[quote=@persianversion] Her eyes never left his during the silence. She could not tell what he was thinking, but was clearly desperate to know. Telling him the truth had been a move born out of desperation, but Najla had nothing left to bargain with. Her title was all she had, Najla had lived off of it, cultivated a network of spies through it, had pulled herself into the most important reaches of the Sultan’s court with it, and now, was left praying it’d be enough for her life. The smile on his face unnerved her, and Najla bit her lip nervously as he began to speak, only able to hope. At first, it seemed as if there was a chance he could believe her. At least Ketill had heard the rumors, and Najla was already trying to find a reason for her to have ended up in Broacien when he mentioned her brother. Regardless of the excuse she dreamt up, Najla figured she’d be safer so long as Ketill did not know what Jalil had attempted. The mention of her brother was enough to snap her out of this brief line of thought. Her body tensed up at the way he spoke of him, her fists clenching slightly as her eyes narrowed. The indignities she had suffered in Broacien had humbled her somewhat, but only in regards to her own image. Jalil had suffered too much at the hands of the Monarchists, and continued to suffer from their treatment, to watch Ketill speak of him with so little regard for her pain was far more infuriating that it was hurtful. [i]“Worse.”[/i] He was not dead. His body had been mutilated after death, he was separated from his family, and so long as his head remained on a spike, he would be forced to suffer. Najla knew how vital it was for a Sawarim faithful to be buried decently, to be offered the chance to present themselves in front of their God as they were in life, to honor those who came before and to keep a family united even in the depths of death. They had always been able to bury their family, and though Najla had never had to know what happened to an unburied Sawarim, she knew death was better. The thought left her somewhat distracted as Ketill started speaking, though she was at least relieved to hear he wouldn’t sell her. She had accomplished her goal then. It should have felt miraculous, to have narrowly avoided death, or worse, so often within the past night. However, when Ketill gave her a few final orders and left, Najla did not feel victorious. For a moment, she simply stared after him. She had grown used to being ordered around in Ketill’s nonchalant manner, but it seemed to hold a fresh humiliation now, one she had forgotten since her capture. Pride was a small thing to abandon when her life was at stake, but even then, the humiliation had not been Najla’s, but Saina’s. Now, she had outed herself as Najla, only to be told to pack a Servant’s bags. Perhaps a small price to have been saved from death, but Najla could not forget it so easily now. Regardless of her pride, she obeyed. Najla packed up Ketill’s things, taking care to fold them neatly and place them in his bags carefully, as if avoiding any detail that could anger him now, though she knew there was little need. So long as there was any chance she was Najla, selling her would be a mistake. It was somewhat of a struggle to balance his bags, even though they were mostly clothes, but it was not long before she had cleaned out his room and was heading down to where she had slept. --- She had prayed not to see Qamar’s face, and it was a slight relief to see that the girl was not among the slaves who were scurrying to pack their things. As she moved towards the mattress they had shared, the relief vanished. She should not have been surprised that the slaver was nearby, after all, he’d want to keep an eye on his slaves as they packed up. He looked angry, however, and was speaking rapidly to a male slave. Upon seeing her approach for her bag, the slave was dismissed, and Najla pretended she could not see the slaver approaching, hoping he would leave her alone, until he was standing above her. [i]<“You’re lucky.”>[/i] Upon hearing his voice, Najla abandoned the bag and stood, looking up at him only briefly before moving her gaze back to the ground. [i]<“Your friend is not.”>[/i] Her gaze snapped up to the slaver then, and his eyes bore into hers, as if looking for anything beyond the confusion and worry she was showing him now. [i]<“My friend?”>[/i] She looked down at the mattress they had shared, as if just realizing what he meant, then back up at the slaver. [i]<“You mean Qamar? Is she hurt?”>[/i] [i]She’s been caught. That idiot, that stupid, simpering fool she’s been caught. If she does not keep her mouth shut long enough for us to leave-[/i] [i]<“She will stay here.”>[/i] Najla’s eyes widened at that, and she moved to ask another question but he cut her off before she could speak. [i]<“Don’t plead for her, I will not hear it. I will not risk angering the Servants for a whore, even though your master seems eager to do so.”>[/i] Najla eyed the slaver carefully, as if she was just beginning to understand him. Perhaps her hatred of him had blocked his sight before, but Najla had paid little attention to a shrewd man, which could always become a fatal mistake. She had already known that he was smart enough to deny his faith for profit, perhaps smarter than her for that reason. He had to have been clever in order to become part of this expedition in the first place, given the lack of trust Broacieniens had in the Sawarim. And now she knew that he was smart enough to abandon Qamar, and was ruthless enough not to care, so long as he thought she’d be replaced easily. Defending a pleasure slave against the Servants was a foolish endeavor for a Sawarim slavemaster, but to let them take her life for trying to escape, while scouting out her replacement was the mark of a man who wanted only to move upwards in the world. [i]<“Not everyone is like your master, who shows such…faith in his slaves.”>[/i] Najla looked away at that, as if ashamed. She bit her lip nervously, this time, a calculated gesture on her part. For a moment, there was silence, and she only returned her gaze to him when he spoke again, only to see the beginning of a smile form on his lips. [i]<“He has lost his faith in you. Does he want to be rid of you yet?”>[/i] Najla shook her head, crossing her arms across her body. [i]<“H-he is angry with me now, but I know he does not mean it. I’ve been loyal to him-”>[/i] [i]<“Stupidly loyal. To him, and to your gods. You’re a fool to think either will protect you.”>[/i] He stepped forward again then, taking Najla’s chin in his grasp gently. Najla flinched at the touch, but did not move as he examined her face. [i]<“Someone will have to protect you from these men now. You rejected my help before, but because I am a generous man, I will offer it again. Go to your master, tell him my offer stands, though he will understand if I lower your price now.”>[/i] [i]<“You promise to protect me, but you will not tell me why you will not do the same for my friend?”>[/i] The slaver leaned in closer then, and Najla could see a flash of anger in his eyes, despite the smile on his lips. [i]<“You will not be foolish enough to sell yourself out for coin and run, will you?”>[/i] Her fears confirmed, Najla tried to read his gaze, tried desperately to see what he knew. Clearly he knew they were friends, but did he really believe Qamar had sold herself out for the coin? What did it even matter what he believed? The Servants would be the ones to impart the judgement on Qamar it seemed, for despite the fact that Ghalid was her master, he had abandoned her to maintain whatever burgeoning relationship he had with the Servants. Would it even matter if Qamar talked? They would be gone. Her thoughts were frantic, but Najla knew only one thing for certain: She’d left Coedwin full of loose ends, threads that threatened to wrap around her neck if she didn’t leave soon. She shook her head then, finally answering the slavers question. He released her then, and turned away from her, moving to herd his other slaves out of the hall as quickly as he could. Najla immediately returned to her things, eager to leave Coedwin before her luck ran dry. She’d lied to the slaver deliberately, made herself out to be just as silly as some of the pleasure slaves in the Sultanate, who had believed their masters had developed an attachment to them. It seemed to have worked as well as she had hoped, for now the slaver was satisfied, and would dig no further into Qamar’s story to save an investment. Najla knew she’d be a great source of profit to the slaver, Ketill would have been willing to be rid of her for rather cheap, and after last night, the men would be lining up to exact ‘revenge’ on the Sawarim that had killed their friend. All Najla wanted was to be out of Coedwin before the slaver realized she was lying, before Qamar or Suhayb were made to confess her name, before anyone here could realize who she was. Coedwin had been a failure, one Najla was lucky to have survived. She had placed her trust in people swiftly, in a girl who knew too little and in a poor source of her cousin’s. Saving Inaya had been her downfall, Najla saw this now, for if she had not tried to save the girl, she would have left Coedwin with nothing but a guilty conscience. It was a sobering experience, and Najla could only worry about her future as she gathered her things quickly. There was not much to collect, she had not been able to unpack, and it gave her little time for the sheer number of thoughts. She had been an excellent spymaster. Then again, Najla had been able to give or take much from people. She’d never had to build up the resources herself, and her title and name was often enough to convince others of her promises long before they heard them. She’d been able to convince people to come under the fold of her network with promises of reuniting families, gold, horses, power, safety, anything they had wanted, she could grant. Now, Najla had none of that. She hardly had the resources to convince Ketill of her position, let alone have the power to cull potential threats like Qamar before they could talk. [i]I’m not powerless, not really, but I’m pretty close. I’ve got nothing to bargain with that they couldn’t just take. I’ve got a title no one would believe, and some empty promises. Whatever happens, I can’t fail again, whatever I do, I won’t live if I fail again. [/i] She had little to pack, as she had little chance to get settled, and it was not long before she had stuffed her clothes into the bag rather carelessly. Walking through the halls and courtyard of Coedwin, struggling to lift bags with little more than clothes in them, followed by the sting of whispers, both clear and hidden, Najla was once again faced with the realization at what had been snatched from her when she had hidden her title. She had always considered herself a proud woman, proud of her faith, her title, her family, but she had never considered that she would be useless without these. When she approached Ketill at the front of the castle, she handed him his bags as he hooked them to the horse’s saddle, her eyes on him as he spoke. His words drew a small, humorless smile, likely a confusing sight to Ketill, but Najla’s failure had humbled her far more than his words could. [i]“I have not forgotten, my lord.” [/i] She would be somber as they joined the expedition, clearly worried about something. There were multiple possibilities for the source of this worry, and depending on who saw her expression, they would imagine something different. Being able to ride was a small comfort, though the fact that she was able to hold the reins and ride along on her own gave Najla some semblance of control. She was running. Suhayb would not confess, not if he had a semblance of intelligence, but she estimated that Qamar would instantly upon learning that Saina had been released along with the expedition. Despite the heightened pace of the expedition, and the knowledge that at least, there was a few days before Qamar would learn of this and speak, she felt she couldn’t run fast enough. [/quote]