Chapter 15

Azul woke up to the hot noon. She stretched lazily, feeling the comfort of the silk sheets against her skin. She missed this bed so much. Ragnar had already left for a war meeting, so she had the tent to herself. Azul decided to take her time getting ready, dressing in her usual attire but without her customary jewellery. She had accumulated a lot of tonics over the last two months; however, she had no way of bringing them out, so she would solve her problems today. She stepped outside, the bright sunlight making her squint for a moment. She saw Maral playing with a group of teenagers, their laughter ringing through the air. She remembered that Maral was still a teenager herself. The other two sat by, watching and enjoying the sun. They had laid out straw mats with velvet nut shells scattered on the floor. "Alright, everyone, gather around!" she called out, clapping her hands to get their attention. The children gathered too, the Khatun had never spoken to them before so they were curious to see what she had to say."We're going to be making medical tonics for the war effort," Azul began. "I need your help to forage for herbs. It's going to be a competition. We'll split into three teams, and each team will be responsible for finding specific herbs. The winner will be given gold."The children listening shrieked in excitement. 'Does this count as child labour?' Azul wondered while watching them talk to each other. They were so peaceful, she hoped the war would not affect them negatively. She divided the group, pairing the children with the three women. "Maral's team will forage for Feverpetal, Dreamroot, and Silverleaf. Ayunn's team will search for Thornberry, Moonblossom, and Gingerroot. Yisui's team will gather Dragonscale Fern, Whisperwillow Bark, and Sunfruit." She explained before giving each team a piece of parchment with the drawings and characteristics of each fruit. The younger kids eagerly crowded around to get a look, their eyes wide with excitement. "Can we join too, Khatun?" one of them asked, bouncing on the balls of their feet."Of course, ask your mother first if you are free to roam around. If she says yes, you can pick a team to join." Azul replied with a smile. "Just remember to stay safe and stick with your team leaders."With the teams ready and the herb drawings distributed, Azul sent them off on their foraging mission. She watched as the teens scattered to gather baskets from their homes and as their mothers came out with confused looks on their faces. Their kids, who would always goof off, suddenly want to forage for herbs? Azul enjoyed seeing them all lively and healthy, after seeing them off she requested help from the servants under Ragnar. "I need your help with firewood and a large metal pot. We'll set up a station here to brew the medical tonics."The servants nodded and quickly set to work, gathering the necessary supplies. Azul supervised, ensuring everything was in place. Soon, a large metal pot was set up over a sturdy fire pit, and the firewood was stacked neatly nearby. She planned to make a good stack of medicines and sedatives. She would save the poison for the women, since they needed it more. She planned to boil down the poison till she could coat a concentrated layer on a metal hairpin; at least it should be a good self-defence tool for them if the tribe ever got raided. ·͙⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙General Varok explained the situation to Ragnar in the meeting tent. Jeder had finally set off with his army, and their own soldiers needed to depart soon. The sooner they reached the encampment site and met up with the other Khans, the better."Has Khan Orin departed?" Ragnar asked."Yes, Khan. He has set off with his troops. They will be receiving the food delivery from the Khatans," General Varok replied.Ragnar nodded, falling deep in thought. How many men would he leave with the tribe? If there were no men here, others might see this as an opportunity and raid."Khan, may I suggest we move the women and children to the Khatans? They are a permanent settlement and will not be lacking food. They will be safe under the new Khan while we head off with the men," General Thane suggested."That might be the best way," Ragnar muttered.The sound of children laughing drifted through the barracks, confusing the Khan."Why are there children here?" he asked curiously."I will go and check!" General Thane said before rushing outside. He could also smell Azul's influence and was curious as to what she was doing now.Walking out, he was met with a beautiful woman. Her brown locs adorned with gold trinkets, her body voluptuous, and her smile breathtaking. She held a basket in her hands, which were equally as beautiful, her wrists adorned with beads and her fingers with gold rings. She looked like a goddess to him."General," she said, bowing slightly."Princess Ayunn," he stuttered, bowing too with a fierce blush on his face.Seeing him be so rigid, she laughed. "I'm sorry for the children's disturbance, General. We are just collecting herbs from the grass fields.""Ah—is this for the Khatun?" he asked."Yes, General. She wants to make medical tonics for the soldiers."General Thane had heard about how Azul saved the Great Khan in the Kuraltai tribe, but this was the first time seeing her make medicines."I see. Carry on then." He said clearing his throat. "Thank you, General."General Thane stiffly walked back into the war tent."What is it?" General Varok asked, seeing his strange manner of walking and his red face."I think I just saw an angel," he said under his breath.Ragnar tried not to laugh. "Why are the kids here? Are they being mischievous?""Oh! My apologies, Khan. The Khatun has sent them to collect herbs, so they are passing by."Ragnar nodded; his mood was pretty good right now, so he had no plans of teasing Thane. "Alright, give them some food later. It's good that they obey the Khatun."General Varok looked at the two men, shaking his head with a chuckle. "Seems like women will be the end of us all," he muttered, amused by their smitten expressions.·͙⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙"Khatun! Khatun!"The children called, running back to camp with their baskets full of herbs.Hearing her name, Azul emerged from the tent to see the group of children returning, their faces flushed with excitement."Let's see what you've gathered," she said with a warm smile. "Group leaders please count the herbs, let's see who gathered the most."The children eagerly placed their baskets down and began sorting through their collections. After a few minutes, the ladies tallied the results."Maral's group is the winner!" Azul announced.Maral jumped up, her excitement evident. "Yes! We did it!"Azul laughed at her childish reaction. "Well done, Maral's team. You've done an excellent job."The children cheered, their spirits high. Azul handed a bag of coins to Maral to distribute. Azul raised her hand for silence and they quickly quieted down."The Khan has sent food for you all as a reward, so everyone gets some food." she announced. The children erupted in cheers, their earlier exertions forgotten in the face of the promised feast.As the children scampered off to eat, Azul turned to Maral, Ayunn, and Yisui. "Let's prepare the herbs. We need to get started on these tonics."The three women nodded, gathering the herbs and beginning the careful process of cleaning and preparing them. Azul filled a large metal pot with water and placed it over the fire they had set up earlier, watching as the flames heat the bottom of the pot."Thank you for your help," she said to the three women. "This will make a big difference for our soldiers.""We are happy to assist, Khatun," Ayunn replied, her hands deftly sorting through the Feverpetal.Azul took this opportunity to talk the women through what she was doing; she knew they would return to their tribes soon and she wanted to leave them with the knowledge to at least put them in a better position when they got back.Azul put the Silverleaf and Dragonscale Fern to boil. It had a basic antibiotic effect that would at least save people from death by infection. That was the most important thing to make first. After making the concoction and closing the lid of the pot she turned to the ladies sitting with them on the straw mat."Have some velvet fruit, Khatun," Ayunn said, feeding Azul a peeled velvet fruit."Thank you, Ayunn." She licked it and spat out the seeds. Yisui took up a straw fan to fan herself. "I just wanted to tell you all about the incense we used on the mission."The three listened intently."I don't expect you to need this, but what we used was a sedative made from Dreamroot and Whisperwillow Bark. Dry out the herbs and crush them to burn. It has a sickly sweet smell and you need to be careful how much you use. If you use too much, they will never wake up." She took up the two herbs to make sure they knew what she was talking about. "When we killed the Khatan's Khan, I made sure you all consumed a tonic that has an opposing effect and was made from Moonblossom and Sunfruit... It's an aphrodisiac."Maral spat out her velvet fruit in shock, her face bright red.Ayunn coughed, reminding her to watch her composure. "Khatun, where did you get so much knowledge?" she asked with a trembling voice, trying not to laugh."My mother was a healer; I read some of her journals," Azul lied through her teeth. "I am only teaching you now because I want you all to have options when you go back to your tribe. I will be making some poisoned hairpins tonight. You should make some with me."The three felt touched that she was worried about them. Yisui especially felt Azul's actions were a lot for a slave. She kept her feelings in her heart.The fire crackled as the pot continued to boil. Azul observed the mixture, ensuring it was brewing correctly.Maral, still blushing from the earlier conversation, looked at the Dreamroot and Whisperwillow Bark. "Khatun, what about the ratio for the incense? How much of each should be used?""Use equal parts of Dreamroot and Whisperwillow Bark. A small amount, about a teaspoon each, should be enough for a room. It's crucial to test it in small quantities first," Azul explained.Ayunn, who had been carefully peeling another velvet fruit, asked, "And the antidote? How do we make sure we always have it on hand?""Keep a mixture of Moonblossom and Sunfruit dried and crushed. You can steep it in hot water to make a tonic. It's not only an antidote but also helps in situations where you need extra energy, it should last for 4 hours. If you only need it to last an hour, dilute it." Azul replied.The women nodded, absorbing the information. They wondered how the Khan would feel to know his wife could kill him with a hairpin?She had no plans of telling him that, or he would not let her sleep that night. She realised recently, his taste in women was quite strange.