The Queen's War

Chapter Five: Whispers In The Dark

Adiah fell into bed. Tonight had been a victory. A small victory, but great battles were won in small increments. She knew her future would be full of such battles with tiny wins, and perhaps costly losses. Tonight, the loss seemed a little less painful. Soon there would be a wedding, and then she would be leaving her land, her people, her family, and her dreams behind. She laughed bitterly at how she's imagined her life would be. If she'd been honest with herself; if she'd listened when the women around her tried to tell her, maybe she wouldn't have hoped at all. Hope is a double-edged sword. It hurt as much to have it dashed as it did to not have it at all.

As she felt exhaustion creep into her bones there was one phrase that kept swirling in her head. It felt like it was being sung from the dark shadows of the room. It filled the room like water and threatened to drown her as she laid in her bed. 

The green fence.

That was the price she'd paid the witch to set her free. That was the bargain. But what was the green fence and how was she going to build it. She couldn't think, couldn't remember, but also couldn't quite forget. 

And then there was nothing.

"Let's go, fatty," Juma yelled at her. 

"I'm not going with you," she yelled back, turning her back on her older brother and stomping off into the bush. She loved it when she was allowed to leave the city with her brothers. She loved playing amongst the tents, feeding the herds, singing with the women and bathing in the river.  She loved it enough to endure her brother's constant teasing, but not enough to ride out into the desert with them alone. 

"Come on fatty. Who will make the tea if you don't go?"

"Go boil your head and make your own tea!"

"Fatty!" Juma's voice sounded farther away than it should but she didn't turn around. "Fatty! Fatty, please!"

The sound of panic crept into his voice, forcing her to turn and look. Her brother, her strong and beautiful Juma was caught in the arms of a dark prince, a blade to his throat, his eyes wild with fear. Juma kicked and flailed in the air, his face turning purple as he struggled to breathe. Adiah began to run, hoping, praying that she would be able to reach him in time. 

The bush that had just been sparsely planted tangles of desert weeds became thicker and more lush with every step she took. New plants began to sprout under her feet, slowing her progress. First thick, hearty dessert plants, and then softer bushes and grass, the kind that had deep roots and held the rivers back. They sprouted and grew tall, over her knees and then up to her hips, until she was wading through it the way washerwomen walked through the water when taking the laundry from one bank to the other.

She finally got close enough. The light in Juma's eyes was fading. He wasn't kicking as hard but he was still struggling, gasping for air. The dark prince turned to look at her. She roared at him. She had no weapon but her anger and her fear wouldn't allow her to remain silent. She needed to think of a way to save him. She charged at the man, hoping at least that the surprise of being charged by a little girl would make him loosen his grip. 

Time slowed. she could hear her footsteps crunching in the sun-baked earth. She would feel her heart pounding and the sweat rolling down her back. She was almost there. One step. Two steps. A third. and then the spray of blood, hot and thick on her face. 

Adiah stopped moving and watched as Juma's body fell to the ground. Not the little boy he had been but the man he had become. She watched him fall, watched the dark prince wipe the blade on his pants as if he were cleaning pig's blood from a butcher's knife. He turned away as if she were insignificant and walked off into the distance, covering too much space with each stride until he disappeared from view. She stood there, too horrified to scream and too shocked to cry. 

Juma. He was gone forever. She knew that in her heart, and yet she couldn't seem to make sense of it. Where had he gone? Why? 

"From Allah, we all came, and to Him we all return," the Mind Healer said, putting a knarled hand on her shoulder.  Adiah turned to look at the woman and realized she too was no longer the girl she'd been just a moment ago. She was the woman she'd become. 

"Is this a dream."

The Mind Healer twisted her face into something that looked like it was meant to be a smile but didn't quite make it. 

"Will you waste time asking stupid questions?"

"Why? Why didn't you save him? Why couldn't I save him?" Adiah bellowed, her voice sounded like the helpless bleating of goats. Pathetic, even by her own standards.

"Look and see for yourself."

Adiah looked back at the bushes and grasses that had impeded her progress. They were still there, and a few small trees had sprung up in the dense brush. She turned her head from one side to the other. A solid wall of grasses, bushes and tiny, frail trees filled the horizon.

"The green fence."

The healer nodded.

"But how?"

The feeling of helplessness filled her chest. She looked down at the lifeless body of her brother and felt tears fill her eyes. It was all such a waste. She couldn't even avenge him. How was she going to plant enough bushes in Swarahel. The rains had been increasingly sparse and the whole land was beginning to suffer. Even her marriage to an awful man was the result of the poor conditions. Even if she could find the money and the manpower, where would she find the water? Angry tears fell from her eyes and hit the dry, cracked earth. The dry sands absorbed her wasted tears almost immediately and tiny green shoots appeared in their place. 

"Sisal," said the Mind Healer.

"Sisal?"

"Begin, princess. Its time to save them before it's too late," she said.

"How!" Adiah screamed. The Mind Healer shook her head and began to crumble away like ashes on the wind, leaving Adiah alone in the wilderness with nothing but the dead body of her brother. She fell to her knees and wept. How could she save anybody when she couldn't even save her brother.

"Sisal" the wind whispered. 

"Sisal," she repeated, batting her tears away defiantly. "Begin with sisal. I promise, Juma. I will avenge you and save our people."

"Princess! Princess! Are you awake?" Oslem shook Adiah.

Adiah peeled open her eyelids slowly. She felt as if somebody had thrown sand in her face while she slept. Her brow was wet with sweat and her skin felt tight as if she'd been laying out in the sun for hours.

"You were screaming in your sleep. You worried me," Oslem looks down at her with wide, worried eyes. 

"I'm fine. It was just a dream," Adiah said, trying to turn over. She didn't want to talk. She felt too rattled to explain herself. The dream had been too real. A dream, but not a dream at all. She understood now that she had something she must do. Begin with sisal.

"What are you going to do with sisal?" Oslem asked softly.

Adiah sat up in her bed and grabbed Oslem's hands. 

"What do you know about sisal?"

"It's a plant that they grow in dryer regions. It doesn't really need much water. It has many uses, you can make ropes and baskets from it. I don't really know much. You kept saying before you started screaming, sisal, sisal, sisal."

"It doesn't take much water?" Adiah clenched the maid more tightly, her fingers digging into her firm arms.

Oslem shook her head. 

"Can you find me some?"

"You're the princess, you can easily get as much as you want. Even peasants know how to grow it."

Adiah hugged the Oslem tightly, feeling hopeful for the first time in weeks. She still had no idea how she would build a green fence, but she was facing the right direction. Start with sisal.