The Serpent's Veil

Knight and Squire

The night stretched long and sleepless before Khaya. She leaned over the balcony and let her gaze wander to the farthest point on the horizon, where Baghdad slowly faded into the desert. Starlight spilled from the indigo sky into the river Tigris, meandering through night bazaars still glowing with light. The sight was beautiful, and struck Khaya with a longing for something she could not quite place.

Khaya's fingers went to the sapphires at her throat as she tried to stretch her hearing outwards, searching for a familiar voice. Her breaths deepened, and the sounds of the night came to her in waves. The clinking of armour as guards changed shift, owls and pigeons crooning in their coops, and the gentle splash of water against the river banks. She brought her awareness closer, to the heart of the palace where soft footsteps echoed in the wide hallways, but the presence she was searching for was absent.

The Prince had likely left the city at dusk, as the courtiers retired for prayer and rest. Khaya tugged at one of the glittering blue gems and wondered if she could reach him if she took off the suppressive necklace. Would she recognise the sound of his breath? The fall of his feet on the sand?

A sudden fatigue washed over her body, and her eyelids began to droop. Just that fraction of exertion had already taken its toll. Though she wanted to try again, Khaya returned to the warmth of her rumpled bed with a sigh.

There would be time again when the sun rose, to find his voice across the desert.

X

The deep toll of bells brought forth the dawn, calling the palace to prayer. Khaya rubbed the sleep from her eyes as the bustling crowd guided her towards the entrance of the grand palace mosque. There were far more people than was typical for the dawn prayers, and once Khaya entered the atrium she understood why.

In a rare occurence, the Caliph had arrived to pray amongst his people. He sat on a stone block between two commoners, perhaps guards in disguise, as he splashed his feet with water from a long trough shared with the rest of the worshippers. His presence seemed to stretch out and touch each person briefly, like rain watering a parched desert. The men reached out and lightly touched his shoulder or hand to take his blessing, while the women pressed their fingertips to their brows and moved further along where a screen shielded them as they cleansed.

Khaya lowered her eyes and followed them, relieved to finally rinse the sleep from her face. Much time had passed since she last congregated with the other women, and she was glad of their presence to distract her from thoughts of the departed Prince. As they entered the main hall Khaya's gaze rose to the ceiling, inlaid with geometric patterns of cerulean and blush pink. The carpet was plush indigo threaded with silver, making it appear as though she was walking on the sky, and staring up at the sea. The sight never failed to fill her with awe and reverence.

Leaving all worldly thoughts aside, Khaya opened her palms and drew her arms up for the first rakat. The sweet strum of an oud resonated against the dome above, each note matching the movements of the prayer. The women's whispers were sharp as a bell to Khaya's ears, mixing with the deep voices of the men in the hall beside them. Highborn and lowborn, royal and common, they all recited the same words with the same conviction, and all at once Khaya felt as though they were not dozens of lone people, but one person with one voice, rising in synchrony to invoke the divine.

Khaya rose from her kneeling posture and spent a few moments focusing on bringing the sounds to her and pushing them away again. Though her body was tense with concentration, it felt easier and more natural than before, like the jinn was becoming a part of her. The thought both frightened and excited her.

She made her way out, where people were still flocking to the doors, hoping to witness the presence of the Caliph. Faint streaks of sunlight curved over the horizon, staining the sky pale orange and blue and casting long shadows over the courtyard.