[◈] Curse of the High Priestess

1 | 2 ⌋ The Map and Key

Cairo, Egypt 1926

The sun took its place in the sky as Hasina, the eldest sibling of Medjai chieftain Ardeth Bey, began training with the youngest sister, Nadia. Under the chieftain's order, both wielded traditional swords for the first time against one another. As the edge caught the sun's eye, the two girls blinded their spectators and released their frustrations upon the sand. 

Their dearest friend, Malik, oversaw their training while Ardeth handled an urgent call in Cairo. Hasina opted to accompany him, but her brother demanded she trains her sister in combat since Nadia's ceremony was close, as was the announcement of her engagement. Malik watched as the eldest daughter pushed the young one to her limit, exposing such a force. He was surprised the swords didn't crack from the amount of pressure Nadia was absorbing. "Go, Nadia!"

Big mistake. In a blissful moment, Nadia looked at Malik, opening a spot for Hasina to push her back. Her ponytail swung as Nadia turned her head, but her sister spun around her. Hasina kicked the back of her sister's legs, causing Nadia to faceplant into the scorching sand. When she turned to fight, Hasina had both swords at her neck. Both girls took deep breaths as they challenged one another before chuckling. Finally, Hasina dropped her weapons and helped her sister up. 

"You still have trouble focusing," Hasina ruffled her sister's hair, "perhaps I'll tell Malik to stay away during practice." The eldest daughter glanced at her friend, who looked away. "Either way, you've improved."

"I had a good trainer." Then, secretly, she looked over at Malik, who gleamed with pride at his future wife. "Next time, you will end up upon the sand." 

Hasina shook her head, "We shall see, little bird." With the weapons in hand, the girls walked back to Malik, apologizing to Nadia without missing a beat. Hasina decided to leave them and walked to her tent to wash up for her sibling's arrival. As she entered the shelter, Hasina felt the world shift into something else. When she blinked, she was no longer in the safety of her tent - long golden halls were ahead and behind her. 

What is happening?'

"Nabila." Hasina turned around to see a good-looking young man roughly around her age. He had light blue eyes that mirrored the sky, contrary to her dark blue waters. "The high priest would like to have a word with you." She didn't know why, but she smiled at the man, her heart beating quickly at his presence. "Come, I shall accompany you." Then, just as she reached for his arm, he turned to sand. Blue eyes widened as Hasina stared at her own hands. The image around her faltered as she fell to the ground; the golden halls became black, and the land became sand as the sounds of yelling overcame the silence and comforted the man had given in a second.

Hasina looked around for a weapon as the yelling got louder. Was the Medjai under attack? She went outside to see her brother and some of the elders return. As he passed her, she could see the look of fear in his brown eyes. "Hasina, prepare yourself and meet us at my tent." She nodded and did as commanded. 

She put her long black hair in a side braid and wore her tribal clothes: a black robe with a grey turban. The dark material shielded the tattoos placed on her arms and back. In the slit of her pants, she placed a sword given to her by Malik. "You will need this." She thanked him before going to Nadia's tent. Once she was ready, the girls made their way to Ardeth's tent.

"What do you think happened?" Nadia asked as they stepped closer to the tent. 

"I am not sure, but when the Elders gather, it never brings good news." She looked into her sister's golden-brown eyes inherited from their father before pulling the flap open to let her through. Whatever their brother learned while on call was worse than they realized. The Elders would not stop talking over one another until Nadia whistled; all eyes were on the girls. "Forgive our intrusion, but the chieftain asked for our conference." She and Nadia bowed to the older men before their Chieftain stood before them.