Chapter 17: Sultan’s Choice

“Nothing is more difficult, and therefore more precious, than to be able to decide.” – Napoleon Bonaparte.

Birecik, Uqaylid Dynasty. November 1078

Sultan Malik stood near Luke’s old campsite and tried to put himself in Luke’s mind. “Which way would I take to go to Britain?” Malik asked himself. There were many possible answers, but only one correct one. Without more information, it was impossible to choose.

That information came to Malik the following day when a scout reported heavy horse tracks headed west. From the tracks, the scout deduced the group was riding swiftly. When Malik heard, he deduced the tracks were made by Luke and the women.

While Luke may turn north, Malik felt certain his target was headed toward the Byzantine Empire. Now knowing where Luke was headed, Malik sent a small cavalry force to follow, thus ensuring Luke couldn’t double back while he took a much larger force to cut Luke off. While the Seljuk Empire didn’t extend to the Euphrates River, it soon would. Malik would conquer the Byzantine Empire to keep Luke from escaping.

Malik drove his cavalry force hard, often riding 150 to 175 kilometers a day through the daytime heat. The men and horses were quickly exhausted, but Malik still drove them. He had to get to the river before Luke because if Luke got past it, it would be much more difficult for Malik to capture him since that territory wasn’t under his control.

When Malik arrived at the Euphrates, he found the area where he had arrived had been savaged by bandits several days before. Instead of stopping, Malik moved upriver to near Birecik, where he found an appropriate place to set up his base. The estate Malik found belonged to one Ghalib El-Ghazzawy, one of the area’s most powerful nobles.

From Ghalib, Malik learned the region had been suffering from constant bandit raids from desert nomads, and most of his troops were working to track them down. Seeing Malik’s strength, Ghalib quickly bent his knee to the Sultan to keep his property and titles. The most prominent reason Ghalib was chasing the nomadic raiders so hard this time was that they had taken his only daughter, who had recently given birth to another grandson.

The evening Malik arrived, Ghalib held a feast in his honor. During the feast, they had a chance to talk.

“I cannot help but wonder the real reason as to why you are here?”

“I am after an extremely dangerous escaped prisoner, my corrupted sister, and her two servants. The prisoner in question burnt Mosul and Isfahan to the ground. He also killed most of my court and the governor of Balkh when he burnt my palace. I am here because I believe he is headed in this direction. When he is recaptured, I will take command of him and my sister personally.”

“What makes you believe they are headed in this direction?”

“He is from western Europe. When he was captured, he was a general in the British Army.” Ghalib choked on the wine he was drinking.

“From what I have heard about those people, we are lucky they didn’t invade and lay waste to everything before them.”

“Those people and their queen would not dare to challenge the might of the Seljuks or Allah’s grace.”

“They destroyed the Fatimid Caliphate and installed a government friendly to them that quickly stabilized Egypt. According to reports, the Egyptian military and economy are quickly rebuilding and are currently stronger than before.”

“I am not worried about Egypt. When the time is right, I will crush them.” Ghalib shrugged. When the British arrived, he would change sides again, just like he was doing at the present.

“So what does this man look like?”

“He is a large man, about 40 years old, although he does not look that old. His eyes are blue, and he has a full head of light brown hair with some gray on the sides. Heavy scars cover his body, although we could not determine their cause. I do know that none of my physicians had ever seen such scarring.”

“I have never met your sister or her servants. Can you describe them?”

“My sister is a tall, regal woman, 20 years old, with long black hair, ivory skin, and golden eyes. Her servants are a pair of blue-eyed twin women approximately the same age. One has red hair and the other silver blonde. While tall for women, they are not as tall as Morvarid, being a couple of fingers shorter.”

“They should be easy to spot then.”

“My sister and the escaped prisoner are very intelligent people. I would not underestimate them, or you will end up dead.”

“I have not done anything against them. Why would they attack me?”

“Because you are going to help me capture them.”

“Why would I help you?”

“Because if you don’t, I will strip you of your land and titles before executing your entire family, with you being last.”

With that, Malik turned his attention back to the entertainment. The dancers were of a quality someone would expect for a relatively poor provincial noble, and Malik wasn’t interested. There wasn’t one woman present he was interested in, so he went and sent out search parties before bed.

Mid-morning the next day, Malik was reading reports when he received a report about a large group of women approaching on horseback. He gently stood up, his body still protesting the long horseback ride from Mosul. Malik was curious about how a large group of riders had managed to bypass his guards, but that was a problem for later. For now, he turned his attention to the incoming group.

It wasn’t until the doors to the hall opened that Malik knew who was in the group, and he couldn’t be more thrilled. Walking in were his sister, her servants, and the bastard that had been eluding him. Malik knew he had been spotted when all four moved for their weapons. This bothered Malik, as he had only a few guards, but he could do nothing about it now.

“Hello, Morvarid. Hello, Field Marshal MacDougall. It is good to see you,” began Sultan Malik. “You two are under arrest.”

“What are you talking about, My Sultan? These people rescued my daughter from the nomadic raiders, and from what my daughter tells me, they eliminated that group. I am going to throw them a lavish banquet tonight in their honor.”

“No, you will not because they will be leaving with me. The tall man is British Field Marshal MacDougall, while the tallest woman is my sister. The other two are her servants. Since they were captured at your estate, you can sell the two servants as slaves or take them yourself. Morvarid and MacDougall will be returning to Isfahan for their trial. After their trial, they will be executed by being burned alive, just like the people of Isfahan.”

Luke glanced at the women and suddenly shouted, “Take them.”

Luke and Morvarid charged Malik and Ghalib while Tuija and Guzal began shooting. Guzal’s shots sounded like thunder in the enclosed hall, causing Malik’s and Ghalib’s guards to pause. That pause was enough for Luke and Morvarid to cut their way through to the pair. When Guzal shot all six rounds, she took her bow from her back and began shooting that. Her and Tuija’s first targets were the enemy archers. That way, they were safe from long-range attacks.