saved my life and you will not find me ungrateful."
Meanwhile, Jeraddin called for the guards outside the tent and ordered them to take away the skink and put him somewhere out of harm's way. With that done, the General formally introduced the exiled King to his daughter. Once introductions were out of the way, the three of them sat down.
"How did you know that the scepter had been poisoned?" Faljan asked, taking the lead in the conversation.
"Your Majesty's cousin told me so" was Risha's answer.
She proceeded to explain the plan as it had been told to her: The Poison which had been applied to the scepter came from the Vizier's own stock. In the past, he had made use of it to rid himself of a bothersome rival. It was a poison that killed by touch, the victim would merely have to come into contact with the object which had been prepared beforehand and the poison would slowly but surely make its way into the victim's bloodstream. Leading first to them falling sick and, inevitably, dying, two days later.
"I see" Jeraddin said, massaging his chin. "Hence the two day reprieve asked for in the letter."
King Faljan's teeth chattered.
"To think I was almost willing to let bygones be bygones".
"General" he said, turning to Jeraddin. "This is unforgivable, there will be no negotiations with my cousin anymore and no mercy."
Jeraddin nodded in agreement, his face was grim. Ever since the murder of King Sharan all those years ago, the lynx had come to view poisoning as the most vile way to kill someone.
Before, Jeraddin had not felt any real animosity towards Faljan's cousin. This revelation, however, combined with the fact that at least one of his children had been in the usuper-King's clutches, for who knows how long, made Jeraddin see red. He vowed that, come what may, Bashar would pay.
"Your Majesty" Risha said suddenly, temporarily banishing the grim thoughts that had begun to take form in her father's mind. "If I can help you retake your throne, what reward would you give me?"
"I already owe you my life, ask of me whatever you wish."
"In that case, I wish that those members of the Royal harem that desire to return to their own homes will be allowed to do so."
"Consider it done. Now, what did you have in mind?"
And so, Risha explained her plan and when she was done, she turned to her progenitor:
"What do you think, Dad?" She asked with the same eager look she had worn on her face, when, as a small child, she had rushed to show her parents a new drawing she had made.
"Its a good plan" Jeraddin said, giving his first-born a fatherly smile. "Yes, a very good plan" he added and meant every word of it.
*****
The Sun had begun to rise when Jeraddin escorted Risha out of the camp.
"I wish I wouldn't have to send you back there" he said, looking at Guanaca's walls. Right now, they seemed more foreboding than they had ever done before.
"I wish I didn't have to go back" Risha answered.
"There is something I have to ask you. Your brother, is he...?"
Risha shook her head.
"Leorin is not in Guanaca. Neither is Merees, but you need not worry about my brother; he's in good hands."
Jeraddin sent a silent 'thank you' to whichever deities might be watching.
"There are so many questions I need to ask you, Risha".
"I will answer them all, Dad. When all of this is over." "There are some things about myself that I need to tell you" she said, after a moment's hesitation.
"I'll be looking forward to it."
The Two lynxes embraced again and then Risha, once again wearing her veil headed back to Guanaca and to King Bashar. Jeraddin watched her until he could no longer see her and then he turned away. As he returned to his tent, a thought suddenly struck the General: Had he misheard or had Risha referred to the Queen's sister by her first name?
