Sidratul Muntaha

Chapter 1🌹

Bismillahi Rrahmaani Rraheem•

Assalamualaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuhu•

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Twenty years later

Adara Thuraiz had always been a curious young girl. The curiosity had just increased with time. When it coupled with her rebelliousness, the effects had always been disastrous. She wasn't someone who accepted something without questioning it. Since her childhood she had been taught about the religion of fire. Her father was the head priest of the temple of fire. She had questioned their teachings so much that they had had to resort to punishments for her. Her straight forwardness and refusal to bow down had always made her stand opposite to her father, angering him to no limits.

The head priest and his family lived in one of the biggest mansions of the city of Hinviz. They were treated like royalty. The respect and reverence of the people for their family made them bow their heads whenever any member of the family passed by them. Adara had been one such person to grow up amidst such respect. Yet she disregarded all of it for the sea of questions that stormed her heart each time she was taught about the fire.

She had been given knowledge in various arts. She was tutored by the women on how to win a man's heart and that was one of the skills she hated to the core. The lies and deceit that they had taught her had nauseated her. Her heart had rebelled at that. She was taught how to sing and how to dance, but again she had refused to take any more lessons and angered her father. She was taught to precede over the practices of worship in the temple and she had refused to learn them. Each time they had tried to groom her as her father said, for the future, she had thrown the lessons over their faces. The only lessons that she had accepted from them were weaponry. She had learned whatever knowledge they were willing to teach her in this field.

Adara had become a beautiful woman of twenty that year. She wasn't extraordinarily beautiful but in her own way she could steal people's breath away. She was strong willed and unbendable even after receiving enough punishments from her family.

On that night of the full moon, Adara was slinking through the streets of Hinviz behind a couple of men that had exited her home. She had identified them to be her eldest brother and her father, who were too busy conversing to notice her pursuit. She lifted her gown so it doesn't make any sound on the street and made sure she avoided the dry leaves. This behavior wasn't new for her. She had done this before on several occasions and loved the thrill it provided her. She thought of her younger sister Amiza and sighed. Amiza would have lectured her on not inviting danger towards herself. She scoffed. Her younger sister had her own adventures behind the veil of innocence.

She lifted her head to see her brother and father enter the temple. In all her years of such adventures, this was the first time her father was entering the temple at this hour of night. She speeded up towards the steps and entered the open door of the temple, hiding behind a pillar immediately. When she peeked ahead she saw her father and brother veer from the worship room towards the right and slowly open a secret staircase which they descended. Adara followed them as her heart beat loudly within her chest. She had never been afraid on any of her adventures, but this time something seemed awfully off to her. She still pressed on due to her sheer head strong nature.

Her father Thuraiz and eldest brother Avik descended the stairs and walked through a passage towards a room at the end of it. They entered it and Adara followed them to the room, hiding herself thoroughly at the side of the entrance. She flattened herself to the wall and slowly peeked inside.

The room was dimly lit by some lanterns. There was a central table that was occupied by many cloaked men. The walls of the room was filled with various symbols which she had very little idea about. She could vaguely recall her father trying to teach her about these symbols before he lost his temper at her incessant question about them. A gigantic book shelf stood on the other side of the room and volumes of books occupied the shelves neatly. A chill slithered down her spine due to no reason, at the ambience of the room. The people were discussing something grimly. She swallowed the fear that had clogged her throat and tied her limbs as she watched them. Her father occupied the chair at the head of the table and her brother sat two chairs to his right. A chair on the left side of her father was the only empty one at the table.