Diyanah reached Boddi and they began to fight fiercely in the air—blows flashing everywhere though no one else could see them. Neither of them gained victory. Exhausted, they vanished and reappeared outside the town.

Diyanah ascended into the air and opened her mouth. Tiny poisonous scorpions flew out and attacked Boddi, biting her everywhere. She tried to disappear but couldn’t; Diyanah had trapped her.

Her greatest fear was the thought of what condition Hisham might be in—she didn’t know.

An idea came to her. Despite the immense pain of the bites, she raised her right hand and focused intensely. A black smoke burst from her eyes and traveled down her arm. Suddenly she saw Hisham chained, barely breathing in the heat of Baduuhu’s chamber.

Boduuhu had a large ritual knife beside him, the one used to slice victims from whom blood was taken. Fear gripped Boddi so violently that her heart lurched.

At that moment Diyanah shot an arrow of magic into her back, snapping her spine. Boddi squeezed her eyes shut, silently calling on Allah as tears washed her face. She collapsed.

Suspended in midair, neither rising nor falling, Diyanah burst into laughter:

“I told you—I am stronger than you. I will kill you and destroy every connection between us. I won’t let you ruin my work.”

Laughing, she disappeared.

Then she went to wake King Bahar from his uneasy sleep filled with nightmares. When he opened his eyes, he frowned, trying to recall the face he had seen in his dream, but Diyanah’s glare erased it from his mind.

She smiled, saying:

“My king, you’re sleeping while our warriors have not returned.”

Panicking, he rushed outside without even his royal cap.

Princess Diyanah smiled wickedly and said softly,

“I will drive you mad before I kill you.”

When the attendants asked him what happened, they all claimed Baduuhu had succeeded.

King Bahar sighed deeply.

“Our warriors have not returned. My heart tells me something is wrong. It seems the serpent-woman has defeated us.”

The vizier quickly organized a search party to find the hunters who had gone into the forest.

Meanwhile, Hisham regained faint consciousness. He heard a soft, pleasant breeze in the room, and a strange glow brightened the chamber. Confusion overtook him—Baduuhu’s chamber had no windows and was never opened except once a year. Even worshippers performed their rituals only from the doorway.

Before he could comprehend it, he felt the chains being loosened. Half asleep, half awake, he felt himself lifted onto a soft mattress. A gentle hand stroked his face until he drifted into peaceful sleep.

Boddi, still struggling to breathe, prayed for Allah to send someone to save her brother.

Behind her, she suddenly heard a voice she would never forget:

“Your brother is safe, Boddi. Nothing will happen to him by Allah’s will. Calm your heart. The time to untie this knot is near, and Diyanah’s end is close.”

Despite her pain, Boddi turned and saw an old woman in white.

She cried,

“Mama, why did you leave me? She almost killed my brother. You know she has no faith!”

Smiling gently, the old woman said,

“I know, Boddi. But Diyanah cannot kill you—don’t forget, in this world there is nothing she loves more than you. She couldn’t do it. Even this… is not truly her doing.”

“I want you to rise and show her that your strength surpasses hers. And remember—this is Diyanah, not Fatima.”

She touched Boddi’s right hand with her left. Suddenly a cave appeared—dark, illuminated only by strange glowing eyes. Inside, a young girl stood who resembled Boddi in every way.

Fearfully Boddi asked,

“Mama… who is she? Who are we?”

“The time to know has not come. You must save your brother first—then face Diyanah.”

She stroked every wound on Boddi’s body; each one healed instantly.

Boddi stood, ready to go, but the old woman held her back. Their eyes met. Both of their eyes turned sky-blue, and a white smoke transferred from the woman’s eyes into Boddi’s.

Then the woman handed her a ring.

“Wear this, Boddi. Whenever you need me, turn it—I will come.”

She disappeared.

Boddi studied the ring, put it on her finger, and vanished.

---