His Queen

Chapter 1

HUMAIR’S POV

“Your majesty, please I come seeking your help” chief Shihab said to me, he looked like he was in great distress, he was a chief in one the towns under the protection of Atrabad,

“And for what reason do you require the help of Atrabad?” I asked him

He bowed slowly and said “A woman from Marwa was murdered by someone in our town but we do not know who, the queen of Marwa demanded the culprit be brought to justice or face the consequences”

“So what do you want me to do for you then? You have accepted that the crime was committed by a subject of yours and you are unable to bring him or her to justice, that is incompetence on your part chief Shihab” I said,

The chief paled and said “I am sorry your Majesty, I am trying my possible best to find the culprit but the queen of Marwa is not a patient woman, she will go to war for a case as minor as this”

I chuckled “A case as minor as this you say, a life was lost and you say it’s a minor case, just how little do you value the life of subjects I wonder” I said,

Chief Shihab quickly bowed again “I seek your forgiveness your Majesty, I spoke without thinking” he said,

“I will ask her to give you more time to produce the culprit, that’s the best I can offer you and you must produce the  culprit within the next seven days or you also have me to answer to” I said calmly,

Chief Shihab bowed once again and said “I thank you for your kindness your Majesty”

“You may leave and I expect to hear from you soon” I said to the chief

He bowed once and left the throne room.

“Who is this Queen of Marwa?” I Said to Nihal who was standing by side

“The Queen of Marwa is called Banafsha daughter Of Ruwayf, she is known as the warrior queen, she personally leads her soldiers to battle, she takes over small towns like that of chief Shihab and subjugates them, her soldiers are said to be greatly skilled, she was given the name “Ifza” by her people, which means protective angel, her father was a great king before he died, some say he was murdered, the story has many versions, and it is said that her face is always veiled, only those closest to her have ever seen her face” Nihal said

I nodded thoughtfully, she sounded like an interesting woman “so why do you think she keeps her face covered?” I said

Nihal turned to look at me “Of all what I just told you, that’s the part you find most puzzling your Majesty?” he said

I shrugged “What else should I find puzzling then?” I asked him

“Doesn’t the fact that a queen leads her soldiers to war sound a little puzzling your Majesty?” Nihal said, he was looking at me closely,

Once again I shrugged “What she does is not my problem” I said

Nihal chuckled and said “And yet, you seem bothered by the fact that she keeps her face hidden your Majesty”

I chuckled “You can’t fault me general, it’s just natural to be curious, tell me you are not also curious” I said,

Nihal chuckled and said “I never said I wasn’t curious, I find it very odd that she chooses to keep her face hidden, perhaps she has a scar or perhaps she may not be a beauty”

“I think that’s very possible, no beautiful woman will keep her face hidden and also fight battles, so I agree with you completely” I said

Nihal chuckled and said “So what do you intend to do about chief Shihab?”

“Exactly what I said I will do, I will send her a messenger asking that she gives them more time to produce the culprit” I said,

“And if she refuses?” Nihal said

“Let’s hope she agrees to my request” I Said

Nihal smiled “Something tells me she won’t take things as easy you want, as chief Shihab had, she is a woman of little patience and great pride, she will not agree to your request as easily you may hope” he said,

I chuckled and said “Then we prepare ourselves whatever comes our way, for now summon the messenger”

“Yes your Majesty” Nihal said and walked out of the room.

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BANAFSHA’S POV

“……… I request that you give the chief of Minna the grace of seven more days to find the murderer and then if he fails to do so, other measures can be taken into consideration but I hope to make clear the fact that I will not stand by and watch if you still decide to attack Minna as they are my subjects and are under my protection.

I hope that you take kindly to my request.

King Humair of Atrabad.”

I listened as the messenger from Atrabad read his King’s letter to me and my court, I almost laughed out loud,

“What business does the king of Atrabad have to do with my affairs? This is a matter concerning Marwa and Minna, there is no need for him to interfere” I said,

I heard the murmurs from my ministers and but ignored them,

The messenger looked at me like I had lost my mind “Minna is a town under the great kingdom of Atrabad and thus under the protection of the king” he said,

“I still think the king has no right to get involved with Marwa’s affairs” I said,

“Your Majesty” Jawhar said to me,

I looked at me, he shook his head slightly, he was trying to tell me not to do what i intended to do, I was not ready to listen to him today, I had promised justice to the family of the woman who was killed and I will get it no matter what, I turned away from him and looked back to the messenger,

“Take a message to your king as well, and please tell him that I also hope he takes kindly to my request” I said,

The messenger paled even more

Under my veil, a smile played at the corners of lips as I dictated my letter to the king of Atrabad.

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BANAFSHA’S POV

The throne was now empty except for Jawhar and I, he was quiet but I could he had something to say to me, he had remained quiet throughout the meeting, the ministers had said quite a lot but he had remained quiet, even now he just stood beside quietly,

“You have something to say to me general” I said, it was more of a statement than a request, I had known him all my life and I knew his every mood,

“I can’t understand why you did what you did just now” he replied, his voice was deep but very calm, there was no judgement in his words, he was simply asking because he couldn’t understand me,

“I had promised justice to the family of the woman who was murdered, you know very that Minna are only shielding the culprit, chief Shihab feels he is untouchable because he has the protection of Atrabad, I am a queen who always honours her word and I intend to continue to do so” I said and turned to look at him,

He was looking at me intently, his dark eyes bore into mine “I understand your sentiments your Majesty but if this issue results in a war, I am sorry to tell you but we cannot win against Atrabad, their army is by far larger than ours, I am not questioning your decision but I feel this battle will not benefit us in any way, we stand to lose if we do this” he said

“We have survived up until and we will continue to survive Jawhar” I said,

He looked at me again and then he said “I hope you are right Banafsha, I wouldn’t want all we have laboured for to be in vain”

I nodded my head “I understand what you are worried about but the truth always conquers” I said,

Jawhar smiled and said “I always wish I could be more like you, you always see the good side to everything and you are always optimistic”

“I have to be, for the sake of my people, I have to believe I can always keep them safe” I said

“And you have done an excellent job keeping them safe, your parents will be proud Banafsha, you have protected Marwa as they would” Jawhar said

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