Daggers in the Dark (Book 3 of Hanthalah)

Interlude

          Umaymah's arms burned and her vision blurred, heaving the oar forward for the thousandth time that day. It had been hours since she first occupied this rower's bench, and ever since, she had rowed vigorously and intensely, never wasting a second or an ounce of her failing strength. Her stomach screamed at her, craving any morsel of food but Umaymah braved through. She had much to prove. She needed to show Father that he was mistaken; that she was a valuable asset. The other oarsman had long since slumped on their benches, snorting drowsily, or gone lax, their rowing meek and ineffectual. Yet, Umaymah was determined to stand out among the others and earn her spot in the ranks of Hanthalah ibn Ka'b's legions of heroes.

Once again, she'd snuck into the midst of her father's warriors, disguised as a man. Only this time, she did not cling to the shadows in fear of being ousted as a fraud. The men knew her as Ja'afar ibn Abu Bakr, an Arab in service to the governor of Egypt. Her story was that the Egyptian fleet, which formed the right flank of the advancing Arab formation, was overflowing with soldiers and decided to disperse some of them into the Syrian ships that formed the center and left. It was entirely made up, but they were none the wiser.

They had even taken to a fierce liking of Ja'afar ibn Abu Bakr, a man of extraordinary strength, willpower and ferocity. Her determination and passion in rowing with vigor even inspired some of the other oarsmen to follow suit and continue rowing well after the point of exhaustion. She smiled, reinforcing herself with that bit of motivation to lend strength to her sore and failing arms.

I am a positive influence on this ship, she thought to herself. I am a valuable addition to this army.

She would take the part of an oarsman whenever required. She would perform her duties as a sailor with the utmost discipline. And when the time came, she would slay as many Romans as she could, diligently and competently. Her father would watch in awe and he would be so proud of her discipline, her strength and her prowess, that he would immediately accept her into his ranks with open arms and great pride in his eyes.

The burning sensation of her shoulders, upper back and twitching arms retreated, buried under the imagination of that wonderful sight. She continued imagining her dreams and deepest desires unraveling to keep her mind off the exhaustion and the burning of her eyes.