xp_logs | It is time for the wedding!!! (Reply)

It is time for the wedding!!!

Sooraya eyed the niqaab with great distaste. Without protesting she had clothed herself in the green, heavily embroidered salwaar kameez that the two women who had been attending to her had given her after she had been allowed to see the still unconscious Leya briefly. She had also pulled on the black silk abaya that they handed her and the same went for the waist length khimar and gloves, both also made of black silk.

She turned to one of the two women, who were dressed exactly like her. Only their eyes could be seen and she had not been able to determine if it had been any of her former friends, since they had only spoken two or three words to her. "Would you mind helping me out with this?"

Without a word the woman took the cloth, draped it over Sooraya's face and securely tied it behind her head. She shook her head so the veil fell more comfortable and folded her hands before her. She turned when someone knocked on the door and Sooraya was not surprised to see Sayyid entering the room.

Sayyid looked Sooraya over before nodding in approval, "Sooraya my dear, you look perfect." He gestured to the women guarding Sooraya and held open the door. "I'm so glad you've decided to willingly come with us, this is a proud day for me, for our entire cause. If I may, would you allow me to escort you to the hall, Achmed is waiting there for us." He held up a hand o his mouth, "He is quite ecstatic today, you really are a lucky girl".

“Yes, I am very lucky.” Sooraya replied, her tone sickly sweet. Her eyes carefully took in the hallways as she followed Sayyid, wanting to be able to find her way back by herself if she had too. “What is going to happen after the ceremony?”

Sayyid looked at Sooraya in confusion, "After the wedding? We'll have a celebratory meal, and then you'll go home with your new and loving husband."

Directly after the wedding celebration… And she knew what would follow after she and Achmed were ‘home’. But before she could respond to him, they came upon the door where Achmed was waiting for her. “Achmed.” She gave him a short nod.

He had been pacing in front of the door when Sayyid walked forward with Sooraya. "Sooraya." He replied, his eyes taking her in. "You look beautiful." He looked over at Sayyid with a nod before he turned his attention back to Sooraya.

Sooraya took a deep breath. “I look like a black ghost, Achmed…” She quickly gentled her tone though, with a very faint hope she might be able to reach him. ”Is this truly the way you would choose to have me by your side? By force? Not of my own will? You know I only gave consent because I choose to save Leyu’s life.”

Achmed looked away from her. "You think your words could change my mind Sooraya, I can assure you that will not happen. You had your chance to do this the easy way, but you had to make me do this the hard way." He looked back at her. "Twice you denied me your hand. It will not happen again."

“I do…” Sooraya fell silent suddenly when she felt something strange from the collar around her neck, some kind of shock. She winced a little and for the first time she was glad for the cloth that covered most of her face. The feeling of her powers being locked away was still the same though, so she quietly continued: “I do not choose you, Achmed.” Her voice became a little louder. “You do not wish me as your wife. You only wish me as a slave and maybe a bearer of your children. Otherwise you would have respected my choice.”

Sayyid broke into the exchange between the two younger mutants, "That's just the pre-wedding nerves talking, my dear. As your Wali do you honestly think I would allow you to marry if I thought you would be little more than a slave? You shall be husband and wife under the eyes of God, with all the responsibilities to one another that entails. Surely nothing can be more important?" he asked smiling at Sooraya. "And do not forget that children are the greatest joy you could ask for, and your children shall scour the unclean from this earth paving the way for the true children of God to inherit it."

Achmed looked at Sooraya, "Do not ever assume you know what I want from you." He looked away from her and looked at Sayyid. He listened to his teacher and leader with great interest. "Yes. They will be an example to all." He was ready for this.

She let out a deep sigh. Sooraya lost the last hope that reason was going to work here. “Sayyid, can I ask you something? I have been without my mother for a long time… I haven’t been instructed in the proper duties of a wife… After the ceremony, can one of the ladies who cared for me help?” Anything to buy some time before she had to go off alone with Achmed.

Sayyid beamed at Sooraya, "Of course my dear. That is an excellent idea. It is very important to understand your duties and responsibilities; and the duties and responsibilities of your husband," He shot a warning glance at Achmed. Turning back to Sooraya he plastered a sincere smile, "I think we're ready to start, if no-one has any objections let us begin."

Achmed saw the warning glance that Sayyid gave him, though he didn't react to it. "No, let us begin." He was ready for this and he wanted it done before Sooraya continued to ask more questions.

"Very well" Sayyid smiled, "If you will both step this way we can begin the ceremony". Sayyid smiled at the not so happy couple as he walked into the room and took up his position.

As Sooraya followed Sayyid and Achmed into the room, she felt very uneasy with the eyes suddenly upon her. There were about ten men here and they were all staring at her… She kept her eyes carefully downcast and didn’t say a thing. Suddenly she stiffened a little as the collar around her neck gave her another shock, but she strove to hide it quickly from all the eyes upon her…

Sayyid raised his hands as he began the invocations of the ceremony. Finally his dream was within his grasp, Achmed and Sooraya's children would scour the world of the unbelievers leaving the world in the grasp of the worthy. He turned to Achmed as he said "I offer you this woman under my custody…".

Sooraya listened quietly to the invocations, the two men Sayyid apparently had chose at witnesses standing far too close for her comfort. Like they could grab her immediately is she tried to run… As Sayyid kept talking in Arabic, she suddenly felt another shock from the collars, stiffening once more… There was another small shock and suddenly it was as if the part of her that had been locked away when Sayyid locked the collar around her, was back again.

A small smile grew on her face under the niqaab. When Sayyid started to offer her to Achmed, she interrupted him. “I am so sorry, Sayyid, but you are offering me to no one.” With those words she dissolved into sand. It poured from her sleeves and other open parts in her clothing and she rushed forward in a cloud of sand.

She rigorously avoided any of the men, knowing that if she wasn’t quick enough Achmed could grab her and keep her into place with his control over the wind and headed directly for the ventilation shaft she had spotted.

Achmed was looked over at Sooraya as as she was gone. He was clearly shocked, otherwise he would had used his powers over the wind to keep her in place. Looking down at the ground, he picked up the collar that was around her neck. "I thought you said this would work." He looked up at Sayyid, clearly he was very upset.

Sayyid waved a hand at Achmed, "I was assured it would" he snapped at the younger man as his brow furrowed in confusion. "She left Leyu in our hand, she must have known what would happen." He turned to face Achmed, "I'm sorry my friend, I didn't mean to snapp at you, but obviously her time in America has corrupted Sooraya more that we had anticipated. I would never have thought she would stray so far from the path of destiny and honor."

His grip on the broken collar tighten. "I know, Sayyid. I am sorry for being angry towards you. We have to find her now." Turning towards the direction of where she had gone, a breeze started to pick up even if they were inside. "I will not let her get away from me again.”