Shaherazade's Daughters

by Sameena K Mughal

  “What is troubling you, child?” he asked in his direct way.

  “I saw the man who killed my father today.” she said.

  “How is it possible?” he asked, and for the first time since she had known him he sounded shocked.

  Then, she told him how it all happened. She was hoping he could tell her what it all meant.

  His response baffled and shocked her at them same time.

  “You have to report this to the Guard,” he told her calmly.

  “What? I would expect that response from Uncle or Haroun! Not from you! I won’t!”

  “And why won’t you? Justice will be served.”

  “Can we be sure of that? My father was killed over ten years ago, and I am the only witness. I was also a child at the time. Will I really be taken seriously?”

  “What about the documents that were translated? They’re suspicious enough within themselves. I have no doubt that they were obtained through some ill gotten means. They’ll warrant an investigation of some sort.”

  “I don’t want an investigation! I want Justice that is certain!”

  “And the only way you can be certain is to administer it yourself?” he asked, remaining calm.

  Fatima knew she would get some sort of answer from Baba. That was what she wanted: to administer justice herself. She wanted them to pay for what they had done because they hadn’t paid for so long. Who better to make them pay than her? The one whose world they tore to shreds through their callous savagery.

  “Will you help me?” she asked him quietly.

  “I will help you in all things… except that,” he said.

  Wordlessly, she walked out of the house. Baba didn’t stop her.

  When she returned home, she avoided Haroun and Ali. Especially Ali, because he would know something was troubling her, and she was in no mood for sharing. When Ali realized he had not seen Fatima for most of the evening, he knocked on her door.

  “Fatima, are you alright? I haven’t seen you since this morning,” he said, concern in his voice.

  “I’m not feeling well,” she replied.

  “Is there anything I can do for you?”

  “No, I just need to rest.”

  “If there is anything you want or need, let one of us know, alright?”

  “Alright, Uncle.”

  She felt uneasy about not sharing such a momentous discovery, especially one that concerned him as much as her. She had always shared her thoughts and her feelings with Ali. He had always cared for her as if she were his own daughter. Even at this moment, she wanted to pour her heart out to him, but she knew he would make her go to the Guard, which was the last thing she wanted to do. With these thoughts, she slept restlessly.

  She dreamed of the day Karim died. Something she had not done in years. In one dream, she was defending him and kills the Captain before he kills Karim. Still in another, she was trying to protect Karim, but she could not move or speak, as if she was frozen. This was the dream that woke her with a shudder.

  The next day, Baba came with Noor to visit her. He inquired after her health as Ali had told him she wasn’t feeling well. Noor offered to cook her something as Fatima mentioned she had not eaten since the night before. As Noor walked away to go into the kitchen, she shot Baba a quick glance, which he returned just as quickly. Fatima was not quite sure what it all meant, but she was in no mood to dwell upon it.

  After a few moments, Baba spoke.

  “The men you saw are called Mustapha and Cassim. Mustapha is the older man. Cassim is younger. Their ship for Hindustan does not sail for six weeks. They are currently making preparations for the journey and are staying at an inn not far from the House of Wisdom.”

  “The younger man is Cassim? How small the world can be,” Fatima said.

  “Cassim is an appropriate name for a killer.” he replied with no irony in his voice.

  “You said you would not help me. Why are you telling me this?”

  “Because you will do what you want to do, regardless of what anyone says, like you have always done. I can better protect you if I help you.”

  “How did you gather all of this information so quickly?”

  “I learn what needs to be learned.” he answered dispassionately.

  She decided she did not really need to know and asked him no further questions on the subject.

  “Fatima, how will you administer your justice?” he asked.

  “How do you think, Baba?” she answered, not looking at him.

  “What do you think? That this is some sort of game?” They are clearly ruthless and clearly cunning! Do you think you can just go to the inn, and they will let you kill them without a fight? There is a difference between bravery and recklessness. Think this through.”

  “What do you suggest, Baba? If you want to help me, give me the benefit of your experience,” she said, this time looking directly at him.

  “Oh child, there are so many other areas in which you could get the benefit of my experience. Please don’t pick this.”

  “My mind is made up,” she said.

  “I knew that already,” he said.

  The next day, Fatima found herself in a room of Baba’s house that she had never been in before: the sword room.

  The room had no furniture. Just walls lined with swords. In the middle of the room were two large stands with several swords in a line. The swords were from all over the world and superbly crafted. Fatima stared at it all in wonder.

  “I didn’t know you had a room full of swords,” she remarked in a surprised voice.

  “There’s much you don’t know about me,” he responded.

  “A truer story could never be told or written,” she rejoined.

  He handed her a sword. Then, he took one for himself.

  “Ali taught you some skill with a blade, I take it?”

  “He did.”

  “Show me.”

  Before she had a chance to respond, Baba thrust the sword at her. They sparred for all of two minutes before Baba disarmed her.

  “Just as I thought. Your skills are nothing. You’ll be dead before you can even say your father’s name.”

  After that, Fatima saw a side of Baba she had never seen before. He would often be harsh with her when she wasn’t getting a technique right. His severity while teaching didn’t bother her though. She had been through much worse. If this would be the way she would finally attain peace, so be it.

  Inwardly, Fatima’s determination and progress quite pleased Baba. Yet, he wasn’t about to show her that. No one became an expert swordsman by being coddled, he thought.

  At the end of three weeks, Fatima had made remarkable progress. However, Baba felt that Fatima was still no match for the Captain and his man. He decided to sit down with Fatima and formulate a plan.

  “You do realize that you are still no match for two men who have killed more men than you or I will ever know?”

  “Why don’t you just say what’s on your mind, Baba?” she replied sarcastically.

  “As intelligent as you are my dear child, you don’t know everything. I’m being quite serious. Your skills have improved, and I have no doubt you could hold your own. But no doubt, the Captain has seen most of what’s in the arsenal I have provided you with. Although I still have more to teach you, you must be as prepared mentally as well as physically. You’re no killer Fatima.”

  “I am no weakling either. I will do what I have to do, as I have always done.”

  “There is also the matter of the Captain’s man. We’ll need to dispose of him, quickly.”

  “I will dispose of him. You will not be involved. In the preparation of this deed, you have been invaluable, and for that I will be forever grateful. In the actual fulfillment of it, I must act alone.”

  She looked Baba right in the eye with such a fixed determined look that Baba had no words. He said nothing because he was just as resolute as Fatima at one time, and when someone is that resolute there is nothing to be said or done.


  “How do you propose to do that? he asked.

  “Directly. Like I do everything else. No one would expect me to be armed much less ready to strike. I’ll strike him down before he has a chance to utter a word.”

  “And he’ll just be waiting for you to kill him? A man like that will be utterly defenseless?” he asked incredulously.

  “You’re not the only who knows how to get information. Let’s just say that he has certain `deliveries’ made at certain hours. He’ll just have a new delivery girl for the night.”

  “Just kill him before you make the actual `delivery.’ Understand?”

  “Of course.”

  With that, Fatima went home. Once she was gone, Baba sat in deep thought. His thoughts were interrupted by Noor.

  She sat down where Fatima was, and just stared at Baba.

  When Baba noticed her thoughtful expression, he was a bit alarmed.

  “What is it my love?”

  “There are many aspects of this situation that have been troubling me. Yet, what is troubling me most is your involvement, Kassim. You’ve given all of this up, and yet you’re helping this girl enter a world she has no business being in.”

  “It is a noble act in a life full of ignoble acts,” he said.

  ‘How so?”

  “Helping another find peace is always a noble act. In any case, she’ll die if she does this alone.”

  “Taking the life of another will lead to inner peace? From what I have seen it leads in the opposite direction,” Noor said.

  “Do you think either one of us can change her mind?” Baba said.

  “No. As much as I disagree, I think I understand why she needs to do this. But the girl is no killer. I wonder if this will hurt her more than help her.”

  “Who better to pick up the pieces if that is the case?”

  “Will you give her that?” she asked as her eyes went to the sword room.

  “Of course,” he responded.

  Noor lowered her eyes and left the room. She said no more to him about it.

  Fatima, meanwhile was making arrangements that Baba wasn’t even aware of. Not that she was deliberately keeping things from him. In fact, many of her actions were not deliberate during this time. She kept making her plans spontaneously, and it’s rather difficult to explain to someone else what you’re doing when you’re not so sure yourself.

  At the same time also, she had to keep all her plans regarding Mustapha and Cassim secret from Haroun and Ali, which was a task within itself, since neither one was dimwitted. They didn’t quite approve of her learning swordplay from Baba, but they knew once Fatima had her mind set on something, she would not waver.

  Despite all this, Fatima did quite well in her preparations. She quietly surveyed the inn where Mustapha and Cassim were staying. She knew when they came and went and what their habits were. From there, she mapped out several different escape routes in case something unexpected happened and she would have to abort her plan, which was the last thing she wanted to do. She had never left anything incomplete in her life, and she wasn’t going to start with this most unpleasant of tasks. Yet, she was no killer. In fact, she often wondered if she were no better than these callous men she felt a calling to avenge herself upon.

  This thought did not trouble her enough to stop her, however. She did not even confide this thought to Baba, lest he might try to dissuade her again. When she saw him, she was committed to learning everything about swordplay he could possibly teach.

  Although, she learned very quickly, Baba still feared for her. There simply wasn’t enough time to prepare her to battle men like Mustapha and Cassim. He kept his fears to himself so as not to shake her confidence. Men who possessed little skill and wit but possessed great confidence ruled kingdoms. It wasn’t beyond impossible for Fatima to vanquish her enemies with her wealth of talents.

  On the evening before Fatima’s life-altering mission, Baba gave her yet another tool to aid her in victory. He took her to the sword room. Although she had seen it before, she couldn’t help but be impressed by the magnificence of it. He led her to a tapestry on the wall and stopped in front of it. He lifted the tapestry to reveal a hidden door. He pushed the door open to reveal a sword that was mounted on a pillar. Everything in the room was black except the blade of the sword which shined a brilliant blue. She had never seen anything like it. For once, she was speechless.

  Baba broke the silence. “This sword will glow to light your way in the darkness, but, if your cause is righteous, it will guide you to victory. It stopped guiding me long ago. This sword helped me see the error in my actions. I give it to you now.”

  “Thank you, Baba,” was all she could say.

  The next night, she excused herself from Haroun and Ali saying she was tired and would like to retire early for the evening. She quickly dressed herself in fancy clothes. Fatima was a woman who wanted to be prized for her intellect and not her beauty so she did not often accentuate this aspect of her person; yet when she did, she could be quite stunning.

  Her bedroom window overlooked the courtyard and was a short distance down. She jumped from her window to her waiting horse without noise. For a moment, she felt a pang of guilt because she knew that Haroun and Ali suspected nothing because they trusted her. She swore to herself that this would be the first and last time she would abuse their trust.

  She rode towards the inn toward her first target, Cassim. He opened the door. He gazed at her for a moment, and said, “You’re not the regular girl, but from what I can see, you’re probably better.”

  She removed her veil.

  “You are better.” he said, with a coy smirk.

  “Wine?” she asked. Fatima gathered from the courtesan that she bribed to take the night off that he liked to have his wine before the act. As she poured the wine, she slipped in a mysterious powder that she obtained from the local apothecary. This mysterious powder wiped the events of the previous day from memory.

  He emptied the wine in one gulp. He pulled her to him. Before he could get his other arm around her, he fell to the floor. Fatima decided she didn’t want to waste her time or energy spilling the blood of an insignificant lackey. Although she had no doubt that he was a scoundrel who in all likelihood spilled a significant amount of blood himself, who was she to be his judge and executioner? The taking of one life is enough for her, she rationalized.

  Still unveiled, she knocked on the Captain’s door. He opened the door slowly. When he saw her, he relaxed a bit. He gazed at her, and assuming that she was there for Cassim, told her that the door she was looking for was down the hall. While gazing at her, he decided that this alluring mistake would be Cassim’s loss and his gain for the evening. He invited her in.

  Before he could get close to her, she drew her sword. Cautiously, he asked her if this was some sort of game she was playing. She told him to look in her eyes and decide if it looked like she’s playing some sort of game.

  He quickly grabbed his sword. They both stood facing each other, swords in hand.

  “Foolish girl! You had me unarmed! You could have disposed of me easily if that’s what you wanted,” he said mockingly.

  “Because I wanted you to know why I was killing you,” she replied coolly.

  “Oh let me guess. I killed your brother… father? Something like that?”

  “My father. In Cairo, ten years ago. I was there. I saw you.”

  This caught him off guard. He never left survivors. How had she escaped him?

  “My father made me hide in an empty oil barrel. You never saw me, but I saw you.”

  “Which has been the curse of your life, I would imagine. Now, it will be the end of it.”

  He attacked first. They circled around the room. The girl’s skill surprised him. He expected to make light work of her quickly. He knocked her down. She in turn knocked over what was left of the candles in the room. The room went black. She quickly jumped up. The sword illuminated the room for her with the gorgeous blue hue. The Captain was
again taken aback.

  Then, the sword seemed to take on a life of its own. Fatima still wielded it, but it seemed to decide how it would move. Then finally, Fatima, or the sword rather knocked the Captain’s sword out of his hand. She had him where she wanted him. However in that instant, she no

  longer wanted to kill him because, as she had known all along, she was no killer. She was no saint, either. She slashed both sides of his face, scarring him the way he had her. She started to walk away, but infuriated, he grabbed his sword and lunged at her. She turned around and stabbed him through the heart without a word. His remorseless insolence deserved a silent death.

  She knew the Caliph’s guard would be arriving any moment now. She quietly slipped through the door that connected the Captain’s room to Cassim’s. Surprisingly or actually not surprisingly considering this most magical of swords, none of the Captain’s blood remained on the sword. She quickly put her veil back on and slipped out of Cassim’s door just as the Caliph’s guards burst in the Captain’s.

  Fatima arrived home without further incident. It amazed even her that she managed to make herself invisible for most of the evening. She slipped into the inn with no one seeing her, and she slipped out without being seen. She was also amazed by her coolness in the whole situation. She imagined that these were skills every astute criminal should have. Yet, she was not a criminal, (although she attempted to be one), nor would she allow herself to become one.

  In the days that followed, word quickly spread of the merchant who was found dead at the traveler’s inn. It was quite a mystery as to who this man was at first. No family claimed him for burial. So, he was buried within three days in Baghdad. When his personal effects were cleared from the room at the inn by the Caliph’s guard, they found the translated documents and questioned Cassim.

  Cassim, not being very cunning confessed the ill-gotten means through which he and the Captain obtained the treasure map. Upon his confession, Cassim was hung, and it was then concluded that the “merchant” probably got what he deserved from someone he had wronged. The Caliph’s Guard had better things to do than concern themselves with a murderous thief, and they let the matter drop.