She asked him, "You've already hidden your face behind a mask. Are you going to hide your name as well? Come on now, at least tell me your name."
The masked man paused for a moment, thinking to himself, She asks too many questions... But maybe it's her beauty that's making me tolerate it.
Then he replied calmly, "You may call me Yousif."
Just as the princess was about to say something else, suddenly, one of the soldiers with her fainted. Everyone rushed over to him in concern.
Hashim spoke up, "We'll have to stop somewhere nearby. If we keep moving forward like this, someone else might faint too."
Yousif looked around and said, "But there's no place around here where we can rest safely."
Hashim nodded seriously. "Then we must quickly find one."
Meanwhile, Qasim was checking the horses. As he inspected them, he found that the bags tied to the horses were full of water. He dragged the bags over and placed them in front of the princess.
"Look at this," he said firmly. "This is the honesty of your loyal soldiers. They told us the water had run out, and yet here—so much water hidden in their bags. What were they planning to do with it?"
The princess looked at the two soldiers and asked, "Is this true?"
The two, caught red-handed, had no choice but to confess.
Qasim and Yousif then questioned them, "Where were you planning to take all this water? This journey was only supposed to take two days."
The two soldiers looked shocked. "What? You're saying it's a two-day journey? Are you crazy? It takes fifty days to complete this journey!"
Yousif replied calmly, "Well, we came here from Baghdad in just two days."
The soldiers were stunned. "Wait—you mean you took the left path on your way here?"
Yousif nodded. "Yes. We had heard that the left path is a shortcut and would save us time, so we chose it."
Even the princess was now confused. "I've read about a shortcut that leads to Baghdad in just two days. What are you all talking about? I only brought food and supplies for a two-day journey."
The soldiers nodded slowly. "Yes, that path is shorter—but you don't know its secret."
Everyone went silent.
"A secret?" someone asked. "What kind of secret?"
The soldiers revealed, "That route... is cursed. Whoever takes it never comes out alive."
Yousif, Qasim, and Hashim burst into laughter.
"Oh, you mean that group of bandits you were so afraid of?" Qasim said with a grin. "We chased them down and beat them so badly, they won't dare show up again."
Everyone laughed, except the soldiers who looked embarrassed.
The princess, still thoughtful, said, "Or maybe someone was joking with you. Perhaps the path isn't as dangerous as they say. We'll take that route. I'm not going to wander around this desert for fifty days."
The soldiers eventually agreed. The one who had fainted also regained consciousness.
Not long after resuming the journey, they spotted a small place to rest.
Yousif glanced at the setting sun and said, "The sun is about to go down. If we travel any farther, we might lose our way in the dark. It's better to stop here for the night."
"But the place is small," he added. "We'll form pairs—one pair will stay awake to guard while the other sleeps. That way, the horses and the princess will also be protected."
Everyone agreed and formed pairs.
At dawn, when the Fajr call to prayer echoed through the silence, Yousif and Qasim woke everyone up. After offering their prayers, they had breakfast on the spot and prepared to continue on the same dangerous route—one feared by many but faced with courage by them.
As they continued along the journey, the three captured soldiers—still recovering—began speaking nervously among themselves. One of them, voice trembling with guilt, finally confessed,
"I… I saved the water for Princess Maryam. I acted a lot, pretended to faint. But the truth is… I actually did faint."
The second one, who had been silent for a long while, finally looked up with haunted eyes and muttered,
"How… how will I survive that cursed path? Everyone says no one returns alive… How did I end up here?"
The third one, overwhelmed with dread, whispered almost to himself,
"Was I really meant to die here? Is this how it ends for me? And that princess… she's insane to want to take this route."
Just then, Hashim turned his head toward them, smirking sharply.
"It's written all over your faces," he mocked. "You three look like a bunch of clowns trying to act brave."
He let out a loud laugh, throwing them an intentional taunt.
On the other side of the group, Qasim walked silently, away from the chatter, his focus fixed on a letter. His eyes scanned the familiar handwriting slowly, word by word.
"I did exactly what you told me to…" — the line echoed in his mind.
Yousif, noticing Qasim's quiet gaze, nudged him.
"What are you reading, Qasim?"
Qasim quickly folded the letter and smiled faintly.
"Oh, it's nothing… it's just early morning, and I was feeling a little emotional. So, I thought of reading a letter my wife gave me back when we weren't married yet."
Yousif grinned,
"Wah, how romantic… but for now, focus on the road, Romeo."
They all continued on the ominous path, still unaware of what lay ahead. For a while, everything remained silent—too silent. About fifteen minutes passed. Suddenly, a strong gust of wind erupted across the sand. Dust and grit rose into the air like a storm, clouding their vision entirely. Nobody could see anything.
And then—it happened.
When the sand finally settled, they looked around and noticed someone was missing.
The same soldier who had fainted earlier—he was gone.
His horse was still there, tied and restless, but he had vanished.
Everyone rushed toward the horse, calling out in panic,
"Henry? Henry! Where are you?"
He was the Christian among them. But what they saw next turned their blood cold—there were bloodstains on the saddle.
Meanwhile, Hashim had separated a bit and was also searching, but before he could find anything, the wind returned, fiercer than before.
Out of nowhere, something slashed Hashim across the face. He shouted in pain as a deep scar formed instantly. In that violent blur, Qasim managed to grab hold of someone—it was hashim
He pulled him toward safety,
As Qasim tried to steady himself, another horrifying attack occurred. One of the remaining soldiers—the second one—was suddenly strangled from behind with a thick rope. The attacker tied him to his own horse and dragged him into the unknown. The soldier's life ended right there.
The third soldier was completely panicked by now. He screamed,
"I told you! I told you not to take this path! Look what's happening now!"
He broke down, crying hysterically.
"I warned you all!"
Before anyone could calm him, he too was struck on the head with brutal force. He fell to the ground as blood poured out, staining the sand. Another death.
The nightmare wasn't over.
Hashim, trying to retreat toward the group, suddenly tripped and fell. Something—or someone—grabbed his leg and started dragging him into the shadows. He struggled, kicked, and screamed, but within moments, Hashim was gone too.
Then, an attack struck Qasim's arm, leaving it deeply wounded, blood spilling from his hand. The force of the attack knocked off his mask, revealing his face in the chaos.
Yousif, trying to protect Shehzadi, was struck in the stomach. Despite the pain, he shielded her, leaping onto the horse without even looking back. With sheer instinct, they escaped the storm.
Some time later, as the winds calmed, they saw Qasim approaching, dragging himself forward. Despite his injured hand, he had managed to collect some water and brought it for them. Both Qasim and Yousif were covered in blood, barely standing, faces pale from the trauma.
Eventually, as they rode ahead, the injuries took over. The two collapsed off the horse, falling hard to the ground, unable to move. Their bodies lay still on the sand, broken and exhausted.
Princess Maryam, overwhelmed by the sight, stood frozen. She had never witnessed anything like this in her life. The fear in her heart grew louder than any wind.
Tears welled up in her eyes.
"This… this is all my fault," she whispered.
Her breathing grew shallow. The weight of guilt, fear, and horror crushed her completely.
And then—she fainted.
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Written by
Sabir Ali
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