บท 48: A Myriad of Sensations

Chang and Jian rode into the bustling city main street lined with shop stalls, selling everything from apples to sterling silver jewelry and everything in between.

The shopkeepers called out for people to check their wares with passionate voices in languages Chang could not understand, but she could understand the body language as they hawked their wares. People milled through the walkways of the bazaar dressed in bright colors. The whole atmosphere was abuzz with liveliness and vitality.

Most of the men and women she saw in the market wore something on their head, either caps, turbans, or shawls like Chang had, though some did not, it seemed to be at their discretion, but most chose to.

Sitting on the horse, though, almost all eyes were drawn to them, and Chang was glad to have something to help hide her face. It was embarrassing having so many people stare at her.

The market stalls continued for quite a ways before they came to a giant open area where people gathered dancing to the music, and several musicians played on the side. The women in their bright clothing looked like flowers as their skirts and long tunics would whirl around them as they spun in their dance.

Chang would have loved to stop and watch the intricate movements as people wove in and out of a circle that twisted and inverted on itself with the dance, but Jian kept leading them on skirting the dancers, so as not to interrupt the festivities. As they passed by a few folks who were closest to them lightly bowed their heads saying a few words as they did.

"Selamlar effendi."

"Privet gospodin."

"Tahiat tayiba."

After they passed through the open area they continued down a dirt road lined with houses that grew smaller and more simple as they continued along.

"Jian."

Jian slowed down his horse to walk side by side with hers as they had passed the most crowded area already.

"Yes?"

"What were those people saying to you?"

"They were just greeting us."

"But there was so many different ways they said that."

"There are three main languages spoke. in the Republic of Lahat; Arabic, Russian, and Turkish as well as several others."

"So many, why is that?"

"Its mostly because of the area in which it is located. There were many wars going on in the surrounding area and neighboring countries when my grandfather established the Republic of Lahat.

"People immigrated here from many different countries looking for a chance for peace, when there was none to be found. It helps the climate and area makes agriculture very sustainable, as well as fishing from the sea we border. As there is plenty of food in this area, as well as Lahat's neutralism, it has drawn people to come in droves, creating a melting pot of different cultures here."

Chang was astonished hearing that, she had no idea that the country had such a rich background.

"How did your grandfather create Lahat?"

"It started with an inheritance of land passed down for generations.

"My Jid was the youngest of five brothers and as such was given what was considered the least desirable piece of land when his generation came to inherit the land trust. A long swathe of dried badlands and deserted area to the south east of here, that was considered completely inhabitable and worthless to his older brothers.

"Jid refused to give up like that and was determined to find the value, he refused to believe that his ancestors would pass on something deemed "useless." How right he was." Smiling crookedly the woman beside him, he watched her face glow as she watched him intently.

"He explored his land everyday, surveying it, learning about it every day, looking for its value. As he walked along the area he literally stumbled into the thing that changed his life, and created Lahat as we know it."

Back in the palace hospital, Li Hua Dumont underwent a series of tests. The hospital sat outside the west wing, in a separate building, directly opposite from where Chang stayed. The building lay hidden in a garden, nestled with the greenery one would not know it was there unless there was foreknowledge or had ample time to explore.

After taking several blood samples under the watch of Hao Jin Ying and Hakim al-Hasssan, the doctors injected a tracer into the woman's bloodstream. After around 20 minutes they lay Li Hua on the long cushioned table of the advanced MRI machine and slowly inserted her in.