Chương 16: If you win

Asana started back to reading, "My head got beat by something. It flew from a direction that I didn't notice where it was. I fainted and as I opened my eyes. I didn't move till I could have felt the sharpness of a sword on my neck.

They noticed that very fast!

A drop of blood on my face was touching my skin, rolling down along to reach my neck, tickling and caused me goosebumps. The smell of sweat teased my nose the man who poised me was a true stinker.

"Where am I?" I whispered while bearing a horrible headache.

"In my ship!"

"Pirates", I thought, and sure that I'm done to be eaten by Monster of the ocean.

There was another man who responded. He stood right across my sight. As he discovered me conscious stated, "A little bird has told me that you're a storyteller from Parthia and not even an ordinary one, but one of those who served the King of Justice for a while." His voice was dreadfully gloomy and slow with a weird and unreasonable accent. More like a nobleman rather than a pirate when he introduced me to myself in a very stupid way. As he knew my language surely was a homeboy.

My sense of humor wanted to be revealed, so I snickered and said, "I must confess that I thought of pirates before and expected them to be scarier and if I'm not wrong, we must be dead by now."

He slightly tilted his neck then approached and by waving a hand asked the man behind me to leave. He got closer and kneeled on one knee. It made me feel the coldness of his breath. He peered into my eyes with his big dark almond eyes for a moment I thought that I'm looking at the eyes of a deer and murmured, "You, the beautiful brave young lady who could pull my leg so easily, you should tell me why you got goosebumps if you aren't scared to the bone?" His eyes rolled down watching my chest, then grinned.

He was absolutely right, I was scared to hell. I didn't know where all those braveness were coming from out of a sudden. I could have died before gaining the truth about me or even end my mission. My palms were wet from sweating constantly.

I gathered myself together, laughed loudly, but not one of a normal one! "That's not because I'm frightened, that's because of disgusting you and the burning I feel from the scar on my neck."

He arched his eyebrows, passed me a simper while looking into my eyes directly shouted, "Bring her a sword." He got up and waited.

They brought a delicate sword and opened my hands. My head was still down when I heard his voice, "I've also heard that our popular narrator is a great swordswoman. If you can beat me, I'll let you and other merchants get out of my ship in the next pier. If I won, you must narrate your best story till we arrive in the east. If you reject my proposal, I'll throw all of you to the sea."

There was an obvious light in his eyes which assured me he would stick to his words and the five of us would soon be the next meal for sharks. Maunan, the cloth merchant, poked me on the arm and whispered, "That's a good deal. Please, don't reject it and don't lose."

I felt like his intention is to kill me off and he is drowning in a dreadful hatred for me wanting to fool with us. I took the sword, it was light and easy to move it around but couldn't handle strong stroke.

He tightened his long brown hair at the back of his head. I moved forward, the sword was flying easily in the air as I winded my wrist. I seized forth and he passed my first stroke just like a piece of cake.

Was it really for a story? Or he was carrying a grudge towards me, it was something that I never noticed!

He nodded and me more furious with the smirk on his face. He intended to mock, "That's not very bad, little lady." He dragged me here and there till I got exhausted.

Already my muscles got weak. Since you are angry the big impact will be on your nerves and then muscles you can't hit, so defeating the only chance till I get some luck. As long as you lose peace absurd thoughts attack like hyenas going after the flesh.

When he hit me with the last stroke of his sword, I jumped up with the help of a box nearside and passed it. He did not show any mercy. Out of a sudden, he let me attack him. I knew what he had in his mind; surely realized that I'm badly tired. He threw away my sword in a blank, twisted my wrist, and locked his arms around my neck. He was playing savage and I hated that. Then, he whispered, "I'm willing to hear your mythical stories."

All the crews were laughing, cheering to their incisive picaroon master. In the end, I became like a mad clown walking around amusing people. As he released me I looked at him carefully. If I would know him somewhere else I could swear that I was able to carry a torch for his appearance from first sight. The dark eyes, face, full lips, and heart-shaped face all made a complete pack of perfection. Although being a pirate his skin was flawless. Anyway, I didn't like bad guys.

I sat on a box which was the opposite of what I always did. Like a child who after listening to parents expected a prize, but didn't gain it.

I used to narrate my stories standing up all the time but that time. I wasn't eager enough to stand up and to tell my story willingly which made him stop me before I let the words out! He put me on the spot and asked, "Tell us more about this narrator. We have been looking forward to getting to know her."

Giving him my name and identity was the last thing I wanted to do for this weird mysterious pirate. But to save some heads on bodies I did. So, I made a face to him which brought a tilted smile on his face. And I started this way:

"My name is Asaya, a girl who experienced 23 springs of her life. I've traveled with my father since I was 15 years old. I've been narrating many stories of my own. I had learned narrating them from my grandmother before she passed away and may peace be upon her. I served the King of Justice for a whole winter. I'm going to tell you a story that you've never heard before or no one ever written. Perhaps, the pens could not tolerate the pain of this story and ink declined to bring it on paper because this story is a moaning tale of an endless failed love."

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Narrators, If you like this tale please vote to get into the ranking together and gain a mass release from me,

Peace,

Author Naz.