For the next nine days, Alqa spent her time either training, going on small hunts, or doing manual labor. One morning while Alqa was polishing her sword, Buqutai, Qara, and Yesui approached her. “Alqa, the Khan has called a Tsugurubug. This is your blood feud so we are bringing you along. Get your sword, bow, and prepare Nergui,” Qara told her. Alqa nodded and went to her yurt. She hung her quiver on her belt and loaded it with twenty-eight arrows and her composite bow. She took a woolen cloak and wrapped it around herself. She put a round, pointed fur-trimmed leather cap on her head and exited the yurt.

Alqa went to where the kids were wrestling again, “Sugekui!” she called, and Sugekui came over to her. “I need you to watch Dagan while I go to the Tsuguruabug,” Alqa told him.

“Yay!” Sugekui exclaimed and ran back to the group of children, Alqa could see Dagan playing and smiled. He looked so happy and she could’ve watched forever, but she had to go. So Alqa went to the horse pens, slipped the bit and bridle onto Nergui, and swung herself onto Nergui.

The four of them set off, riding northwest at a somewhat fast pace, reaching the Khan’s Yisra late on their fourth day of travel. As they approached, ten heavily armed warriors rode out, two kept their distance with bows in their hands and the other eight rode directly up to them with weapons in their hands. “Hold there, state your names and business,” one of the Ärchgekui ordered.

They pulled their horses to a stop and Buqutai spoke, “I am Buqutaiii Qutuqäz, son of Kiingisii Qutuqäz and Alijiaaniia Qutuqäsa. My companions are Qaraii Qutuqäz, son of Sugarii Qutuqäz and Khunbichiia Qutuqäsa, Yesuiiia Qutuqäsa, daughter of Qorisulbaii Qutuqäz and Botokhuiiia Qutuqäsa. And finally Alqaiia Qutuqäsa, daughter of Tarmaagii Qutuqäz and Bortuiia Qutuqäsa. We have come to attend the Tsugurubug,” Buqutai told the Ärchgekui.

“Follow us Buqutai, and bring your representatives,” The Ärchgekui told them and at once, the Ärchgekui all turned and led them toward the Khan’s Yisra. The archers shadowed them the whole way before they reached the yurts. When they arrived at the yurts they were taken to a group of four yurts that were made out of felt and had elaborate imagery of horses, wolves, lions, and elephants in brightly colored sections of felt while most of the yurts were off-white in color. One of the Ärchgekui took Alqa to a yurt and left her alone while he took Nergui to the horse pens. The inside was decorated with a warm-looking set of furs and a silken pillow from the far east. Alqa took off her belt and laid it next to her, then lay down on the furs and covering herself, fell asleep.

The next day, Alqa put on her belt, which still had her sword and bow. She slipped on her curved leather boots and went outside, it was windy again. The gales screeched like giant invisible eagles and roared like the roar of a lion. Alqa tried to ignore it and went to Yesui to play ödsiriinoi, they played and talked for a long while until Alqa decided to explore, the Khan’s Yisra was far larger and more wealthy than any Yisra Alqa had seen before. She quickly regretted it though, the wind was still screeching and it reminded her of the attack on her Yisra. Alqa held in tears, every time the wind screeched especially loud, images of the attack shot through her mind. She wondered how she could have been such a coward? Why had she ran? Alqa quickly returned to her yurt and began to cry, unable to hold it in any longer. Alqa cried for a while before wiping away her tears. The next couple of days were a blur and Alqa spent them hanging out with Buqutai, riding Nergui around, practicing her horse archery, or practicing with Buqutai.

After four total days of waiting, the Khan summoned everybody to the wild steppe just to the west of the Yisra. The Khan jumped onto a rock “I, Tuvaii Qutuqäz Khan, Son of Temujinii Qutuqäz and Mideiia Qutuqäsa, swear before Agaa Iija, Taimgra, and all the Baarku that I will make war on the Baltui and honor the blood oath I have made!” The Khan exclaimed to the sky and raising his hands to it. He bent down and took a bowl of horse milk and flung the milk across the sky in front of him. “And now, I ask you friends, will you bring your Yisra to fight with me against the Baltui?” The Khan asked all the Riidaga present. With one voice they all voiced their affirmation of the declaration of war and chanted war cries. The Khan then announced the customary feast to begin the war.

It took a few days to prepare all the food and while they waited, the Riidaga and the other representatives played wargames. They held archery competitions, wrestling matches, and drinking contests. On the third day the Khan granted a horse, a male goat and a female goat to each Yisra that had sent representatives and thus would be participating in the war. Later that day, Alqa was riding Nergui when a boy rode up to her on a white horse. “Hey. Whose Yisra are you from?” He asked.

“I live with the Yisra of Kiingis. What about you?” Alqa responded, pulling Nergui to a halt next to him. He was tall, but a little shorter than most Taa, he had black hair and gray eyes. His skin was on the darker side, but not as dark as the slave which made Alqa’s sword.

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“I’m from the Yisra of Begter. May I ask for your name?” The boy asked.

“I am Alqaiia Qutuqäsa, daughter of Tarmaagii Qutuqäz and Bortuiia Qutuqäsa. And who are you?” Alqa told him.

“I am Qotoiyanii Qutuqäz, son of Begterii Qutuqäz and Narantsegiia Qutuqäsa,” He answered.

“So you’re the son of your Riidagak? Is that why you came?” Alqa asked.

“Yes and yes, why did you come?” Qotoiyan asked.

“Because I was invited,” Alqa asked.

“They didn’t tell you why?” Qotoiyan asked.

“I don’t want to talk about that,” Alqa told him. Qotoiyan didn’t push that issue any further.

“How old are you?” Qotoiyan asked.

“Thirteen winters, you?” Alqa responded.

“Fourteen winters,” Qotoiyan told her.

“So you’re almost an adult? Must be exciting,” Alqa mentioned.

“Are you an adult yet?” Qotoiyan asked her.

“No, I’m not an adult yet,” Alqa told him.

“Do you want to be?” Qotoiyan asked.

“Yes, it gives me so much more freedom,” Alqa told him.

“I get that, I’ll see you later Alqa,” Qotoiyan told her, wheeling his horse and waving goodbye, Alqa smiled and waved back.

Alqa returned to her yurt shortly after the encounter, she sat down and removed her sword from its scabbard, she covered it in a light layer of oil and rubbed it down with a felt rag. Next she took a whetstone from her bag and ran it along the sharp edge of the sword to sharpen it. When that was done, Alqa rubbed the felt rag down the sharpened edge and then sheathed the sword. Next Alqa stood up and went to Yesui’s yurt. She asked to come in and Yesui told her to do so. Alqa entered and sat cross-legged on the floor across from Yesui. They hung out, talking and playing games for the rest of the day. However, Alqa never once mentioned Qotoiyan. At the end of the day Alqa went back to her yurt. When she got there, she took off her belt and boots, laying them next to the sleeping furs. Next Alqa unbraided her red hair and laid down on the sleeping furs, pulling the top layer over herself. Alqa lay awake for a long while before finally falling asleep.

The next day, Alqa awoke to the sound of work. She put her boots and belt on and peeked out, she saw slaves and warriors alike carrying large wooden and clay platters and pots full of food. She followed them. A long wooden table had been set up and the food was placed upon it. Around midday the Khan announced the feast, everybody was given a smaller clay or wooden platter, with no heed given to the status of the person, except for the Khan who got a larger platter of solid gold. Alqa put some bana and a small wooden bowl of black soup with chunks of meat on her platter. She took a small wooden spoon for the soup and sat down, outside her yurt. As she was eating, Qotoiyan approached her with his platter of food. “May I sit?” he asked. Alqa nodded because was busy chewing a banak. Alqa swallowed as he sat down, he was close but not too close. “How are you?” Qotoiyan asked, he was just trying to be friendly. Alqa looked at him, but she didn’t make eye contact.

“I’m fine, how are you?” she said, finally answering his question.

“That’s good, I’m ok,” He told her. He followed up with a question, “Are you enjoying the food?” Alqa nodded. Qotoiyan smiled and asked “Would you like a horn of gusui?”

“Yes, please,” Alqa responded. He left his food next to her and got up, he walked away towards the table. He came back a little later with two horns full of gusui. Alqa took a sip of Gusui, it tasted foamy and bitter, Alqa took a sip of gusui. The white, foamy liquid was bitter and thick, though not as thick as honey.

They ate and talked for a long while, even after they had finished eating. Eventually, Qotoiyan told Alqa he had to go start getting everything ready and that now that the feast had happened they would leave in the morning. They said goodbyes and when he left, Alqa went back into the yurt. Alqa sat cross-legged on the floor after taking her belt off, for some reason she was sad that she would probably never see him again. She barely even knew him, why would she be sad about not seeing him again. Sure, it had been relaxing to talk to him but there were plenty of other people she could talk to, why would he be different. The next day, Alqa began helping Yesui, Buqutai and Qara pack everything they were getting to take back with them, while they were doing so, a few Ärchgekui approached them and gave them each a thick woolen purple cloak, that was the first time Alqa noticed the increasingly cold winds. They left early the day after, with the cloaks wrapped tightly around them and large felt blankets draped over their horses.

Near midday of the third day of their return journey, Alqa saw the first white flakes of snow falling from the sky, the ground was already muddy and now snow brought more danger. “Buqutai! Snow!” Alqa called out to Buqutai, he looked around for a second before muttering a curse under his breath.

“We need to move faster, we can’t be caught out in a snowstorm!” Buqutai called back to the group. They kicked their horses to a canter, Qara was at the back with the horse and Yesui held the ropes for the goats. They soon had to slow down because the goats were too slow to keep up with the horses. The snow began falling hard around sundown and they didn’t have the option to set up their small yurts they had brought with them so they kept moving, it was extremely cold and at one point Alqa even un-braided her hair just to hold in a tiny bit more warmth but eventually, in the early morning they got back and Alqa we straight to her yurt, she lay down on her furs and wrapped herself tightly. She was exhausted and fell asleep quickly.