[The Present]

Bhallar stared at himself in the mirror; to him, he looked nothing like any of the bounty hunters he had met since he had set out in search of Mayeen.

The physician couldn't deny that after having a long bath and an overdue shave, he looked and felt much better than he had when he had walked into his friend's home. Dressed in a brand new set of limestone white, Bhallar wondered how he would care for the gorgeous robes Almat had made him wear. 

"Did you fall in love with yourself, my friend?" Almat's voice broke through his reprieve.

Bhallar chuckled mirthlessly, "That will be the day, isn't it?" He threw a look over his shoulder, "By the way, what about the weapons?"

"Ah, yes. The weapons." The latter wondered aloud like he had forgotten about them altogether. "Since I am a man of peace, I have none here. We would have to make a trip to South Qulsairis to acquire them."

The truth was that many fine establishments sold weapons Bhallar was referring to; unfortunately, Almat knew they would hinder more than help his friend, who was not built to wield heavy weapons. Thus, the architect had asked around and found a blacksmith who made custom weapons. The said man was known for his craftsmanship and discretion.

Upon arriving in South Qulsairis alone, Bhallar, who had stubbornly refused to bother Almat any more than he already had, didn't have trouble finding 'Hondo's Weapons' that his friend had directed him to.

"You are lucky, young man. I just happen to have what you are looking for!" Hondo, the master craftsman, exclaimed as if not Bhallar, but he was the lucky one and disappeared into an adjacent room.

He returned a few minutes later with his hands full of items Bhallar had never seen at such close range. "There you go, my man," he said, dumping the haul on the platform in front of the physician.

Bhallar started picking up the weapons: a short dagger, a long dagger, a bow, about twenty arrows neatly held in a quiver, and a khopesh, one at a time, and checked them for balance and sharpness, before stopping at what he assumed was a chest guard. Perplexed, he hesitated for a few heartbeats running his fingers over the cold metal.

"So, is it to your liking?" The blacksmith asked. Obviously, he had failed to notice the physician's discomfort.

"They are wonderful. In fact, just what I was looking for, but-" Bhallar pointed at the chest guard and enquired, "Is this a manufacturing defect?"

The blacksmith threw his head back and laughed before going silent. He stared at his prospective customer and placed his large, calloused palm on the marble platform. "Are you implying that Hondo made a defective piece?"

Bhallar gulped. "Mistakes happen."

"What did you say!?"

Realizing that he had made a (humongous) blunder because of his filter-less mouth, Bhallar shook his head. "I didn't mean to hurt your feelings."

"Feelings!? Do you take me for a woman?"

"Well, according to science, both men and women-"

"Shut up and get out! Hondo refuses to sell you his magnificent gear."

'Clearly, the man is hurt.' Bhallar's mind supplied. 'Maybe I should have let Almat tag along.' The physician thought exasperatedly.

"Good sir, I am sorry. I didn't mean to offend you. You see, I am new to this bounty hunter business. I am not even worthy of wielding these fine weapons."

The praise worked. Hondo calmed down a smidgen. "Yes, these are my best works." The man gazed at the weapons as one would at the fruit of their loins, then glanced back at Bhallar, "Is the prize on the runaway concubine's head the reason you are thinking of becoming a bounty hunter?"

Bhallar kept mum.

"Listen to me, son, every hunter in the new kingdom is behind the prize. I am afraid you won't cut it in the trade. Just stick to what you are good at, alright?"

Bhallar's eyes watered. "I know I don't stand a chance, but I have to try. I have my reasons."

"What kind of a man sheds tears, hum? Stop it!" Hondo huffed, "Fine, you can have them." he stated, sounding put-upon, and gesturing Bhallar to come closer, he demanded, "What do you intend to do when you catch her?"

"Turn her in, I suppose." Bhallar lied.

"I heard that she is a beauty."

"Is that so?"

"You look like a decent young man. If Hondo is correct, you will not do her dirt."

The implications of Hondo's words disgusted Bhallar, "Trust me, good sir, I will treat her as I would my sister."
The metalworker hummed. Then pulling Bhallar by his collar, he whispered in the physician's ear, "Don't ask Hondo how he knows, but the girl might have headed towards Ra's Temple."

"Thank...thank you..." Bhallar's eyes went from pebbles to saucers, "I... I don't know how-"

"Hondo doesn't need your gratitude. All he asks is don't make too much of a fool of yourself while wielding them. Hondo has a reputation to keep. And if you do manage to catch her, remember to show off these beauties." The blacksmith said, pointing at his creations proudly.

Promising not to disgrace Hondo's merchandise Bhallar nodded vigorously and left South Qulsairis with everything he needed to start his life as a not-so-fierce-looking bounty hunter.

The physician had not even taken his first steps towards a local sweet stall when Zor, chewing on god-knows-what, made himself home on the dry ground with determination.

Bhallar knew that look. His companion was done for the day. Not wanting to incur the animal's wrath, the physician decided to hand it over to the rent-a-camel, 'The south Qulsairis' branch, located a few meters away. After hiring a healthy camel and purchasing a pouch full of Violet Genoises, he began his journey to find Mayeen.

Lucky for Bhallar, in addition to being (an exceptionally) good physician, he was excellent at depicting directions.
All he needed was to look at a map once, to memorize the routes. Added to this was the fact that the new kingdom was very organized: the streets and blocks were labeled, and every outpost announced weather details, issuing warnings as and when required; markers were placed on roads every two miles, keeping travelers informed about how far they had traveled had how much further they still had to go to reach their destination. There were even shelters for rest and rejuvenation littered across the land.

It was another matter that everything was falling apart due to less to no maintenance. Thanks to Tutuamen, who didn't seem to know or care about his people or kingdom.

Bhallar prayed to the sun God, who his father had once said, was the true protector of the New Kingdom. It was believed that River Aari, the only source of fresh water in the whole of the New Kingdom, had ascended on it when God Ra, not being able to see the people suffer, had burned a hole into the Earth, compelling it to come forth. The path it took before flowing back into the depths from where it had originated and renewed itself was laid by the sun God, at least, that's what was believed by the citizens of the New Kingdom. 

Some said that every Pharaoh after the new kingdom's birth had to seek Ra's blessing before taking the throne, and failure to do so would invite the almighty God's wrath.

No one had seen Tutuamen bow at Ra's temple before taking the throne, and none had seen him do it since.

As Bhallar neared the halfway point to Ra's temple, he wondered who all the old man Hondo might have disclosed the information to? He shielded his eyes from Ra's harsh rays and gazed at the glittering stream of water meandering ahead.

He didn't need to look at the map tucked in his waist belt to know that the path he had chosen to reach his destination would not be easy, but that was a risk Bhallar had to take if he wanted to avoid unnecessary encounters. However, that was not all.

Since leaving South Qulsairis, he had been feeling restless. Both Mayeen and him had, on multiple occasions, accompanied their father to the temple Hondo had mentioned.

The place was significant to Bhallar's family in more ways than one. Every time they had visited the temple, their father had taken the route that he was planning to take now. The only problem was that he wasn't sure if the bridge that led them directly inside the womb of the temple where the family sought blessings long ago was still in one piece. Nonetheless, his gut told him that if Mayeen was headed this way, she would more likely take this route despite its gruesome terrain and uncertain state.

Unmounting from his camel, the physician took a deep breath. He whispered another plea to the protector deity of his family, who was none other than the almighty Ra, to help him find his sister. Then, diverting from the trodden path, he disappeared into the hidden underground tunnel that no one except three living souls knew about. Well, at least that's what Bhallar thought at the time. 

[Chapter word count: 1554;
Word count so far: 15689]