Hello to all my dear readers, I've been a little late, but there have been renovations at my house, so I've been busy.
On another note, thank you so much to everyone who has left comments on the different platforms where I share my fanfic. Please know that I read them and appreciate your words. I haven't responded because I don't trust my English writing very much, and my dyslexia doesn't help me, but thank you for your support and enjoy this chapter.
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Thump-thump! Thump-thump!
The galloping of the horses was what woke me up.
Fiuuuuuu! Swoosh!
"archers!".
Thump! Whumph! Zas!
Then came the screams, men, and women of the khalasar.
Clang! Crash! Clash!
"Aaaaah! Die! Ugh!"
I held my seven-moon belly tightly, fearing for my life and that of my baby.
"Khaleesi! Khaleesi!" I heard someone calling me from outside.
"I'm here!" I responded to the voice of one of my maids and stood up as best I could, while my sweaty hands tried to grab onto some sticks for support.
She quickly entered my tent space, accompanied by several other women, some with bows and arakhs.
"Quickly, Khaleesi! We have to get her out of here!" she said quickly, grabbing a thick blanket from my bed to cover myself with.
"Where are we going?! We're in the middle of the camp!" I said worriedly as we left the tent.
"Beside the slaves. For some reason, they haven't attacked them. Come on! Cover the Khaleesi!".
'…don't they attack slaves? What?'.
"Who? Who's attacking us?… What is that?…" I asked, but those questions remained unanswered when, illuminated by the flames, I saw flying beasts, elegant and deadly, half lion, half eagle, soaring above the camp.
My vision froze me in place at the sight, the chaos of the fight, from the beasts in the air to the carnage on the ground.
"…dra…dragon…dragons!" A strangled cry escaped my mouth as lizard-like beings flew swiftly above us.
Creatures that were known for the fear and reverence they held, but right now, they should be in the lands of the Andals.
I managed to count eight before they grabbed my arm and dragged me toward the slave quarters.
We ran as fast as we could, but I felt something strange… despite the violence happening around us, I saw only men on the ground…
I looked to the sides and saw children running all over the place, and though they passed by the attackers, they were not harmed in any way. I even saw a boy no more than ten summers old punch an attacking Dothraki. I knew this because of the differences in their clothing. No Dothraki wore metal over their clothes. The enemy Dothraki just held him tightly and shouted to his companions to take him to the others, whoever they were.
"Ahh!" "Khaleesi, behind me!" "Stay back!"
I heard my protectors shout, which made me focus on the person who had appeared in front of us, blocking our path to "safety."
I held my stomach protectively as I backed away behind my protectors, but my gaze was fixed on the unarmed figure approaching from the front.
'What, what is she?' I said in my mind, as the glowing orange outline illuminated the female figure, making the torchlight look like embers in comparison.
I couldn't see her features until she was about five horses' length away. She wore metal like the Andals, and over it, ornate white fabrics that were somewhat transparent. But even so, what made her stand out were her bright orange hair with small stars twinkling in it and her bright purple eyes with orange tones.
'Maegi,' I thought, but the maegis looked like pigs next to the "woman" in front of us.
The woman continued to approach until my protectors spoke again.
"Stay back before we fill you with arrows!".
Only then did the "woman" stop and look at us calmly, but I felt it, in her gaze. There was also something else, something I didn't think I would feel again, compassion.
It was the same look my mother gave to my father's slaves, the feeling that made my father kill her for being weak, which according to him, no member of his khalasar should have. But this "woman" had it, I was feeling it, and she didn't seem "weak" in any way.
Standing alone in the middle of the burning camp, unarmed, without a care in the world, it was as if nothing could move her or hurt her.
She tilted her head slightly and seemed intent on speaking, but stopped and looked over at us.
The sound of galloping horses coming our way had alerted her, as well as me and my protectors.
I turned to look, and my eyes widened with joy, but they soon changed to fear and terror.
My khal, my husband, Karo, was riding toward us with several of his blood riders, not to rescue us, not to help us, not to save me and our baby.
I felt tears running down my cheeks. Hopelessness and detachment hit me suddenly. There was nothing I could do. He, the man I thought I'd begun to love, was ready to run me over with his horse just to reach the woman behind me, not caring even a bit about my well-being.
I desperately searched his eyes for some recognition, something that said he recognized me, that he might have regrets for what he was about to do to me, but there was nothing but blind anger in his eyes.
He would kill me…and our child in my womb.
But when he was almost upon me, I saw the golden lightning flash past me...and there were no more horses or Dothraki galloping toward me.
Only the sound of thunder along with the wailing of dying men.
I closed my eyes for a moment at the loud noise, only to open them and see the "woman" standing in the middle of the group of my khal's bloodriders, who were struggling to their feet, though not all of them.
I saw several of them on the ground, motionless, perhaps dead.
Then I heard my khal's voice and looked at him. There he was, looking angry but hurt, clutching his side but still holding his arakh in his hand, pointing at the "woman." Now that I looked at her clearly, she was holding a weapon longer than any I'd ever seen…and it didn't look like a weapon a person could wield.
It was as if the gods had taken the lightning and fire and shaped it into a sword. I had no other way to describe the red and orange rays dancing alongside the sword-shaped pieces of metal wielded by this "woman".
I no longer believed she was a person like me.
"You! You damn bastard! You were the one who took my khalasar! My slaves!" Karo's scream drew my attention to him.
But her cries were met with calm, and when the "woman" went to respond, her words were spoken slowly, a slowness that should have no place in the chaos of fighting.
"...people...are not possessions...of you, or anyone else", the "woman" responded slowly in our language.
'What was she saying? They all had slaves, it was known', I thought as I retreated to my protectors, who quickly surrounded me despite their surprise.
"What the hell are you talking about?! They're my slaves! And you stole them from me! You're going to pay for that!"
Barely having finished speaking, he launched himself at the "woman" like a beast, swinging his arakh vigorously, hoping it would only fall on his enemy. Soon, his other bloodriders also joined him against the "woman".
Only for her, despite her large sword, to calmly swing around them, almost playfully.
But things changed when, after a while, one of the blood riders got too close to us and, in a fit of anger and frustration, nearly severed the head of one of my protectors with a swing of his arakh.
Then... she moved.
Suddenly, she was no longer calmly dodging the slashes, but appeared in front of us, stopping the arakh, making us stare at her with wide eyes. Then, with a swift blow, she knocked the weapon from the blood rider's hands and plunged her sword right into his heart.
"Ahhrrrr! You damn bastard! I'll kill you!"
Came the voice of the recently dead man's blood brother... only to meet the same fate.
She wasn't playing anymore.
The next thing happened in a blur: a slash, a stab, a blow to the face followed by a powerful kick that sent one of them flying, and suddenly only Karo was left on his knees, bleeding and without his weapon.
"Youuuu!... You'll regret this!... You're not Dothraki! You shouldn't lead them! You're just a maegi bitch who sleeps with demons and animal abominations!" That caught my attention. He had never said anything in the weeks since we left Vaes Dothrak in search of whoever had stolen his slaves and the rest of his khalasar.
It wasn't until five days ago that he had returned, upset and thoughtful, after having found a small group of Dothraki along with slaves and having captured them, that I knew he had found something. But he didn't bother to tell me anything, and now I was learning what he had discovered.
His last words seemed to provoke something in her, because in an instant, Karo's arms were gone, causing him to let out a stifled cry of surprise and pain.
"...I have been merciful with my attacks, a cut, a death, no one has agonized, but that doesn't mean I will leave insults unpunished..." Her tone of voice and the golden rays emanating from her body made us shrink in fear.
She was angry.
"...you!...do you think they'll let you keep taking the slaves? All the Dothraki will come for you! Wretch!"
After Karo's words, there was a momentary silence, but she spoke in response, a short but powerful one.
"…then…let them come".
'What?' I was taken aback by the audacity of her words.
"Come, I said, everyone is welcome to try my sword".
"What the hell are you talking about?!" Karo asked, his voice trembling.
"You heard me right. I said, come. Anyone who thinks they can put chains on my subjects again will feel the edge of my sword".
"Just like you felt it today…" she said in an icy voice, a cold fury that made the hairs on my neck stand up.
"You thought I would let anyone attack my people, that I would forget them and let them be lacerated by whips, that I would turn away while you tortured them".
"No, Khal Karo, I am their leader, their protector, their Khaleesi, and if I cannot protect them…"
Now she raised her sword and brandished it at Karo…
"I avenge them!"
Splitting him in half.
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Four days earlier on the way to Mereen, The Dothraki Sea.
"You have to stop biting girls' fingers, Arsi, I've told you several times."
My little lioness pouted as she crossed her arms and lowered her head slightly, sulking. I just shook my head, mentally pleading for patience. She'd been doing this for several weeks now whenever someone other than me tried to feed her, a bad habit, albeit endearing.
"Look at me, Arsi", she raised her head slightly reluctantly, looking at me with those bright orange eyes. "You mustn't bite girls who want to help you, understand?"
"But, but I don't like being fed by others…just muña", she said in a small voice, almost a whisper, but I still heard it clearly, making me mentally sigh.
"I know, darling, but sometimes I have things to do and I get a little late." I stroked her red hair affectionately, because I understood it was just the way she'd learned to get my attention.
"But from now on, I want you to never do it again. Do you understand? You don't have to hurt those who want to help you. Do it for Muña", I finished in a low voice, as I approached to hug her. It seemed the crisis was over when I felt her nod against my chest.
"Okay, from now on, no rabbit meat for three days".
I decreed, and it seemed any happiness from the cuddles had dissipated when he raised his head to look at me betrayedly.
"What! Why!" his voice rose to attract the attention of my assistants in the tent.
"Because no wrongdoing goes unpunished, you also have to apologize to the girls, understood?" She looked like she wanted to argue, but I only raised an eyebrow at her, making her realize she might have more days without rabbit meat if she didn't listen to me.
"...yes, muña..".
"Okay, go play for now, but I want to know if you apologized to everyone for tonight," I had barely finished when Arsi was already quickly leaving the tent.
"Children…"
"…Your Excellency?" Haela's voice pulled me out of my thoughts.
"Hmm?"
"This one is wondering if we should call the hunting parties back? It's been two days since they left".
"Two days, huh?" I thought carefully. While we weren't in a hurry to move, as it gave us time to train and make more armor for the Dothraki with the loose metals we had, the Dothraki Sea were still a dangerous region for them to stray too far.
"Yes... we should. Before they run into any other khalasar, please tell Claudius to look for them. He should be free for now".
"...this understands, Your Excellency".
'There seems to be something there...', I thought as I watched her walk away with a few small skips. A recent development. It seemed that the constant interaction with me had given my main spokesperson and language instructor a small crush on the old man.
'I hope she's lucky', I thought happily. Everyone should be able to live their lives as they wish.
In the end, I settled down on the nearby bench to read some of my gladiators' reports from my terminal.
I spent the rest of my time like this until mid-afternoon, until Lucius and Claudius entered the tent with stony faces, and just by looking at them, I knew the situation would be dire.
And so it was.
"…Do we know their numbers?" I asked through gritted teeth, anger slowly beginning to fill me. 'Soon after making so much progress, this could fracture relations within the khalasar'.
"About eighteen thousand Dothraki and eight thousand slaves, that's what we counted, Your Excellency", Lucius replied solemnly, but I could see it clearly, his fists clenched, his brow furrowed. He had seen how the captured members of our group had been treated, including one he had befriended.
'He'll want revenge... Just like me'.
"Well... Anything else?", I asked, already thinking about how we should proceed.
'... They outnumber us by almost twice as much... But they have a habit of drinking and partying almost always... A night attack... We could silence the horses' footsteps with cloth and aero resonators...'.
They looked at each other for a moment before Claudius spoke.
"Just a few details, but nothing we haven't already said, except that the khalasar is Karo's, the former Khal of this khalasar."
"Hmmm… Has anyone said anything about that information?".
"No one, so far, Your Excellency, but we should proceed with caution; there are most likely relatives on both sides".
"…I will make a statement later. Those who don't want to fight their former Khal can stay; they don't need to fight their own blood. But for now, spread the word about this, so they can prepare themselves mentally".
"Understood, Your Excellency!" I watched them retreat in silence.
I stood there for a moment, waiting for these tumultuous and fierce emotions to calm down. I didn't want them to control my thoughts.
'...I still can't understand how these people can be so cruel to their fellow human beings...'
My breathing became calmer and more even, the weight on my shoulders eased, and my mind cleared of the images my warriors had described to me.
It was the meditation I'd created to deal with the constant whispers of the dark tide that helped me, making calming my emotions much easier.
'Okay...get ready...'
"I won't let their murderers go unpunished...I swear this by the blazing sun".
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"Thank you for accompanying me, Lang-Yi. I will repay this debt in the future, I swear," I told my companion and friend. Although it was only after the Lady Made of Light descended to Earth with her daughter and guardians that we were able to meet, despite having been slaves in the Khalasar and both of us coming from Yiti.
"You don't have to be grateful, Quing-ling. This is the opportunity we needed to unite our people. We must thank the goddess for this opportunity," he replied, with his fervent and well-known faith in the Lady Made of Light.
'Yes... thank the goddess...' I thought with... something inside me. It wasn't annoyance, because I couldn't even remotely despise the Lady of Light who gave us freedom and brought a radical change to the way of life I'd experienced, and who sought to change the entire known world.
No, my lack of emotions was due to the lack of my little sister. Despite all the changes, I couldn't stop worrying about her. Sha-ling was barely ten years old, and I really didn't want to find her and have the damn Dothraki finish extinguishing the light in her eyes.
"Yes, thank the goddess, I'll be able to get my little sister back. I just hope she's okay..." My hands shook, just as they had been since the Lady Made of Light told everyone that we were going to attack in retaliation the khalasar we had been part of until recently, the Khalasar of Karo.
My hands shook again, and Lang-yi patted me on the shoulder in camaraderie.
"Relax... we'll find her. We're right behind the goddess to free and protect the slaves. Have faith, Quing-ling, she's with us".
"Yes... she's fine, thank you, Lang-yi", he nodded in response.
"Okay, let's go. We have to prepare and join the goddess".
"I'll find you, mèimei. Wait for me"
Night of the attack
Despite the training, the experience with the barbaric Dothraki, and the attacks I'd seen them carry out, experiencing the chaos of battle might be the most terrifying thing I've experienced in my fifteen years of life.
Seeing and doing were two very different things.
"On your left, Quing!" I heard the Goddess Guardian, Avidius, admonish in the united language he had been teaching in the new khalasar.
I ducked to avoid the arakh of one of the Dothraki attacking me, and buried my spear in the other before taking a few steps back to gain distance. I had planned to attack again, but Lang-yi got there first, appearing from the blind side of the arakh attacker and slashing his sword across his neck.
He nodded at me before returning to the fight, which was growing more frantic by the minute due to the constant increase in Dothraki coming toward this side of their camp.
'Come on, Quing-ling, you have to focus, for Sha-ling', I mentally slapped myself before jumping back into the fight with Lang-Yi, covering his side when they tried to stab him.
"Come on! For the goddess!" he shouted as we advanced.
We fought for hours until the fighting calmed down considerably when the Dothraki stopped coming en masse to this side. It was then that Guardian Avidius received a message from his magical tool from another of the Guardians.
"Understood, we'll set up a perimeter around this area. Please bring the women and children to this side".
"Really? Okay, I'll let everyone know".
When he finished, he turned to all of us and spoke.
"Your Khaleesi has slain Khal Karo, victory is ours!"
Everything fell silent for a second until, as one, we all shouted in joy.
Wwhhoooooaaaa!!!!!
'We won!' I thought, then worry hit me.
'I have to find Sha-ling, quickly!' They hadn't even finished their victory cry when I was already heading off to find my little sister, yelling her name.
"Sha-ling! Where are you!", I shouted as I passed by the camp.
'Sha-ling! Sha-ling! Sha-ling! Sha-ling! Sha-ling!'.
I ran and ran, all over the slave camp looking for her.
until my name was shouted in the distance.
My gaze turned to the voice. A small figure came running, and tears formed in my eyes before I could stop them.
"Qing gēge! I'm here!"
I ran toward her with my arms wide open, taking her in my arms and holding her tightly, fearing she was a ghost who would escape from between them.
"Sha-ling, you're alive…" I said as I took her in my arms, my voice cracking with relief and emotion.
"…you came for me, gēge, you came for me, thank you, thank you", she said, burying her head in my chest.
"Yes, always, always, mèimei, I will always come for you", I replied, tears streaming down my face like a river, nothing stopping them.
'Thank you! Thank you, Goddess! For giving me back my mèimei, my family'.