Pakal

[rufusluciusivan]

I share your sentiment about lethal takeouts. Unless they serve an important purpose in the plot, I try to avoid them. Indeed, this one's here to add to the gritty realism and the bleakness of Azeneth's situation at the beginning.

[rufusluciusivan]

Chapter 3: The Shapeshifter and the Courtesan




Chapter 3: Prologue

**************

Safiye was not emotional, far from it. However, finally returning to her home kingdom, after years spent away from it, still did something to her. She couldn't help but bend down and pick up a handful of sand.

“Even the sand feels different...” she commented.

Safiye stood up and looked at the horizon.

“You never realize how much you missed your home until you set foot there again...” the green-eyed woman commented.

“I don't know. Humans burnt mine.” Tsuki answered with a bright smile. “Though the fire WAS impressive-looking, I'll give them that.” She was standing next to her accomplice, her back straight and vertical, staring into nothing.

Safiye had quickly noticed that Tsuki liked to often remain still and gaze at the horizon.

It was as if the shapeshifter was listening to a voice that only she could hear...

The green-eyed spy chose to ignore her.

However, the shapeshifter kept talking: “I'm curious however. You call Ghazan your home, but then why do you help the Mages? Aren't they trying to conquer it?”

“Ghazan will always remain Ghazan, even with the Pakal Emperor at its head. I don't care about the well-being of my former king. I was a courtesan in his palace, I learned to despise him during this period.” Safiye retorted. “What about you? Why do you help the Mages? Aren't they oppressing your kind?”

Tsuki chuckled. “I help them because I find it amusing.”

There was a short moment of silence. The green-eyed spy wondered if the shapeshifter was telling the truth or if she was lying to her. Tsuki was crazy enough for it to be the truth... and shrewd enough to be lying.

In fact, wasn't her smile a challenge? A way to dare her to try to insist?

“I am simply going to ignore the conversation we just had.” Safiye concluded.

“Suit yourself.” Tsuki looked at her. “So. We start our mission then?”

Safiye nodded.

“We're on your turf. That makes you the head and me the muscles.” Tsuki added. “What's our first course of action?”

Safiye looked at her and Tsuki's sailor clothes.

“First, we need a change of clothes. Come, we'll grab a few on our way. To accomplish our mission, I still have some contacts in the Seraglio who will help us. I used to be a courtesan there.”

**************

"Also, when we will be at my father's court, we'll have to be wary of the Seraglio."

“The Seraglio?” Jinora asked.

Rashid nodded. “Yes, the Seraglio.”

Their boat trip to Ghazan, in order to meet with the king's scholars who would translate the book stolen in Ce-Tochtli's palace, had begun. The young prince was giving informations on the working of his kingdom to Yuka, Azeneth, Jinora, and Yisüi who were making the trip with him. Coulter was standing a little afar, leaning against the railing of the vessel; and though she wasn't taking part in the conversation, she was still listening. Sailors were running right and left on the ship.

“What's the Seraglio?” Yisüi asked.

The prince looked a little uneasy. “In Ghazan, the king's wife is more something akin to... a political partner. The same can be said for his ministers' and generals' wives.” he explained. “For their... pleasure, they have... other partners... Together, these women form the Seraglio. To simplify, they are courtesans, though their hierarchy is a lot more structured and complex than in Pakal. The closest they are from the king, the highest their rank is.”

From afar, Coulter scoffed contemptuously. “Decadent.” she commented.

Rashid's cheeks reddened slightly. “This isn't a custom of my kingdom that I'm particularly proud of!” he retorted. "If it was my decision, I'd have the Seraglio dissolved! But I'm not the king, nor am I his first heir!"

“Bah! Ignore her! She's just being cranky!” Azeneth intervened.

Coulter was leaning against the railing of the boat. Her face was paler than usual and nauseous-looking.

“Seasick, much?” the metis added.

The red-haired woman glared daggers at her. “If... If the gods had meant man to travel the seas... They'd have given him gills...” she retorted. “We Charioteers knew that men... men are supposed to travel... over land...” Then, she gagged and almost threw up over the railing.

They left her to her own device.

“I don't understand. How can courtesans be dangerous?” Yisüi asked.

“These women know a lot of things. They hear secrets from the ministers... From the generals and the admirals... From my father even... And they can also influence their partners... The Seraglio is a powerful den of intrigue. I am convinced that some of its members are spying for the Mages. And even among those who aren't, there are still some who are trying to undermine my position because they know that I'm against the system of the Seraglio, even if it means weakening my actions against Pakal.”

"Always nice to see that people often have their priorities straight..." Yuka commented.

"It's stupid." Azeneth commented.

"It's politics." Jinora corrected.

Azeneth, she, and Yisüi chuckled. However, Yuka wasn't able to chuckle with them. They already had enough problems with the Mages, and even more now that they had hired Tsuki. Did they really need more complications, this time brought by the people who were supposed to be their allies?

Rashid hadn't mentioned it yet, but Yuka was certain that this missions wasn't going to be a piece of cake, even if they were going to the stronghold of the kingdom fighting against the Empire's expansion.




******* Some time later... *******

The place was a trade post, built near the coast on the crossroads of several major land routes. One of which was the most important traffic artery of the kingdom: the land route connecting the capital city of Ghazan eastwards, El Idriss, with the huge port and fortress city of El Ommeya, the keystone of the defense of Ghazan's coasts, westwards.

With their sailor clothes, Safiye and Tsuki didn't look out of place in the trade post. However, they were hoping to grab clothes that would allow them to go unnoticed while travelling the land routes – as well as horses.

There were several buildings in the trade post, including several warehouses and an inn. Most of them were made out of wood.

There were also several possibilities. They simply needed to wait for the right occasion.

Speaking of which...

Suddenly, the sound of a commotion drew Safiye's attention.

Two women were arguing with a man. They were all wearing the same clothes: A brown light coat with a cloak worn over a beige sleeveless tunic that was reaching up to the knees with a dark brown cloth belt tied around the waist, beige thin trousers, and brown leather shoes. On the back of the coats, there was a golden crest depicting a stylized bull head.

With the clothes they were wearing, Safiye was able to recognize them as members of the Aksandar Guild: Ghazan's most powerful merchant guild. The guild that controlled most of the trade in the kingdom.

“What?!” one the women exclaimed. “You're just gonna have us gather, carry and inventory everyone's gear again? We're members of the guild just like you are! We deserve better!” She was tanned, though her skin was not as dark as in Pakal, and had gorgeous flowing waist-long loose brown hair and light brown eyes with gold fleeks, as well as a well-endowed chest. Her chin was pointy and her eyebrows were highlighted with black makeup.

Her friend noisily approved. She had loose short straight neck-long dark red hair and dark hazel eyes, as well as a dark skin and a fit body. Her eyebrows were also highlighted with black makeup.

The man impatiently groaned. “You're right! You are members of the guild! We allow you to wear our outfit. Do you know what that means?”

“I...”

“That means you represent our guild. So stop embarassing all of us in public and follow my orders! Now, if you're done whining, get to work!”

The guy disappeared into one of the only building in the trade post made of stone – the local official building of the Aksandar Guild according to the crest of the stylized bull head on the door and the flags.

“Uh, that guy! Who does he think he is? Bossing us around like that...” the woman with brown hair said.

“Fine! We'll do your stupid inventory!” her friend with dark red hair added.

Both women sticked their tongue at the door of the guild building, then disappeared inside a nearby warehouse.

Safiye thought for a brief moment. The Aksandar guild was powerful and respected. Nobody would dare bother someone wearing the guild's coat...

Safiye and Tsuki exchanged a meaningful look.

After making sure that nobody saw them, they entered the warehouse as well.

Inside, the two guild members were checking the wares. Their backs were turned, they couldn't see the entrance. They were alone and out of sight.

Safiye made a few gestures of the hands, designating which woman she was going to knock out and which woman Tsuki had to knock out.

The shapeshifter nodded.

While she was very wary of her unhinged partner, Safiye was forced to admit that she greatly enjoyed being able to work with an expert. Safiye barely needed to give her instructions. When it came to subdue and truss up someone, she and Tsuki were really on the same page.

They silently crept behind the two women. Safiye chose to deal with the woman with dark red hair, leaving the brown-haired one to her partner.

Safiye and Tsuki moved at the same moment.

Safiye wrapped a viselike arm around her victim's thraot and neck, and blocked her hold with her other arm. The dark-red-haired woman gurgled and flailed her arms, but couldn't do anything and quickly passed out. Her body slumped into Safiye's arms.

“Easy girl... Just take it easy...” Safiye whispered in the unconscious guild member's ear.

Tsuki simply wedged her hand inside the collar of the brown-haired guild member's coat and touched her neck. A few seconds later, the woman was falling out cold on the ground. The shapeshifter didn't bother easing her fall.

The infiltrators were fast and efficient. Their victims were neutralized in record time and barely made a peep.

Safiye and Tsuki dragged the two unconscious guild members behind the wares stored in the warehouse, then proceeded to strip them.

Under their outer clothes, each woman was wearing a white band of soft linen wrapped around the chest and pinned in place with a straight pin under the arm and white thigh-long open drawers.

Once the guild members were down to their underclothes, Safiye and Tsuki trussed them up with a few coils of rope that were stored in the warehouse. First, they bound the women's shoulders, arms, wrists, legs and ankles. Then, they grabbed a few colourful scarves that were among the wares, shoved one in each woman's mouth and cleave-gagged each with another. The impostors also noticed that there were carpets among the furnitures in the warehouse. Therefore, to conceal the bound-and-gagged women, they rolled up each guild member in a carpet. They left the two 'rolled carpets' hidden behind the other wares.

It was then that Safiye finally realized that, for once, Tsuki, actually stole the clothes of her victim. She frowned. Why did she...? She then noticed the cloak at the end of the guild coat, and remembered that there was one thing Tsuki never created with her powers: headgears – such as the hat of the traveler she once mugged. Perhaps she couldn't grow enough skin to recreate the cloak? However, the green-eyed spy suspected that she'd better not mention the subject. She slipped into her own disguise in silence, but made a mental note of what she just saw.

The clothes of the dark-red-haired guild member were a decent fit. She tied the cloth belt around her waist.

Safiye then used the coat's cloak to conceal her face. Tsuki didn't need to, as she took her victim's appearance.

The two impostors took the time to steal water and provisions in the warehouse. Then, they took two horses in the guild's stable and fled the trade post.

**************

Yuka looked at Yisüi's latest ropework.

“You've made a lot of progress...” she congratulated the blond woman. “And I see that this time, you didn't forget to shove a piece of cloth into the mouth before tying the gag. However, your knots still aren't tight enough... Here, let me show you.”

The former slave watched her attentively while she was showing her how to properly tie wrists and ankles.

Now that Yisüi chose to truly join them, at least for the time being, Yuka and Azeneth decided to put the time of the boat trip to good use. They were training the blond-haired former slave. Given the fact that most sailors were uncomfortable with the idea of watching women bind and gag each other, they were doing it in the hold of the ship.

Currently, Azeneth was playing the role of the sentry. However, she didn't seem to mind much being trussed up with brown sailor ropes. Her wrists were tied behind her back, a coil of rope was wrapped around her torso above and below her breasts, her thighs were bound, just like her calves and her ankles. She was gagged with a red rag.

“Here!” Yuka concluded. “Now, if she was a true sentry, she would need several hours to break free at the very least.”

“Was stripping her really necessary though...?” Yisüi couldn't help but ask.

Yuka and Azeneth indeed asked the blonde to remove the metis' outer clothes while the latter was remaining still, pretending to be knocked out. Currently, Azeneth was therefore only wearing the traditional undergarments of her father's home kingdom: a white short-sleeved linen chemise and thigh-long white linen underpants. Her white chemise with long baggy sleeves, brown belt, brown trousers and black boots were lying in a small bundle next to Yisüi's feet.

“You also have to train to strip a woman of her clothes if you want to help us during a mission.” Yuka explained. “Removing an outfit from a motionless body isn't as easy as it looks...”

“I've noticed.” Yisüi said.

Yuka smiled. “Don't worry. Azeneth always says that it's not weird if it's in friendship.”

Still gagged, Azeneth silently nodded.

“Now, the last step: Put on her clothes.”

“Why-” Yisüi interrupted herself. “Let me guess: I also need to be able to change clothes quickly if I want to help during a mission.”

“Exactly!”




******* Some time passed... *******

Safiye didn't like the news her partner was bringing to her.

“While I was feeding the horses, I saw soldiers asking questions to a few locals. Apparently, the news about how two members of the Aksandar guild were mugged have spread faster than our horses. The garrisons on our way are already informed.” Tsuki announced to her accomplice.

The shapeshifter and the green-eyed spy were near the stables of another trade post – although this one was big enough to be considered a village. Luckily, it meant that they were away from prying eyes. Outside of a few horses, nobody was around currently. The stable lad was taking a nap.

The two spies were halfway to El Idriss, their destination.

“They must be using pigeons to carry messages.” Safiye understood. “I wasn't expecting them to be that competent... They weren't doing it when I left the kingdom. This will complicate our travel. Until we've reached El Idriss, I can't ask my contacts for help. We will have to change appearance.”

“Fine by me.” Tsuki answered with a shrug. “What outfit do we steal?”

Safiye thought for a moment, then decided that maybe the boldest solution was the better one.

“How many soldiers did you see?”

“Two.”

“Then I think I just found the solution to our problem... Lead me to them.”

The two soldiers were women who had the shapely athletic legs and the fit bodies of the people who rode a lot. Each was wearing light brown leather rider's shoes, white slightly baggy trousers, and an orange hooded rider coat. On their heads, they were wearing a white turban adorned with a short black feather that was both a way to protect themselves from the sun and a way to show their status. A white scarf was tied around their necks. They were probably using it to cover their mouth and nose when there was sand or dust. They were armed with a small round wooden shield reinforced with leather and a scimitar. Leather protections were strapped around their forearms.

Safiye recognized the orange uniforms and white turbans with black feathers. These women were roadwardens: Soldiers patrolling the routes of the kingdom on horseback.

Safiye approached the two roadwardens. They had just finished discussing with a villager. The man had no information about the 'bandits dressed as merchants', so the roadwardens let him return to his work. They were now alone. It was the middle of the day: Everyone was working in the fields or the orchards.

One soldier was older. She had dark eyes, a lightly tanned skin, an angular face, and curly neck-long brown hair. “Still no clue...” the roadwarden said. “Ziyane, I think we should regroup with the rest of the patrol at Bel Bekal.” Given her assertive attitude, she was most likely a veteran.

“If you say so, Athro...” Ziyane was younger than her partner – and probably a new recruit given the fact that she was clearly letting the other call all the shots. She had armpit-long straight dark brown hair tied up into a ponytail, a slightly tanned skin, a soft round more juvenile-looking face, and hazel brown eyes. She looked slightly less tall and imposing than her partner.

“Discovering the boring part of our task, eh?” Athro commented with a smile. “You should better get used to it... Our job has nothing to do with the tales sung by the poets in the streets. The northern part of the kingdom has long since been pacified. Road wardens patrolling between El Ommeya and El Idriss rarely have to fight bands of bandits in glorious cavalry charges. Most of the time, we waste our time looking for desperate crooks or petty thieves that can't even fight back... It's almost a shame.”

Safiye appeared suddenly in front of them. “Soldiers, quick, I've found the impostors passing themselves for members of our guild! They are about to flee on horse!”

“What?!” Ziyane exclaimed.

“The nerve!” Athro said.

“We don't have time to call for reinforcements! They are about to ride away! Follow me! Quick! We have to grab them before they exit the stables!”

The roadwardens exchanged a quick glance. Then, the more assertive Athro said: “We follow you citizen.”

Safiye couldn't help but appreciate the irony of the situation. The roadwardens knew that their targets were impersonating members of the Aksandar guild. Yet, they were still fooled by her disguise... simply because she had the right convincing attitude. She had to make great efforts to not laugh.

“They are here!”

“They won't escape us this time.” Athro said. She looked at her younger partner. “Ziyane, cover my back!”

The two roadwardens entered the empty stable Safiye was pointing, quickly followed by Safiye herself, and Tsuki who was waiting nearby.

“Alright, criminal scums! Show yourselv- Hey! What are you doing! Unhand me!”

PUNCH!

“Oof!”

"Athro!" Ziyane exclaimed.

PUNCH!

“Guh!”

Thud! Thud! Two women fell on the haystacks of the empty stable, down for the count.

Rustle... rustle... rustle... Clothes and gears were pulled off: wooden shields and scimitars, rider's shoes, white baggy rider's trousers, white turbans and scarves, leather protections... and of course the orange rider's coats.

Rustle... rustle... rustle... Guild outfits were removed.

Rustle... rustle... rustle... Two impostors slipped into the uniforms of roadwardens.

Tsuki was the first to exit the stable. She had once again chosen to steal her victim's clothes. Was it because of the turban and the cloak on the rider coat? She had changed shape to look like Ziyane, the youngest soldier. The shapeshifter adjusted her turban and her scarf, then tied up her now armpit-long dark brown hair into a ponytail.

Safiye followed her, also wearing the uniform of a roadwarden. She buckled the belt on which the scimitar was strapped, keeping the wooden shield under her shoulder with her arm.

Hidden in the haystacks inside the stable, there were two unconscious women. Athro and Ziyane were bound together with ropes, facing each other. Their wrists were tied behind the back. Their ankles were also bound. Finally, coils of rope were wrapped around both women's legs, thighs, waists, and torsos to secure them together. The two soldiers were gagged with strips of the guild outfits Safiye and Tsuki used to wear: several strips of cloth were stuffed into their mouths, and a bigger piece of cloth was tightly tied over each woman's mouth and behind the neck to prevent them from spitting the gag.

Athro and Ziyane were now only clad in their underclothes: a light grey short-sleeved tunic and matching knee-long underpants tied with a string. They were groaning and frowning, with their bodies slightly moving and rubbing against each other as they were coming to their senses, probably with a nasty headache. However, unfortunately for them, they were tightly gagged, and nobody would be around before the evening. Safiye and Tsuki didn't pay attention to the rustling grunting haystacks.

The two roadwardens' horses were in a nearby stable. In the pouches strapped to their saddles, there was already food and water. Therefore, the two impostors could get into their saddles and leave the trade post immediately.

“Talk about an eventful trip! I love it!” Tsuki commented.

**************

Talk about an uneventful trip... Though Yuka couldn't help but appreciate it. At least, they weren't risking their lives... After what happened to Jinora, the shapeshifter was glad to be able to travel safe and sound. Even though a part of part couldn't help but think that things were a little too easy...

Ghazan's coast was in sight now, though it would still take them some time to reach El Idriss, the capital city. According to Rashid, they were simply going to follow the coast. They were now in the Kingdom's territorial waters. They didn't need to fear an attack from pirates or the Pakal fleet anymore.

The sea was calm.

Rashid was discussing with the captain. Most of the sailors were resting. Coulter was brooding somewhere, as usual.

Jinora was reading a book. Azeneth was practising her knife-throwing skills with a straw manikin tied to the main mast. Yuka and Yisüi were observing her. The former slave was fascinated.

After throwing two more knives, Azeneth glanced at the blond-haired woman and smiled.

“Hey, look at that!”

She threw a knife under her free elbow, and still managed to hit the manikin.

“Now, something more difficult.” the metis announced.

She raised her leg, and threw the knife under it. It still hit the straw manikin.

“Something even more difficult.”

She threw a knife while keeping her back turned to the manikin. It still hit it.

"And finally, the highlight of the show."

She asked Jinora to blindfold her. Once the latter was done, she threw her knife. She still hit the manikin.

Yisüi clapped. Jinora smiled.

Azeneth curtsied and saluted as if she was a street entertainer.

“What's the point of knowing how to do all that, outside of showing off?” Yuka joked from afar with a grin.

“Showing off is the point!” Azeneth playfully retorted while taking off the blindfold.

Yuka laughed.

Then she noticed Coulter, who was standing isolated at the other side of the boat. Since the sea was calm, the redhead for once wasn't seasick.

The mage-woman was looking glumly at the coast. Ghazan was mostly a desertic kingdom, however its northern lands were very fertile. Most of its population and cities were concentrated in the northern half of the kingdom – the southern half was nothing but a huge desert inhabited by nomadic tribes, with a few ports on the coasts.

Yuka left Azeneth, Jinora and Yisüi. The metis was talking of doing another training session with Yisüi, and was trying to convince Jinora to give them a hand.

The shapeshifter approached the mage-woman.

Yuka suddenly realized that Coulter wasn't exactly looking at the coast. She was looking at the obelisks built at regular intervals on the coast. On each, there was a huge slightly glowing purple crystal.

Of course... The obelisks built by Ghazan's scholars... The ones that prevent mages from using their powers... They will affect her powers as well...

Once she would be in range of the obelisks infused with magic-blocking crystals, Coulter would indeed be as powerless as any normal person. She probably even already was...

A part of Yuka really wanted to make a mocking comment. Given how Coulter loved to flaunt her powers sometimes, it would only be fair. However, the shapeshifter also remembered that she made the resolution to try to reach out to the mage-woman, even if the redhead was making things difficult.

Therefore, she decided to ask: “We're approaching the obelisks. Will you be alright?”

Coulter turned towards her. “I'm simply wondering if this is the moment Rashid will choose to put me out of commission.” she answered.

Yuka frowned. She wasn't expecting that reaction!

“Wh... What?”

“Don't play dumb. You think that I'm naive? I know how your dear Rashid thinks. I know that he certainly doesn't want to get rid of the Mages only to risk that I could take their place... I'm pretty sure he already has several contingency plans to get rid of me if I become too dangerous.”

“Well, I... I never thought of that...”

“Then you didn't think of much.”

“I wouldn't let him do that!” Yuka reflexively answered.

“What?”

“I said that I wouldn't let him do that.”

During a few seconds, Coulter remained still and silent. She was surprised by her outburst. And even more surprised by the fact that she was genuine. It took her a few seconds to find a retort.

“Why are you doing that? Why are you trying to be nice? We can't stand each other!” She glared daggers at her. “Is it because you pity me? I told you to never mention what you saw with the inversed-catalyst...”

“I don't even know why I try!” Yuka retorted. “Perhaps I realized that I was too self-righteous, and I now want to try to be a better person.” She looked at Coulter's surly face. “Or perhaps I'm just an idiot.”

The red-haired woman looked unsure. Apparently, Coulter didn't know how to respond when the conversation wasn't a confrontation. Finally, she turned to look at the coast again.

“I shouldn't be wasting my time visiting Rashid's precious kingdom...” she commented. "I have better things to do..."

“You shouldn't let your revenge consume you... I mean, look at Azeneth. She chose to do something else with her life.”

“There is a key difference though. Azeneth's father was killed by the Mages because he was a spy. Because he was an enemy. It was his responsability. My clan was killed because they were in the way. Because the Mages couldn't be bothered to spare the time and effort to find me specifically. After all, what mean the lives or deaths of about fifty Charioteers when the possibility to avoid a prophecy arises?”

The way Coulter was talking made Yuka realize something about the event.

“You think they were killed because of you. You think that this was your responsability, your fault.”

Coulter's hands clutched the railing of the boat. All her body tensed.

“Deep down inside, you think that your powers are unnatural, wrong. You accepted them because they are your only chance to have your revenge, but in truth you hate them. And you hate yourself.” Yuka added.

The red-haired mage-woman was remaining still. Given the fact that her powers weren't manifesting themselves, they indeed were most likely already under the influence of the obelisks.

Yuka concluded: “You shouldn't feel that way. If there's one thing we shapeshifters have learned, it's that you should never be ashamed or sorry because you were born with abilities that make you special. You can't be blamed for being born with those powers. It's not your fault.”

Coulter remained silent during a long moment, to the point that Yuka thought that she wasn't going to answer. The shapeshifter thought that it was best that she left...

Suddenly, Coulter sighed for a long time and exclaimed: “Gods above, you're so persistent sometimes! You have no idea how much I can't stand you!” Though, strangely enough, this time her tone wasn't aggressive.

“The feeling's mutual.” Yuka retorted with a small smile.

She wondered if she'd just made the first step.

Coulter didn't add anything else. They simply looked at the coast in silence.

When Yuka later went inside the hold to see what her friends were doing, Azeneth was lying on the floor in her underclothes and Jinora was teaching Yisüi (who was now wearing Azeneth's clothes) how to hog-tie someone.




******* Some time passed... ********

Safiye and Tsuki were about to arrive within sight of El Idriss, capital city of Ghazan. However, they hadn't been able to reach the city yet. There was a... complication.

The green-eyed spy was currently waiting in a small hole away from the road with their two horses. They just avoided a patrol of roadwardens on horseback by hiding there, and she sent Tsuki to scout the area. She suspected that the patrol was looking for them...

Tsuki regrouped with her. Thanks to her shapeshifting powers, she was able to pass herself for a peasant woman to listen to the conversation of a patrol of roadwardens.

While Safiye still considered her partner's powers to change shape and creat clothes from her own skin both gross and unnatural, and while she was still thinking that these powers were a huge cheating, she was forced to admit that they could often come in handy.

“The patrol we've avoided was looking for us.” Tsuki explained. “The authorities of the capital city already know that two roadwardens were mugged and replaced. Luckily, they suspect that we are mere bandits, not spies.”

“Still, we won't be able to pass the guards at the entrance of the city with our current disguises...”

“We'll need to steal some clothes for you.” Tsuki informed her.

“I know that.”

Safiye thought for a moment. She needed to come up with a plan. Finally, she said: “We still have our roadwarden uniforms. As long as we avoid other soldiers, we can use them to lead a few unsuspecting travellers into a trap. Put the roadwarden uniform back on.”

Tsuki complied, and even changed shape to look like Ziyane again. Once the shapeshifter looked again the part of a roadwarden, the two impostors saddled up and started to 'patrol' a secondary road slightly isolated from the main route. They allowed several groups of travelers to pass without trying to stop them, as they were too numerous. Small groups were rare on the road, small groups only made of women were even rarer.

Safiye was starting to seriously consider allowing Tsuki to mug a man when, finally, an occasion arised.

Two women were leading a camel transporting their baggage. They were probably travellers or pilgrims.

They were from one of the nomadic tribes of the desert that was covering the southern part of the kingdom. Safiye could see it with their clothes. The two women were wearing similar-looking long and robust brown woolen robes covering all the body. The robes were actually even longer than their wearer and were gathered at the waist with a dark blue cloth belt. To protect their heads and necks, the travellers were using a brown headscarf tied with a dark blue headband. They were also wearing angular leather masks to protect their faces. In their customs, this was both a token of modesty and a way to protect themselves from the sand. These were indeed the kind of clothes worn by the desert tribes.

“These two will be perfect. With their clothes, we can conceal both our bodies and our faces.” Safiye said to Tsuki.

And also, they were wearing headscarves... Safiye wanted to test her theory.

“I will stop and distract them, you take them out.” the green-eyed woman added.

The shapeshifter nodded and smiled.

They rode in front of the two travellers.

“Halt, citizens! There have been reports of two disguised bandits trying to enter the capital city. I will have to ask you to remove your masks and headscarves.”

The two women shared a glance and briefly argued in their language. Safiye knew that, while they were subjects of the kingdom, the desert tribes were still fiercely jealous of their autonomy and proud of their cultural difference. Being bossed around by an agent of the Crown definitively wasn't something they liked.

Still, the two women complied.

At the same time, Tsuki dismounted, as if to inspect the baggage on the camel's back.

Both travelers were sharing the same complexion. They had a tawny skin, black hair, oval-shaped faces, and light green eyes. One woman was slightly older and had longer hair. The younger woman had shorter shoulder-long hair. Both had their hair braided into several braids.

“Are you satisfied, roadwarden?” the traveller that looked slightly older asked.

Safiye noticed that Tsuki was silently creeping behind the two nomads. She just needed to distract them during a few more seconds...

“Almost. I will also need you to state your name and business here.”

“I am Falak bint Talah bint Rafif al-Hisan. This is my younger sister Judie bint Talah bint Rafif al-Hisan.” the older nomad impatiently answered. “We're on a pilgrimage to visit the tomb of the Prophet. Are we good now, roadwarden?”

Tsuki was behind them.

“You're good.” Safiye said with a smile.

The shapeshifter grabbed the back of each woman's bare head. Her hands glowed. Falak and her younger sister briefly spasmed, then fell unconscious on the ground.

So it works through the hair as well... Interesting.

Safiye dismounted. “Help me put them on my horse. We'll transport them away from the road.”

She didn't need to give her accomplice more instructions.

They first grabbed Judie's motionless body and threw her on the back of the horse as if she was a sack of grain. The woman's arms were falling on one side of the mount, her legs on the other side. They then did the same with Falak, throwing her next to her sister.

Safiye took the time to collect Falak's and Judie's discarded masks, headscarves, and headbands, that they dropped on the ground when Tsuki knocked them out. Then, she led the horse carrying their two unconscious victims away from the road, where she was hiding beforehand. Tsuki followed her, while leading the sisters' camel.

Once they were out of sight, the two spies dropped their burdens on the ground and removed their belts and long robes. They also took their sturdy travel shoes.

Under their outer robes, Falak and Judie were wearing white short-sleeved inner robes.

Tsuki actually took Judie's headscarf. This confirmed Safiye's suspicions. Tsuki wasn't able to create clothes covering her head.

They tied the two sisters to the same small tree on which they tied the leads of their stolen horses. Each woman's back was pressed against the tree trunk because of the coil of rope tied around her waist and her torso. Each sister's wrists were tied behind the tree. Safiye also bound the women's ankles, just in case. The nomads were gagged and blindfolded with strips of the roadwarden orange uniforms.

Once their victims were secured, Safiye and Tsuki slipped into the nomads' long robes and shoes. Each impostor used the headscarf, headband and mask to conceal her face. For some reason, Tsuki still changed shape to look like Judie.

Safiye didn't comment on her choice. She grabbed the leash of Falak's and Judie's camel to lead the animal away.

“I don't think that we will encounter any problem while crossing the city's gate now...” the green-eyed woman commented with a smile.

**************

“Please, allow me to welcome you in my home city.” Rashid announced to them as their boat was arriving within sight of El Idriss. “The jewel of Ghazan. The most beautiful city in the world!” He was beaming with pride.

Yuka agreed with him.

Chichen Itza was an impressive-looking city, with its huge palaces and pyramids, but it was a given since she was the biggest city of the continent – and probably of the world. However, El Idriss was indeed in her opinion the more gorgeous-looking city. It probably had something to do with the smooth buildings all made of white stones. Or the tall minarets with their red roofs and their silvery spires. Or the temples and the palaces with their golden domes.

Her friends were also looking in awe at the capital city of Ghazan. Except Coulter of course, who was surlily looking at the obelisks surrounding El Idriss.

Still, now that they were reaching their destination, the shapeshifter couldn't help but think that something was amiss.

She took Rashid's arm to lead him away from the others.

“Rashid. I have a bad feeling about this.” she said to him.

“What do you mean?”

“It's too easy.”

“Too easy?”

“The Mages know we stole Ce-Tochtli's book.” Yuka explained. “They must suspect that we will try to have it translated. One of them at least must have guessed that our only choice would be to go to Ghazan.” Yuka looked once again at the city of El Idriss. In spite of its magnificent appearance, she couldn't help but feel worried while looking at it. “And yet, our boat trip was as uneventful as it could have been... They didn't even try to send a warship to try to intercept us!”

Rashid nodded to show that he agreed with her conclusions.

“I was hoping that it wouldn't come to this. But it seems that you may have to perform an infiltration mission in my own kingdom. If the Mages try something, they will do it with the help of some members of the Seraglio...”

“... Therefore I may have to infiltrate it to catch the traitors.” Yuka concluded.

“I'm sorry.”

He put a hand on her shoulder. Yuka realized that this was the first time he touched her. She couldn't help but wonder if it was in frienship... or if there was something more. After all, she made a lot of efforts to ignore the attraction she was feeling towards him, but it also meant that she conveniently ignored all the signs pointing that the feeling of attraction could be mutual.

“So many new appearances... So many possibilities...” the shapeshifter muttered to herself.

**************

“So many new appearances... So many possibilities...” Tsuki muttered to herself. “This city is now my new playfield...”

Safiye actually had to grab Tsuki's hand several times and to drag the shapeshifter behind her to prevent her from ambushing lone women to steal their appearance.

Currently, Tsuki was looking at a group of belly dancers wearing colourful red or green outfits.

“Stay focused!” Safiye whispered to her. “We have a mission, remember?”

Tsuki made an effort and stopped looking at the dancers. “Fine... That will be for another time.” The shapeshifter looked at her accomplice. “Shall we find a servant of the palace then? Of course, I may need to have to stay infiltrated in the palace under her guise during several days. Therefore it means we can't take the risk of having her expose us. Do you want me to strangle her?”

Safyie wondered briefly if the shapeshifter was serious, or simply trying to unnerve her. Both were a likely possibility. And they were a grim reminder that, even though she was a perfect partner that completed her whenever they had to ambush, subdue and truss up women, Tsuki was also unstable and Safiye should always keep an eye on her.

She chose to ignore the remark.

“We can't go blindly ahead without a plan.” the green-eyed woman said instead. “You may be able to perfectly take the appearance of someone, but we first need to learn everything about the current organization of the palace: The rotations of the servants and of the guards. The identities of the courtesans who are favoured by the king and the prince. A lot of things probably have changed since the time I was a courtesan of the Seraglio. We will meet with one of my contacts in this city. She will give us informations and help me contact the members of the Seraglio spying for the Mages.”

Tsuki shrugged. "It makes sense."

Safiye was looking at the streets until she saw the sign of the shop she was looking for.

Perfect. It's still here.

She then noticed that Tsuki, whom she was still holding by the hand – to the point that some people seemed to be gossiping –, wasn't paying attention to her anymore. She was staring into space, as if hearing a silent voice.

Safiye couldn't help but ask the question brewing in her mind.

“Are you actually... listening to someone?”

Tsuki blinked. “Of course! Didn't I tell you that I was blessed by the Black Star? She whispers to me all the time!”

“I don't think I want to know more...” Safiye commented. “Now, come, my contact is inside this shop.”

[tirepanted3]

Some interesting setup and character building in this chapter. Seems predominantly like a setup chapter, though, especially in the way that the uniform stealing scenes are confined to one set of characters (Safiye and Tsuki) as he story switches back and forth between them and the main heroes.

The downside to this is that the formula becomes apparent after a while - Safiye and Tsuki mug a couple of women for their clothes, their ruse is discovered, and they have to find new clothes... So there's not a lot of plot progression. The upside, thankfully, is that the USB scenes themselves are entertaining, and each is better than the previous one. The banter between Ziyane and Athro was certainly enjoyable; they feel like fleshed-out characters despite their brief appearance. And the mugging of Falak and Judie was my favorite, in part because the outfits involved built-in face coverings (justified as the victims are from a desert tribe). A clever way for the disguises to serve their purpose most effectively.

The boat scenes were a bit less captivating, but I continue to appreciate and enjoy the detail in the exposition and dialogue. Coulter is certainly growing on me, and I can definitely relate to her seasickness.

All in all, not one of my favorite chapters, but I understand that it's mainly an introduction, and works pretty well in that respect. The talk about the Sergalio has me quite interested in what's in store in upcoming chapters...

[rufusluciusivan]

Yes indeed, it was supposed to be mainly an introduction / setup chapter, a way to introduce plot points and character developments that are important for later - and you perfectly pointed out its downside and its upside. Though, personally, I really liked writing the exposition of this part . The Seraglio and its intrigues will be featured prominently in this chapter, I can reassure you.

In many regards, I think that Coulter shares a lot of similarities with Emery - especially when it comes to her hostility towards the other main characters. Therefore, I'm being very careful when writing this character, to not repeat some of the mistakes I made with Emery. Hence why her motivations and the reasons of her hostility are more detailed. The detail of her seasickness was also a little addition to humanize her, and it was indeed funny to imagine someone powerful enough to rain down death and fire being struck down by a mere seasickness... I'm glad she's growing on you.

I'm also glad you liked the USB scenes. Looks like Safiye and Tsuki finally got their chance to shine with complete scenes, as you were hoping. From my part, I certainly enjoyed writing them, as it allowed me to have some fun with more 'eastern'-like clothes and appearances.

However, I confess that the last two of USB scenes were also added in order to have enough USB scenes to post the prologue separately - which in hindsight is unfortunately also the reason why the plot progression comes to an halt, as you pointed. The plot of this chapter is more complex to write, as it features court intrigue; and while I didn't want to leave this story dormant for too long, I preferred to get down to its core only after finishing the current Vigilante storyline. On the other hand, these two USB scenes were the most entertaining for you, so it was worth it! (Though personally, I enjoyed the one with Athro and Ziyane the most - just loved their duo of the rookie and the veteran soldier; plus, offscreen knock out ...)

[Trackman281]

Great opening, it seems that Mages really are a nuisance to all the various kingdoms and lands across your world, has there been a full blown war or something before these events that highlight why this is, or are there any mages that truly despise what the other mages are doing so there's a bit of an underground movement, this is good as I've only just got to the end of the first paragraph and already my mind is buzzing with possibilities.

Well as the saying goes, behind every great man is an even greater woman and I guess these Seraglio women are the embodiment of this saying, I mean with a few sweet words and kind gestures, these women just lead all the generals armies into battle with each other, leaving the mages open to pick up the scraps and take over, have they ever considered this sort of thing or am I just pulling at invisible strings here.

I enjoyed the scene with Safiye, Tsuki (the lovable shapeshifter) and of course the two guild members, I really enjoyed the outfit descriptions and you explained it thoroughly that we can a clear imagine as to what they are wearing in full.

Yisui will understand day, that infiltrators regardless of what genre style, must always strip the women there tying up, I'm sure it's one of the pillars of knowledge that all USB women need.

In all fairness Safiye wasn't lying to the guards, the imposters were disguised as guild members, just not in the way of which they thought, I do like situations like that of where an imposter will openly out their disguises to their next uniform donor to trick them, it's a pretty cool tactic, nicely done indeed.

Azeneth's knife throwing skills are certainly a treat to witness and do my eyes deceive me? Was that a subtle shade of grey I just detected from Coulter and to Yuka as well no less. Well I will be honest here, this scene was probably my favourite scene out of this entire chapter, seeing Yuka and Coulter's dialogues between one another, one's compassion, the other's guilt, it's really driving the narrative forward and really showing of just how different but somewhat similar both these characters are, I always enjoy seeing these two in scene's together, they're incredibly interesting characters and the whole just simply works perfectly.

I enjoyed the scene afterwards as well with the two Nomadic tribe women, I've had a soft spot for those sorts of outfits so it was nice to see them make an appearance here, also pretty smart as well for Tsuki and Safiye to hold on to their roadwarden uniforms from earlier as it's true, you never know when you might them again.

Yuka is a very enjoyable character, she somewhat of a shy woman at times as shown in this scene with Rashid but that's adds to her charm.

Tsuki getting bit by the USB bug didn't surprise me, seeing all these new outfits in a new location, it must be like a holiday for her and I get the feeling that Tsuki will be seeing those belly dancers again, real soon.

This was a great chapter, filled with great content, character development, different uniforms, great dialogues and of course the cherry on top, great USB scenes. I think you managed to find a nice balance here with USB scenes and world building. I know you said your world building can get very complex, but that's cool, I'm loving every bit of it and if it helps I know exactly what you mean. There's been a few times I've thought so much about where to take a chapters story that I've contemplated on forcing a few USB scenes just to justify the lengthy chapters haha.

All in all this one was an amazing chapter and once again I really did thoroughly enjoy this from start to finish, it had everything I wanted and more, Fantastic work!

[rufusluciusivan]

Is it me, or are your comments becoming longer and longer? Not that I'm complaining of course! Thanks a lot!

Well, the Mages rule over a highly aggressive and expansionist empire, so of course they are seen as a nuisance by the people that are still free from their rule. There were several wars of conquest in the past, allowing them to snatch territories to the north and the east (the often mentioned vassal kingdoms). However, their previous attempts of invasion against Ghazan and the Gengis people were failures. These lands are distant from the center of the Empire and its inhabitants have effective ways to counter the Mages' magic. By force of circumstances, things have been at a stalemate for a while when the story begins (roughly a decade), though all parties involved know that the peace is only temporary. While there are of course disagreements among the Sun Mages, there's no real faction against the war or against their political power. Gengis have shamans and Ghazan have scholars; both groups use magic, though theirs are different from the Mages'.

Ghazan is too united for the spies in the Seraglio to cause a civil war, and a good chunk of these women are loyal to their kingdom, even if they scheme to control the political power. The supporters of the Mages actually are a small minority, their best courses of action are assassinations and espionage.

About the USB scenes, I'm glad that you liked them. I really enjoyed imagining 'eastern-like' outfits for this part. The outfits of the nomads weren't my favorites, but they seem to have pleased more than I expected.

Tsuki is many things, but I wasn't expecting her to be seen as lovable . Her casual proposition to strangle a servant to death so she can take her place was actually a way to remind that she's a threat, specifically because she's insane. While I want her to be a complex and somewhat sympathetic character with understandable motivations, she's still a villain. These belly dancers should better pray that Safiye is with her to reign her in if she gets her hands on them...

Yisüi's still learning indeed. Her training isn't complete yet. And Azeneth IS just that good at knife throwing.

Yuka and Coulter are the main characters of the story, and their relationship is one of its core. Yes indeed, in spite of their mutual dislike of each other, they are similar in a way. They seem to have slightly understood that during this conversation. I enjoy writing their interactions a lot. And yes indeed, Coulter's anger at everyone and everything stems from her survivor's guilt. While due to the nature of the story I don't want to feature Rashid too much, I like to give some glimpses of Yuka's relationship with him.

[Trackman281]

Oh no no the comments are definitely getting longer haha. for you see, I open up a second tab and write my little feedback / review while reading the chapter on the first tab, yeah it seems like a hassle but this way I can write my view on each paragraph and that way I'm not trying to scroll through it trying to find the scene I'd be referencing LOL.

Oh sweet thank you very much for explaining all that to me. The more I seem to learn about your world, the more I seem to love it.

[esercito sconfitto]

Rufusluciusivan, don't prevent Tsuki from playing with all her new toys

and keep describing in detail Yuka and Azeneth while training Yisüi about the USB stuff

but the main thing about the new installment is that at last we can discover the real protagonist...


...the fictional Universe

I was late to understand, but now I see that you didn't invent or create a new Universe , you deconstructed and rebuilt the mankind's History and culture ... all the so called "Dark Ages" features have been reunited in the same place ( maybe a single Continent instead of many ones?)


straight to the point; are these countries the same already explored in the other ( "modern") saga of yours?

[rufusluciusivan]

Trackman: Mystery solved! And you're welcome! I love sharing informations about world-building.

esercito sconfitto: But do we truly to want to leave Tsuki unsupervised? Left to her own device, she'll probably do things à la Mystique again... After all, she's insane and a villainess. Kidding though. We'll have to make sure that she plays by the rules...

By describing, you mean giving a description? If that's the case, I'll put a little reminder here for now: Yuka had a tanned skin, short dark brown hair, and green-hazel eyes. Her face was angular, and she had a pointy chin and an aquiline nose. She was slightly taller than average, and her body was athletic-looking.
Azeneth was actually a metis. Her mother was from the Empire, but her father was one of these white-skinned blue-eyed merchants from the countries beyond the ocean. Therefore, while her skin was still tanned and her eyes were still brown, both were lighter than average. Her eyes were also rounder compared to the average subject of the Empire. She had dark brown hair, tied into a thick high braid that was reaching up to her collarbone. She had an oval face with a sharp chin and a tall soft nose.
When I'll have more time (and more motivation) I'll try to create a brief post to describe the main characters.

I certainly like to feature world-building in my stories, though hopefully it doesn't detract too much from the main characters and the uniform stealings. I think one or two of these fictional countries are mentioned in the 'modern' saga. They are part of another continent though. However, you can consider it a slightly alternate universe where magic exists. And indeed one of my pleasures is to take inspiration from the real History (though I wouldn't call this period the 'Dark Ages', but that's just the former history student talking). Pakal is a mashup of Inca, Aztec and Maya civilizations; the Gengis are inspired by the Mongol tribes, Ghazan by the Arab and Ottoman empires, Bommare is an Renaissance Italian city-state in everything but name, and so forth. The Pakal Empire (with all its vassal kingdoms) and the Gengis are on the same continent, Ghazan is located on a huge island nearby (at only a few days of boat); though Bommare and other kingdoms are on a second continent separated by a real ocean. If I manage to overcome my laziness, I'll try to draw another schematic map.

[rufusluciusivan]

Chapter 3: Part 1

**************

Dedicated to esercito sconfitto: a first (crude) draw of the map. Note that this is only a first draw: https://zupimages.net/up/20/51/ys6y.jpg There's also a page with a summary of the descriptions of each character: viewtopic.php?f=234&t=5736

**************

The royal palace wasn't one simple building, but a complex of several buildings including the palace itself, but also the headquarters of several ministries, the residences of the courtiers who had the king's favours, rooms to accommodate foreign diplomats... and of cours the Seraglio.

Yuka and her friends were given a magnificent room for their stay, with lavish tapestries, colourful carpets, and comfortable sofas. They were in the aisle of the palatial complex that was reserved for the king's sons.

They were also given local clothes, allowing them to take off their travel clothes. They were now wearing dark brown leather babouches, ample baggy trousers, blouses, and tunic jackets. The trousers and tunic jackets were colourful, and they were adorned with woven arabesque patterns. Jinora and Azeneth were given dark purple trousers and tunic jackets with silvery arabesques and light grey blouses; Yisüi was given blue trousers and tunic jacket with golden arabesques and a dark green blouse; Yuka was wearing emerald green trousers and a matching tunic jacket with red arabesques, and a brown blouse. Each had a white sash tied around the waist.

However, they weren't in the mood to enjoy the luxury. Even though it was the night, they were all still awake. And some of them were angry.

“Can you believe it? We weren't even allowed to meet the king and the crown prince!” Azeneth was complaining while Jinora was failing to calm her. “What a load of bull cra-”

“I'm not sure you'd appreciate them anyway.” Yuka intervened.

“Did you meet them?” Yisüi asked.

“No. But Rashid told me about them.”

Azeneth stopped complaining and exchanged a meaningful look with Jinora, then shen smiled. “A one-on-one, uh?” she commented.

Yuka blushed slightly. She ignored the inuendo. “What I mean is that Rashid isn't representative of his father and his brother. At all.”

“What do you mean?” Jinora asked.

“Ghazan is a kingdom ruled by men. Officially, women are excluded from the power. The men take all the decisions. And Rashid's father and brother are...” Yuka searched her words. It was unwise to be too critical when talking about a king, even if he wasn't around. “They are true products of their environment. They wouldn't take us seriously.”

“But I saw women among the guards and the soldiers...” Azeneth objected.

“Oh, in their eyes a woman can perfectly become a soldier. It's a decision-maker that she can't be.”

From afar, Coulter scoffed. “Decadent...” she commented. The red-haired Charioteer was sitting on a sofa, away from the others. She had refused to put on Ghazanite clothes, and was still wearing traditional outfit of her people: the white calf-long one-piece dress and the decorative apron, both adorned with their red and black embroideries, and a red cloth sash tied around the waist.

“When you're at war with an aggressive expansionist empire, you can't be picky with your allies.” Yuka answered with a shrug. “Anyway, I'll be honest with you. In principle, I understand the women of the Seraglio for wanting to grab some political power... If most of them weren't working against us, I'd even support them.”

“Working against us? Why would they do that?” Jinora asked. “We're fighting against the Mages! Are there so many spies among them?”

Yuka shook her head. “No. Almost all the courtesans are loyal to their kingdom. However, you have to understand that El Idriss is far from the Pakal Empire. Most of the courtesans never approached the fortified western coast. They are persuaded that Ghazan's war fleet and obelisks will be enough to repel Pakal forever. To them, the Mages are a distant secondary threat compared to the court intrigues. In their eyes, the most important thing is to help their respective factions grab more political power.”

“We don't need a lesson in politics. Get to the point!” Coulter interrupted her.

“In Ghazan, most of the offices and posts are granted by the king himself, depending on who has his favours. The Seraglio, just like the royal court, is divided into factions. Each faction competes with the others to have the most influence and offices.”

“I still don't see how it explains why most of the Seraglio would be working against us.” Yisüi admitted.

“Rashid is actually the head of a faction who wants to reform that system, break the power of the courtiers and the courtesans, and institute examinations open to men and women to recruit the officers and agents of the Crown depending on their skills. In spite of their divergences, most of the factions of the Seraglio share one thing. They consider Rashid their enemy, and will always try to weaken his position on principle – because they want to prevent his faction from amassing enough power to pass his reforms.”

“That seems... illogical...” Azeneth commented. “The courtesans of the Seraglio are women. They should welcome examinations open to women.”

“Believe it or not, but the courtesans of the Seraglio actually benefit a lot from the actual system, even though officially they have no power. Rashid's reforms would cause the dissolution of the Seraglio and would favour the daughters of merchants and administrators, who have received a better education when it comes to the administration of a kingdom.”

Azeneth groaned. “And here I thought that fighting the Mages was complicated...”

They stopped talking when Rashid entered the room. He was holding something in his hand, and judging by his expression it was important.

**************

Fatma was running.

She didn't understand why the coachman betrayed them. He was supposed to bring her and her friend Elif to Nahid's residence, so they could entertain their hostess.

The two women were indeed belly dancers, and were often hired by nobles or administrators to perform in private during the feasts they were hosting.

Instead, the coachman led Fatma and Elif into this ambush.

Fatma managed to escape the attackers trying to capture them. Elif wasn't as lucky.

Fatma had to find help.

However, by the look of the buildings alone, the young woman knew that she was in a disreputable part of the town. Calling for help in the middle of the night was useless. In this kind of district, it was every man for himself. Nobody would take the risk to fight armed people for a complete stranger. Worst, a would-be savior could even prove himself to be just as dangerous as her pursuers. In this part of the town, a beautiful lone woman like her was a prey, nothing more.

Fatma indeed knew that she had a gorgeous body, it was even the reason why she became a dancer in the first place. She was curvy, with a chest and a behind that were big enough to be desirable, but not to the point that she looked vulgar. Her tanned skin was flawless, her hands and feet were delicate, her face was soft and round. She had deep hazel green eyes and luscious brown hair tied into a high flowing ponytail.

Her outfit was also a huge problem. Fatma was already wearing her belly dancer garb: a bright red fitted top, a matching fitted hip belt, a light red translucent shawl and a full-length bright red flowing skirt which was open on one side. The top and belt were richly decorated with gold sequins.

Needless to say, running in this garb was hard and the bright colour wasn't helping her when she was trying to hide.

A figure suddenly appeared in front of her.

It was one of the assailants. The scariest one. The one with the childish laugh. In the dark, her sky blue eyes and jade earrings seemed to be glimmering.

Fatma stopped and tried to escape by running into another alleyway.

The blue-eyed woman was too fast for her.

She jumped the unfortunate belly dancer and pinned her to the ground.

Fatma struggled, but the woman was too strong for her. She used her legs to block the dancer's body. Then, her hands closed on Fatma's throat.

The expression on the blue-eyed woman's face terrified the belly dancer. It was an expression of childlike fun. Her attacker's eyes were sparkling with a mischievous twinkle, similar to a kid doing a prank.

“No! Wait! Please!” Fatma begged.

“Wait?” The woman tilted her head quizzically. “Why should I? You people have to stop saying that. As if it could ever work...”

“I don't want to die...” Fatma insisted.

“People often say that too. It's one of the dumbest things I've ever heard, but they say it anyway.”

“But... Wh... Why?”

The blue-eyed woman winked. “You're asking the wrong question. The right question isn't 'Why?', it's 'Why not?'”

The woman eyed Fatma's body and outfit. Then she added:

“Your body is gorgeous... Why wouldn't I want to take your appearance? And these clothes... They look so pretty... I don't want to create them, and trust me it doesn't happen often to me. I want to take them. I want to feel them in my hands. I want to have them.”

Fatma felt the hands start to tighten.

She's going to strangle me!

Another voice intervened, calling out the blue-eyed woman. “Stop it! You're having too much fun!”

The blue-eyed woman pouted and shrugged. Her grip loosened, allowing Fatma to breath again.

The belly dancer didn't understand what happened next.

The woman's palms glowed...

… and everything became black.

**************

“What are the news?” Yuka asked Rashid.

“The book has been given to my father's scholars. They will translate it. It will, however, take them some time.”

“What about the thing you're holding in your hand?” Coulter interved. “It looks suspicious to me...”

To answer her question, Rashid showed them a jewelry. It looked like a collar made of thick leather, with a dark blue crystal strapped onto it.

“This is the new invention of our scholars. A new weapon that may help us in our war against the Empire. They call this an inhibitor.” he explained. “Tie this collar around the neck of a Mage, and they won't be able to use their magic...”

“Impressive!” Azeneth exclaimed.

She, Jinora, and Yisüi gathered to look more closely at the device. They were all in awe.

Yuka moved to join them, but on her way she noticed Coulter's expression. The red-haired mage-woman was looking at the collar with a mixture of wariness and disgust. The shapeshifter remembered their conversation on the boat. Coulter said that she was convinced that Rashid had come up with several contingency plans to get rid of her if she became too dangerous.

And Yuka could perfectly understand why Coulter would be wary of the device. The leather collar onto which the dark blue crystal was strapped indeed looked eerily similar to a slave collar...

However, before anyone could add anything about the collar, the door of the room was opened.

“Little brother! I was looking for you!” a male voice exclaimed.

**************

“I am hugely disappointed. These clothes may look nice, but they are highly impractical.” Tsuki commented. “And the people who imagined them clearly didn't take take into consideration the fact that they could be stolen.”

The shapeshifter looked at the two unconscious belly dancers. Indeed, their bare breasts were in full display. Now that their outfits were stolen, the only garments protecting their modesty were short and tight mid-thigh-long underpants of precious silk. The undergarments were matching the colours of the clothes the belly dancers used to wear – bright red for Fatma, dark blue for her friend Elif.

The two unfortunate women were bound with ropes and gagged with black scarves. Even though Elif had dark brown hair and brown eyes, she was sharing the same hairstyle as her friend Fatma – as well as the same kind of curvy body.

“These harlots got what they deserve.” Safiye commented. She was currently wearing Elif's belly dancer outfit, which was similar to Fatma's with the exception that it was dark blue instead of bright red. The green-eyed spy adjusted her light blue translucent shawl.

Tsuki tilted her head quizzically. “Coming from a courtesan, the insult seems ironic.” she commented.

“Former courtesan.” Safiye corrected her. “And do not compare courtesans with these mere.... dancers.” She said the word with scorn. “A courtesan has to learn etiquette, eloquence, litterature and arts, history, and many other things. She can play music, explain the symbolism of a piece of art or of a book, and carry on a pleasant conversation. She doesn't just shake her behind sensually!”

“You seem to really hate them. I can stomp on their throats to crush them if you want.” Tsuki proposed.

Safiye shook her head. “I've already told you. I don't kill.”

The shapeshifter chuckled lightly. “Then let's hope that the first persons who find them aren't part of the libidinous rabble of this kind of bad neighborhood... Or else I'm sure that these two will regret your generosity.”

They dragged their two victims in a corner of an empty alleyway, out of sight.

“Why are you like that anyway?” Safiye asked her partner.

Tsuki took on the face of a conspirator and started to whisper her secret. “You see, the Black Star hates humanity... It came from beyond the stars to cleanse the earth from it... So, ever since she's blessed me with her power, every time I see a human there's this little voice in my head that whispers: 'Kill them... Kill them...'”

“Are you jesting?”

Safiye noticed the shapeshifter's mocking smile. However, since it was apparently her default expression, it wasn't helping her deduce if Tsuki was messing with her or telling the truth.

“Forget it.” Safiye barked.

Trying to debate with her was pointless anyway.

The two impostors regrouped with the armed men and women dressed in black who ambushed the belly dancers with them. Safiye had asked her contacts to provide her with the 'best thugs El Idriss had to offer'. For now, she wasn't disappointed. They were as efficient as promised.

“The first step of this operation is complete. Now, you will go to the residence of Nahid and wait until we open the gate for you.” Safiye instructed them.

They all nodded.

**************

Yusuf El'Haroun, eldest son of the king of Ghazan, essentially looked like an older taller more muscular Rashid. He shared the same brown curly hair and the same green eyes. What he didn't share however, was his little brother's modesty. His attitude exuded arrogance and entitled self-confidence.

“I heard you were back, little brother. I offer you my greetings.”

Yusuf didn't wait for his brother's answer however. His gaze embraced the women in the room, lingering on Yisüi and Coulter.

“I see that you finally decided to act like a proper prince of Ghazan.” he added. “I'm proud of you.”

Rashid's cheeks reddened slightly, but he seemed unable to find his words.

It was strange for Yuka to see him struggle to find a retort when he had no problem talking back to someone like Coulter, who could fry him alive on a whim. However, the shapeshifter knew that there were two people against whom Rashid had never been able to assert himself. His brother and his father. An entire childhood under their domination couldn't be easily swept away...

Yuka glanced at Rashid's older brother. So, you want to play this game, uh? Fine! We'll play by the rules of your kingdom then.

The shapeshifter forced herself to smile brightly. “It is indeed a delight to be with prince Rashid!” she declared.

Yuka then casted a discreet but meaningful glance at Azeneth.

The metis got the picture. “Of course!” she exclaimed while grabbing the prince's arm. “He's delightful!”

Don't overdo it, Az'. Yuka thought.

Jinora and Yisüi followed Azeneth's and Yuka's lead, and smiled and nodded. They also approached the young prince and complimented him.

Only Coulter didn't move. She was looking at the scene with a sulky slightly disgusted expression.

Yusuf hesitated.

The big brother bully could maybe brag about the multiple courtesans he was seeing, but Yuka was certain that he had never even seen a 'white-haired' Gengis from the far north like Yisüi. And while red hair such as Coulter's weren't uncommon in Ghazan, the bronzed skin and amber eyes of the Charioteers were inimitable. In a way, even Coulter's sulky expression was working to their advantage. Yuka had noticed that, for some reason, a good chunk of men were finding a feisty woman even more desirable.

Finally, the crown prince chose the option that would allow him to not lose face.

“I have urgent matters to attend to.” Yusuf said to have an excuse to leave. “I shall see you later, little brother. We have to talk again about the ceremony that you discussed with father during your meeting.”

He left the room.

Azeneth burst out laughing, making Yisüi, Yuka and Jinora smile with her. "What an oaf!" she exclaimed. "I wish he could have seen his face!"

Rashid sighed. “I thank you.” he said to Yuka and her friends. "I thought that after all this time spent in Pakal I'd have an easier time standing up to him, but it looks like I still have much to learn..."

“What was that disgusting thing you all just did exactly?” Coulter intervened.

“In Ghazan's court, the men often brag about the number of women and courtesans they see to show off.” Yuka explained. “We helped Rashid score points against his elder.”

“That's one of the stupidest things I've ever heard.” Coulter commented.

“All the more reason to take advantage of it, don't you think?” Yuka teasingly retorted.

“You're already reasoning like a true courtesan of the Seraglio.” Rashid couldn't help but say with a huge smile. “Which is a good thing, since I'll ask you to infiltrate them!”

So here it is. The new mission. Yuka thought to herself.

After all this time spent at sea, she was actually excited at the prospect of some action...

“Tell me more.” she said.

“I need you to infiltrate the Seraglio. I've spent too much time away from El Idriss. Some factions hostile to the increase of the war effort against Pakal are becoming too powerful, and at least one of them is secretly working for the Mages. I need to weaken them, with your help. You will take the identity of a newly-arrived courtesan to search and explore the Seraglio.”

“A solo mission?” the shapeshifter asked.

“Yes.” Rashid turned to the other women. “I hope I won't offend you, but there are no strangers among the courtesans of the Seraglio. Only full-blooded women of Ghazan. They would spot you immediately. Your physical features are a clear giveaway that you're not from the kingdom.”

“None offense is taken.” Azeneth said.

Rashid nodded, and added while looking at Yuka: “Once you are inside the Seraglio, I want you to search some selected rooms. I'll give you a map of the place. These rooms belong to the courtesans that, according to my researches, may be working for the Mages – or at least are trying to hinder the war effort against Pakal for various reasons. I want proofs. Even if we can't convince my father to arrest them, at least I'll know which courtesans I have to thwart in priority.”

“Will I be able to change appearance?” Yuka asked.

Rashid nodded again. “Nobody knows you're a shapeshifter, therefore as long as they don't see you in your normal appearance they won't be able to trace things back to me. We will make it look like the Mages were behind the operation.”

Yuka smiled brightly.

“Don't kill anyone though.” Rashid added. “The courtesans aren't stupid. Most of my enemies will suspect that I'm very likely involved in an operation targeting the Seraglio. Since they won't be able to find enough proofs, they won't dare accusing in public a royal prince. But if someone dies, they may decide that it's worth taking the risk – as it would mean that I'm responsible of the death of one of my own subjects.”

“Understood. I'll make sure it won't end in tears.”

“By the way...” Coulter, who kept quiet during the entire briefing, suddenly intervened. “Rashid. What was this ceremony your brother was talking about?”

Rashid suddenly became very uneasy.

**************

Disguised as the two belly dancers, Safiye and Tsuki arrived at the residence of Nahid, escorted by their 'coachman'. It was a luxurious building rented to nobles from outside El Idriss when they were temporarily sojourning at the capital city.

“You know, there's something I don't understand.” Tsuki commented to her accomplice while they were waiting for a servant to let them in. “Our target is a woman, right?”

“Yes.”

“And all her household consists of women, right?”

“Get to the point.”

“Why did she ask for female belly dancers?”

“I'll let you guess what it reveals about her tastes.” Safiye simply retorted.

“Oh!” Tsuki exclaimed in understanding.

Safiye looked at her severely. “Remember to restrain yourself until I let our people in.”

The shapeshifter stood at attention. “Yes chief!”

A woman opened the door. She was wearing the white clothes of a servant: a long-sleeved tunic, a cloth sash tied around the waist, and an ankle-long skirt. She had a plain physique, a lanky body, an oval-shaped face, a pointy nose, armpit-long brown hair tied into a ponytail, hazel eyes, and a jaded expression.

Two women in arms were standing behind her. They were wearing black shoes, bright red mantles and trousers, a yellow sash tied around the waist as well as a leather belt for the sheaths of their weapons, and a red hat. The two women were armed with a dagger and a scimitar each. They were private bodyguards, hired in the local guild of the capital city. They both had neck-long hair tied into a small braid, a tanned skin and the fit muscular bodies of women who trained a lot. The first bodyguard had dark brown hair and brown eyes; the second one had light brown hair and chestnut eyes.

“You were expected.” the servant said.

She let them in.

The two bodyguards didn't allow the coachman and, after closing the door of the residence, searched Safiye and Tsuki for weapons. Of course, the two impostors weren't stupid enough to carry one on them.

“My mistress is still taking her bath.” the servant explained. “The journey was long and tiring. She will see you once she's done.”

Safiye smiled politely. “Of course. Her invitation honours us.”

However, as soon as the servant and bodyguards had turned her back on her, the former courtesan grimaced in disgust.

The servant led them to a lounge where there were comfortable sofas.

“Here, this is the room where you will wait for her. Do you require some refreshments?”

“Yes please.” Safiye said.

“My mistress is waiting for another guest. I hope you won't mind waiting with her.”

“Of course not.”

The servant and the two bodyguards exited the room.

Safiye's fake smile disappeared. “She's taking a bath.” she spat. “The arrogance of these nobles has no limits!”

"Fancy room..." Tsuki was staring vacantly into the nothingness, listening to invisible voices perhaps. “I wonder who this other guest is...”

“Who cares? The moment we have an opening, we conk her and the servant, then we open the doors for our people. I want to surprise that whore in her bath.”

“What about the bodyguards?”

“We conk them too.”

**************

For some reason, Rashid seemed very reluctant at the idea of talking about the ceremony that his brother mentioned.

However, now that Coulter had stressed the point in front of everyone, he couldn't avoid the topic.

The prince avoided Yuka's eyes.

“Father has... Father announced me that he has chosen the woman who was going to be my wife.”

Coulter groaned of surprise.

Jinora frowned.

“What?!” Azeneth explained.

"Why?" Yisüi added.

“The desert tribes of the southern half of Ghazan are a fierce and independent folk. They agreed to be part of the kingdom and to serve the king long ago, but they also are very jealous of their autonomy and their culture. Father wants to keep our bonds strong by having me marry one of their princesses.” Rashid explained.

“Such is the curse of Mehmet III, king of Ghazan.” Yuka sourly commented. “The irony is that he was blessed with two healthy sons to ensure his succession, which is what any king would have wanted... But his wife also could never give him the daughter he wanted for his marriage alliances, forcing him to use his younger son instead...”

Her declaration was followed by an awkward silence.

**************

When the servant returned with Nahid's other guest, Safiye couldn't refrain a reaction of surprise.

The newcomer was a priestess of the Prophet.

How can she...? the emerald-green-eyed spy thought to herself. The Church of the One True God reproves anything remotely connected to prostitution! In their eyes, belly dancers are no better than the whores offering their services to the sailors in the port's whorehouses! The truth was of course a lot more complicated, but the Church didn't care about that. However, Safiye was well-aware of one thing: Asking a priestess to stay in the same room as a belly dancer would be seen as a grave insult!

The priestess had hazel brown eyes, neck-long reddish brown hair and a slightly tanned skin. She was thin and tall. She had the body of someone who led an active lifestyle and avoided excesses. She was wearing a beige hooded ankle-long religious robe with long baggy sleeves. A white cloth sash was tied around her waist. She was walking in leather sandals. She wasn't wearing any jewel.

And indeed, the priestess reacted with anger when she noticed Safiye and Tsuki, and their belly dancer garbs.

“What is the meaning of this? I am a minister of the Prophet! How can your mistress dare to make me wait in the same room as their kind?!”

The servant winced. “I apologize. I merely obey the instructions of my mistress.”

“This is an outrage! I will not tolerate this insult!”

Safiye rolled her eyes. The woman's shrieks were getting on her nerves. The emerald-green-eyed spy checked if the bodyguards weren't nearby.

And indeed they weren't.

“Change of plans. Tsuki, knock these two out. We'll take their place.”

With a huge grin, the shapeshifter jumped on her feet.

The priestess glared menacingly at them. “What did you say?! Are you threatening me?! Outrageous! I am a minister of the Prophet! You-ffffhhhh?!”

Tsuki clamped her hand over her mouth. Her palm glowed. The priestess had a few spasms, made a few muffled grunts, then her eyes rolled back and she collapsed unconscious on the floor.

"Just shut up, and let your Prophet speak for himself if he has something to say against me..."

The servant watched the priestess crumble, mouth open. She was too shocked to react. Her legs trembled.

Tsuki jumped and immobilized her before she could recover from her surprise and leave the room.

The servant looked at her. She was terrified. “How... How can you use magic with the obelisks?”

“It's not magic, it's a natural talent.” the shapeshifter said with a wink.

Then her hands glowed.

“Wha-aaaaaaa...” her victim tried to say.

The servant's eyes widened and rolled back. Mouth slightly open, she lost consciousness and fell at Tsuki's feet.

“Putting a priestess and two harlots in the same room?” Tsuki commented. “Is this woman purposely trying to create a scandal?”

“I have my idea about why she would do such a thing...” Safiye commented. “But honestly, I don't care. Tsuki, take the appearance of the servant. I'll disguise myself as the priestess. She commands more authority than a mere belly dancer. If we meet a guard, her guise will be useful. Once we're diguised, we'll open the door to my men and take control of the residence.”

The shapeshifter grinned and took a closer look at her victim's face. “Hello, new appearance...”

Safiye ignored her.

She grabbed the auburn-haired priestess' right leg and removed her sandal, then did the same with her left leg. She unlaced her cloth sash, then removed her priestess robe. Under her religious garb, the woman was wearing a plain beige sleeveless knee-long underdress.

Safiye looked around her to find something she could use to bind her. She noticed the expensive tapestries on the walls and covering of the sofas.

**************

After Yuka's outburst, the end of the mission briefing was awkward. Rashid gave her the map of the palace and a few advices, as well as the schedule of the woman Yuka was going to impersonate. They avoided any other mention of the betrothal, acting as if it was unimportant, but everyone senses that their attitude was artificial.

Then he left.

Coulter went to her bedroom shortly afterwards. She still looked sour because of the reveal of the inhibitor.

Yisüi, Azeneth and Jinora gave Yuka encouraging words, and the shapeshifter played along to reassure them that she was fine. Then, they all went to sleep.

Even though it was the middle of the night, Yuka chose to perpare herself for her next infiltration mission. Everyone else had gone to bed, but the shapeshifter couldn't sleep. After the conversation with Rashid, she needed to think of something else...

Yuka was supposed to take the place of Mira, a courtesan who had recently arrived from El Ommeya and who was the newest member of the Seraglio. Under her guise, she would explore and search the building. Since she was new, nobody in the Seraglio knew her very well, therefore Yuka could impersonate her without risking giving herself away.

“Yuka... You're fine?” a voice suddenly asked behind her.

It was Azeneth. She didn't go to bed like the others.

“Of course. Why wouldn't I be?” the shapeshifter sharply retorted.

“Because Rashid announced that he was going to be betrothed.” the metis insisted.

Yuka didn't answer.

However, Azeneth wasn't the kind of woman who would easily give up. “Are you jealous?” she asked.

“What? No!”

Azeneth gave her a meaningful look.

“Well... maybe I'm a little jealous....” Yuka finally admitted.

Confessing it actually made her feel better.

“However, I've always known that it would end that way. And Rashid too. Ever since he was old enough to know about the things of love, he knew that he would marry for political reasons, that he would never choose his wife. There's nothing we can do." Yuka looked at her friend. "We are grown ups, Az'. I know what our priorities are. Currently, it is to stop the people who want to let this kingdom fall under the clutches of the Mages. I've lived through worst things. I won't just collaps and cry.”

Azeneth nodded. "I understand. However, remember that we'll always be there if you need to talk. Wether it's about that... or about someone else."

Yuka understood that the metis was talking about Tsuki.

She nodded. "Once we are done here, I will." she promised. "Thanks, Az'."

Azeneth squeezed her shoulder, then went into her bedroom.

Yuka watched her leave the room... and also noticed a quick movement out of the corner of her eye.

She waited during a few minutes, then said: "I know you're here. You can come out, Coulter."

The redhead left her hideout behind a sofa.

"Were you spying me?" Yuka asked her.

"Of course not."

"Of course not... You were waiting for me to go to bed, so you could sneak out and try to get your hands on Rashid's inhibitor to study it, weren't you?"

Coulter kept silent, with a stubborn expression, which made Yuka realize that she had guessed right.

"You wouldn't be able to go far anyway. The guards would have stopped you before you could enter his room. He's a prince, remember?"

"Your guards shouldn't be able to stop me!" Coulter angrily exclaimed. "I hate this place! I hate this country! And I hate these obelisks that restrain my powers! I can't even defend myself anymore!"

"You're worried that they could take advantage of the situation to lock you up... or to force you to wear an inhibitor."

"Of course! Do you truly think this thing is a tool of war?! Do you truly picutre yourself tying it around the neck of a Mage during a battle?! This collar was designed for me, to neutralize me if I'd be stupid enough to come in this wretched kingdom... And this is exactly what happened!"

"Coulter, you're being paranoid. We are not your enemies. The Mages are." Yuka said to calm her down. "Besides, I've told you that I would never let them do that to you. I maybe can't stand you, but I keep my promises. If I have to, I'll cut the collar myself."

Coulter didn't know what to answer.

"You should go to sleep. We're all tired." Yuka concluded.

The red-haired mage-woman hesitated, but then walked towards her room.

"By the way, I hope you're not letting the situation affect you." Coulter said to Yuka. "You're supposed to be a lot tougher than that. And since you are as resourceful as you are annoying, I'm sure that you'll find a solution." She then entered her bedroom.

"Thanks for the compliment... I guess..." Yuka commented.

**************

Safiye cut some of the tapestries decorating the room and the coverings of the sofas to turn them into makeshift ropes. She was using them to bind the priestess' wrists behind her back, as well as her ankles. She shoved strips of an expensive embroidered tapestry into the woman's mouth and cleave-gagged her.

As often, Tsuki didn't even bother with stealing her victim's clothes. She simply used her unfair powers to assume her appearance, clothes included. Her smug smile was really getting on Safiye's nerves. The fully-clothed servant was lying at her feet, cloth-gagged and bound hand and foot.

In silence, the green-eyed spy removed the belly dancer garb and slipped into the priestess robe. Tsuki glanced at Safiye who was now dressed in the traditional religious garb of Ghazan.

“Do your kingdom's priestesses have to look that boring? I mean... Beige robes? How lame! Our priestesses are wearing more beautiful robes!”

“This is a way to honour the frugal lifestyle of the Prophet.” Safiye explained.

Tsuki rolled her eyes. “Oh yes! The Prophet of Aharu Azdam, the One True God. Aharu Azdam, of whom all the other gods are merely the aspects.” She giggled.

“I can't allow you to mock the Prophet or the One True God, Tsuki.” Safiye interrupted her.

Tsuki smiled mockingly. “I wonder how your Prophet would feel about you helping the heathen Mages...”

“You said it yourself. The ancient Pakal gods aren't fake. They are merely some of the aspects of the One True God. The Kingdom and the Church aren't the same thing.”

This time, the shapeshifter burst out laughing. “You truly are one huge bundle of contradictions and hypocrisy, aren't you Safiye?”

Her summary was so accurate that it was actually a little scary.

The shapeshifter ultimately stopped laughing and shrugged however. “Who cares anyway? After tasting the power of the Black Star, all these gods and religions feel rather dull...”

Even after having spent weeks in her company, Safiye still wasn't used to Tsuki's frequent mood-swings.

To move on, the emerald-green-spy checked if the priestess' hands were properly restrained behind her back. The unconscious auburn-haired woman stirred and moaned in her gag, but she ignored her.

Then, Safiye and Tsuki dragged by the feet the servant and the priestess. They hid the trussed up women under the sofas, in case someone would enter the room before they could take control of the residence. They would pick them up later once it was time to gather all the prisoners.

The two impostors quickly went to the residence's backdoor. They were lucky enough to not come across the bodyguards.

Safiye wasn't surprised though. El Idriss was a quiet peaceful city, and no criminal would dare enter the district in which. These two bodygards were hired for a matter of standing, not of security. An important person couldn't reside in the capital city without a few bodyguards to show off her status. The two women were probably slacking off somewhere, waiting for Nahid to finish taking her bath. If the noblewoman had real bodyguards ready to die for her, they would be standing near the room in which she was.

Safiye was satisfied to see that the armed people she hired for this operation were quick and efficient. They arrived as soon as she opened the backdoor.

Now, they had the manpower to take control of the residence.

First, they found and neutralized the red-clothed bodyguards. When the two women saw the number of their assailants they surrendered without a fight.

Safiye ordered them to take off their weapons and their outer garments. The threat of the daggers of Safiye's people in arms helped the two bodyguards overcome their hesitations.

They removed their weapons, their black shoes, as well as the yellow sash and the red mantles, trousers and hat that were showing their status as guild-approved private bodyguards, stopping once they were down to their grey undertunics and knee-long underpants.

Safiye's thugs were also carrying sturdy brown ropes, and they put them to good use to truss up the two guards. Contrary to with the priestess and the servant, Safiye made sure to use complex knots and to bind the upper-arms and the knees in addition to the wrists and ankles. While they were mostly there for show, these two women were still trained combattants. She wasn't going to take any risk. Thick pieces of black cloth were used to gag the two prisoners, and they were also blindfolded. The two guards groaned in annoyance. As trained combattants, they had a hard time stomaching the humiliation of their predicament. However, they were wise enough to not defy their captors.

Finally, the assailants put the two bound-and-gagged bodyguards in an empty room of the residence, under the watch of one of Safiye's women.

Two other women of her team took the time to take off their black clothes and put on the shoes, the red hat, tunic and trousers and the yellow sash. The first, called Aysun, had short black hair and brown eyes. The second, whose name was Derya, had shoulder-long light brown hair and grey eyes. Both had a tanned skin.

Safiye nodded. She was satisfied. Her contact didn't lie to her when she promised a good team.

The emerald-green-eyed spy sent two men of her team in the lounge to grab the servant and the priestess, and carry them in the same room as the bodyguards.

“Remember that I want them alive and unharmed.” Safiye warned them. “If one of you forgets that, I'll cut their tongue and their thumbs.”

With Tsuki and the remaining members of her team, including the two fake bodyguards, Safiye went to the part of the residence where the quarters of the mistress of the house were located.

She stopped in front of the door of the antechamger. “There are probably other guards in that room. Tsuki, you'll have to play the part of the servant and distract them. Aysun, Derya, you come with us. The others stay outside until we call you.”

Tsuki opened the door and entered, followed by Safiye and the two fake red-clothed bodyguards.

There were indeed two more guards in the antechamber. Two women with a tawny skin, black hair, oval-shaped faces, and light green eyes. They were armed with short swords and daggers, and were wearing similar-looking long dark blue robes covering all the body with a black cloth belt tied around the waist, as well as matching headscarves tied with a headband.

“What is it?” one of them asked, fooled by Tsuki's appearance and the others' clothes.

The shapeshifter melodramatically put her hand on her forehead. “Anathema! Despair! The priestess of the Prophet is OUTRAGED by the mistress' INSULT! She threatens to have the Church of the Prophet EXCOMMUNICATE everyone in this mansion if she's not given a proper explanation! Including ME! Oh poor, poor, me!”

One of the guards approached her. “Calm down! Calm down! We'll call Nahid and she'll explain everythi-iiiiiiiiii...”

Tsuki suddenly grabbed the woman's face between her hands. Her palms glowed.

The bodyguard's body jerked and had a few spasms, then she fell unconscious in Tsuki's arms.

"So nice of you..."

Her partner let out a shocked scream.

“What?”

Safiye blocked her path. “I think you should surrender.” she advised her.

“Traitor!”

The guard ignored her warning and tried to stab her with her short sword.

Safiye avoided her assault.

Aysun and Derya attacked the guard at the same time from both sides, and subdued her. They pinned her to the floor.

Safiye looked down on the bodyguard. “You should have taken my offer.”

She stepped on the woman's hand, breaking it under her heel. The bodyguard screamed in pain. Then the green-eyed spy kicked her in the face, making her spit some blood, leaving her whimpering on the floor.

“I thought you didn't kill...” Tsuki commented while laying the first bodyguard on the floor.

“What? I simply broke a few bones. She'll live.” Safiye retorted.

Tsuki shrugged.

Safiye let all her other thugs enter and pointed at the two defeated guards. “Restrain these two. I will deal with their mistress.” She opened the door leading to Nahid's bedroom.

The emerald-green-eyed spy wished she caught their target while she was still naked in her bath, just to humiliate her, but unfortunately she was already dressed when she burst in the room. She was wearing black indoor clothes: trousers and a long-sleeved tunic woven with golden threads, a white cloth belt, and slippers. However, even with these plain clothes, she was looking regal.

“What is the meaning of this?!” she imperiously asked.

Nahid was a tall fit proud-looking young woman with an aquiline nose and sharp facial features. She had a tawny skin, waist-long black hair, and light green eyes.

Safiye, in spite of her disdain for the nobility, had to admit that she was impressed by the woman's courage. Nahid's face didn't betray any fear when she saw the two impostors enter her room, surrounded by men and women in arms. She glared at the attackers with a mixture of defiance and scorn.

“Where are my guards? What did you do to them?” she barked.

“They're alive. For now. And if you want them to stay alive, you'll have to obey my orders, dearie.” Safiye retorted.

She ignored Nahid's hate-filled glare. She was appreciating the idea of having a noble under her power.

“Tsuki, this is the woman you will impersonate so we can infiltrate the palace...”

The shapeshifter approached Nahid, invading her personal space. Safiye enjoyed how uneasy Tsuki's unhinged smile was making Nahid.

“Look at that! She's a cutie!” Tsuki exclaimed.

Safiye was very satisfied by the glimmer of fear she spotted in Nahid's eyes when the shapeshifter started to assume her appearance.

**************

Early in the morning, pretending to be a servant, Yuka entered Mira's room. The courtesan was indeed a stunning young woman. She had long wavy black hair, deep brown eyes, and a soft tanned skin. Her body was curvy in all the right place, and she had a soft flat belly as well.

In spite of the early hour, the courtesan was already applying make up in front of a mirror: putting some red on her lips and black paint on her eyebrows with a brush.

She was wearing a gorgeous set of ocean blue clothes: ample baggy trousers and a matching tunic jacket. The trousers and tunic jackets were adorned with woven gold arabesque patterns, as well as dark blue beads made of stone. Under the tunic jacket, she was wearing a light blue blouse woven with white threads. A white sash was tied around her waist, and a light translucent sky blue shawl was lying on her lap. There were gold bracelets around her wrists and a gold necklace around her neck. She was wearing small gold earrings encrusted with a sapphire.

Mira noticed Yuka's presence in the mirror. However, the shapeshifter had already modified her appearance to have Ghazan's most common physical features: a tanned skin, brown hair, and hazel eyes.

“What is it?” Mira asked. The servant outfit had fooled her.

Her voice was melodious and her diction was impeccable.

Yuka bowed. “I was sent by prince Yusuf to bring you a message...”

The courtesan looked overjoyed. She smiled brightly. “Really?” Indeed, being noticed by the crown prince was a great achievement for a courtesan – one that would open up a lot of perspectives for the future. “Please, do tell!”

Yuka approached her.

“He says that he's a jerk and you should try to pursue better goals.”

Mira frowned. “What?”

Yuka's palm glowed and she touched the courtesan's exposed neck.

Mira tried to stand up, but froze mid-movement. Her body shook a little. She moaned lightly and her eyes rolled back. Then, she fell back on her chair.

“Sorry for the false hope... It's for the greater good...” Yuka commented to the unconscious woman.

She was feeling a little sorry for the young courtesan. Mira was the youngest daughter of an impoverished noble family who went all the way from the other side of the kingdom to try to find a better lot in life by joining the Seraglio, and she briefly believed that the better social status she was dreaming of was within reach. The wake-up call was going to be brutal.

Still, it was to save Ghazan – and the world – from the Mages. If Mira truly loved her kingdom, she would understand.

The shapeshifter quickly stripped the courtesan of her outer garments: the shoes, the trousers, the blouse, and the tunic. She also took her jewels. Once Yuka was done, Mira was left wearing only a blue band of soft luxurious cloth wrapped around the chest and pinned in place with a gold straight pin under the arm as well as blue thigh-long open drawers.

The shapeshifter grabbed the coils of rope she was wearing wrapped around her waist under her servant outfit. She used them to bind the young courtesan's wrists, ankles, and knees. She gagged her with a few clean rags. Finally, Yuka laid the woman on her bed, and tied her waist to the bed.

Now, she simply needed to make sure that Mira would remain out of commission for a while...

The shapeshifter grabbed one of Mira's spare shawls. The translucent fabric was light: one could easily breath through it.

Perfect.

She poured a generous dose of sleeping potion on the garment, and tied it over Mira's mouth and nose. The narcotic would ensure that the courtesan was going to sleep until the afternoon, the time for Yuka to search the Seraglio. She made the woman's head rest on the pillow.

Now, let me tuck you in...

Yuka covered the deeply asleep courtesan with the sheets to conceal her figure.

“Sorry about that. I hope you won't mind if I fill in for you today.”

Her figure blurred and she changed shape to become Mira's perfect copy. The shapeshifter took the time to touch her now luscious black hair and generous curves. Then, she dropped her servant outfit and slipped into the courtesan's clothes. She loved the feeling of this fabric, especially the pants. She put on Mira's makeup, imitating her movements of the hand with the pencil.

Finally, Yuka grabbed Mira's shawl and put it over her shoulders.

Even though she had other concerns in mind, Yuka couldn't help but admire the clothes she was now wearing. A part of her was overjoyed at the idea of wearing garments that were so luxurious and so gorgeous.

And Mira was supposed to be a courtesan of modest means... The shapeshifter couldn't help but wonder what the outfits of the high-ranked courtesans would look like!

And she was also wondering if she was going to get her hands on one of them...