Anshi: The Lost Eagle of the Steppes

Relationships

Nar Arslan rushed into the mouth of the cave and stopped as still as a temple idol. There lay his lovely Bolormaa with a tiny replica of her clutched to her chest. Even in her weakened condition, she held her sword before her. All she could see was his silhouette blocking the sun and she hissed, "Do not come nearer, leave us alone!"

"Crystal Mother, it is me." She still waved the sword and he held out his unarmed hands. "Me. Arslan."

The terrified woman uttered a strangled cry and began to weep. The sword fell to the cave floor and he rushed to her side and gathered her and the child in a tender embrace. The child uttered a sharp protest since her mother was still holding her tightly, in fear. He looked down at the tiny, red face of his suddenly irate daughter. She was so little and it was hard to imagine how such a wisp of a thing could be so angry.

He laughed out loud and said, "Let Papa hold his Little Mouse."

He scooped her up and she immediately calmed in the cup of his big, practiced hands as Bolormaa looked on.

"You found us."

"Thanks to young Qiang and the eagles. We barely made it in time. We saw Xiao Mian, weaponless, trying to distract an attacker then Qiang appeared behind them and dispatched him. At the same time our eagle dove from above. The bastard never stood a chance."

"Xiao Mian...she delivered our child, is she safe?"

"Safe but distraught. I gather she was leading the man to the stream below. From a distance, we could tell his intentions. He placed his hands on her. Qiang was lethal in her defense. But I am not sure about the damage to her spirit."

"She is my sister now, Arslan. Please make sure she is treated with kindness and respect. I would not have survived without her help."

"Then she is my sister as well. I believe all of us present today will shelter and protect her. Her brother and Lan Ge Ban are with her and Qiang will not stop embracing her. I think the young brat won this first skirmish with her heart today."

"I never doubted him, but I have been seeing a change coming on her part, even if she did not herself. And she was amazing, Arslan. So calm and confident. Her first time and with a child not yet at full-term. I must speak to Chief Anshi. The milking sheds are too good for that kind of talent."

"I will speak for her too. In the meantime, give me a few minutes to kiss my wife properly and get to know my daughter more."

"Gladly, however, I have a feeling she is already Papa's Girl!"

********

"Preserve evidence, Ge Ban. Carefully secure the dog's body, arrow intact." Anshi looked at his sister in worry. "With the other thief probably heading back to his tribe, I expect company. Send a messenger to Lan Sya Mu and have her bring all Guardians, and half the battalion. Leave the other half and all nomadic fighters there to protect the camp. We will not need them unless our meeting with the tribe backing the two thieves does not have a satisfactory outcome. However, I would prefer that any other solution is met here and not near our people. I would expect we would win a battle or deplete an enemy enough not to have them be a threat to the camp."

"Yes, Sir!"

As they waited, the travois was prepared and blankets laid out for Bolormaa and her Little Mouse, who were carefully escorted to the canvas. Ge Ban scouted the area until the stranger's horse was relocated. He was quickly commandeered and gotten ready to be the horse at the rear since the travois would now be suspended between Nar Arslan's horse and the new one; a much more comfortable alternative for the mother and child, than being dragged over rubble and brush.