Nasir smiled at the question, “Aye, from the look of you, it’s been a long time since your last one.”
Maarika smiled, “A bath with water is an unaffordable luxury amongst my people. It is true what they say about you Romans, rich beyond imagination.”
Nasir chuckled, “So it would seem.”
He led her inside the structure. The first room had nine cots in it belonging to Nasir’s men. They cots lined the stone walls five on one side, and four on the other. Underneath each cot was the worldly possessions of the bed’s owner. Each cot had a gray woolen blanket neatly folded at the foot. Several of the blankets were threadbare and had holes in them.
The next chamber held Nasir’s bed, a chest, and a desk with a chair. The bed had a simple white linen straw-filled mattress, a red colored blanket with yellow trim, and several cushions. Several wax tablets were scattered haphazardly across the desk. The chair, while of a simple design, was made from Oak.
No Oak tree grew within a thousand miles of this location which made it an expensive addition to the room. The sound of bubbling water could be faintly heard coming from the space beyond. Nasir lit a lamp and then led Maarika into the next room.
The next chamber was a natural cavern. In the center of it was a small pool of water. At the far side of the basin, the water seemed to bubble up from a crack and flow into the natural bowl of the pool. The pool then emptied into a small crevice that flowed off into the darkness in a downhill direction.
Nasir gestured at the pool, “You can wash in the pool and clean the stink out of your dress too.” Without waiting for a response, he turned and left the room. As he did so, he gently shut the wooden door behind him and walked out of the building.
Nasir wandered around camp until he came upon the cook, “Oshnar, slaughter one of the goats for tonight’s dinner. I want to show our new guest a good time.”
Oshnar nodded, “Yes boss.” The other men let out lustful sounding laughter.
Tajvar in a teasing tone said, “You know she is our slave. You do not have to court her.”
Nasir smiled, “True, but it’s much more satisfying to plow a soft field that willing yields to your efforts than it is to plow one that is hardened and rocky.”
All of the men within earshot laughed at this. Nashir headed back inside and went to his room. The door to the spring room and the rest of the cavern was still closed, Good I hope she takes a good long time to get all of that grime off of her. I hate filthiness.
He approached his bed and pulled up the mattress. He rummaged through his possession for a few moments and located what he was looking for, a bottle of wine. He blew the dust off of the bottle and set it off to the side of the closed door to the spring room.
Nasir then laid down on his bed and shut his eyes. Falling asleep he was awoken when Maarika opened the door. As she made her way across the dim room with the lantern that Nasir had lent her, the sounds of her wet feet made slapping noises on the stone floor. She did not notice Nasir lying in bed and was startled when he spoke.
“Much better.”
Nasir stood up and walked over to her. He took the lantern from her hand and held it up as he walked around her and inspected, “You no longer smell like goats and camels.” he said smiling.
Maarika grinned back at him, “Thank you, Lord, for the wondrous treat. That is more water than I have ever seen in my life. Is it common in the Empire to bathe in this way?”
Nashir nodded, “Yes, in the larger cities, we have entire buildings dedicated to holding water to clean yourself. These structures are called bathhouses. Some of the larger pools hold a hundred times the water that my little pond holds.”
Maarika gasped at Nashir in shock, “I cannot even imagine what so much water would look like.”
Nasir looked down into her deep black eyes and smiled, “Care to join me for dinner?” He held out his arm to her as he finished the question. A man could get lost forever in those eyes. He thought.
Maarika smiled again, “Yes! I haven’t eaten in days. Not since…” Her voice trailed off as she thought about the horrors that befell her tribe. Then she started weeping.
Nasir stopped turned and looked down at her, “Its ok, you are safe here.” He then wrapped his arms around her in a comforting embrace as she sobbed into his shoulder.
Nasir held her until he felt her calm, “Come let’s eat.” Maarika smiled, and they walked out of the building. As soon as they stepped outside, the amazing smell of goat meat sizzling on a spit washed over them. Both Nasir and Maarika’s mouths started watering at the delightful odor.
Nasir paused and snapped his fingers remembering, “Wait a moment I’ll be right back.”
He went back to his room, grabbed the bottle of wine, and two goblets and headed back outside. As he emerged back into the open-air, he held the bottle up, “Can’t have an excellent meal without something sweet to drink.”
The two walked over to the fire pit. Oshnar greeted the pair with a smile. He was missing several of his teeth. Nasir led Maarika over to the cliff face on the other side of the fire pit. There was a large stone that jutted out of the cliff. Nasir sat down on the rock and pointed to the other half. Maarika got the hint and sat down beside him.
Oshnar brought over two plates. Each plate had some green vegetables that had been grown in the border post’s garden. On top of the bed of vegetables consisting of green beans, carrots, radishes, and cucumbers were several choice pieces of goat meat.
Maarika squealed in delight, “I have never had such a feast before. I’m almost glad that bastard Waqi sold me into slavery. He was probably angry I refused to lay with him. You’ve been so nice to me today.”
Oshnar looked at Nasir and winked, “Don’t forget about your wine boss.”
Nasir thumped himself on the head with his hand, “Of course.” He then took out the two goblets, placed one in Maarika’s hand, and set the other on the rock where he had just been sitting. He took out the bottle, removed the cork, and filled each of their goblets.
“To new possibilities.” They tapped the two goblets together and took a sip.
Maarika’s face lit up, “This is amazingly good!”
Nasir smiled, “I’m glad you like it. It’s from a region of the Empire called Cappadocia. The wines from that region are unusually sweet and flavorful.”
The two of them ate and enjoyed their meal. Maarika spoke of her time growing up in Arabia with her tribe, and Nasir talked about growing up in Arabia Province and the circumstances that led him to join the army. They were of the same people, but two very different worlds. As the evening progressed, Maarika rested her head on Nasir’s shoulder, and he put his arm around her. Finally, Maarika stood grasped Nasir’s hand, and led him toward his room.
When they arrived at the chamber, Nasir closed and barred the door, so that they would not be disturbed. He then retrieved another bottle of wine. They toasted their new found friendship, fell into the bed in each other’s arms, and made their connection much deeper. Nasir awoke in the middle of the night to screams and dull thumping on the door. He thought about telling them to go away but the alcohol he’d drank prevented his tongue from properly working. Giving up, he let oblivion reclaim him.
Nasir awoke to the sound of Maarika splashing in the water of the spring pool. She had left the door open between the two chambers. He got up and walked into the spring room. Maarika was floating in the pool with a smile on her face.
“Good morning,” said Nasir.
Maarika looked up at him and smiled, “Good morning. Do you think I’ll ever get used to this much water?”
“Wait until you see the sea.” said Nasir.