Traveling east from Masyaf in the mid-late 13th century.

[ingriam]

The scenario: Escaping from the threat of the Mongols' increasingly frequent raids, Maria Thorpe - now pushing ninety and hence accompanied by a group of six elite Assassins - departs east across Syria. I'd like to know what would be the best methods of travel over that kind of terrain, and about where she and her group would reasonably end up

Comments

[orange_fell]

Leaving aside the question of why this group would choose to travel east if they're trying to avoid the Mongols, have you tried researching any other medieval travelers? The Travels of Marco Polo could be a great source for you--even if it may not be a 100% accurate travelogue, you'll learn their travel methods, trade routes, and which cities were major stops for travelers. Next check out Ibn Battuta--he was a bit later, in the 14th century, but he also traveled through the the fragments of the Mongol Empire and China. From a quick scan of Wikipedia (not recommended for serious research), it may have taken the Polo party only three and half years to get from Venice to Acre to the summer court of Kublai Khan in Shangdu.

Also, as the writer, you can have your group travel for as long or as short as you wish. Are you planning to write the entire journey, or just open with "Four Years Later" in an interesting location in Asia? If it's the latter, you have a lot of leeway. Maybe they decide to stop for a year in Samarkand. Or maybe they get diverted or lost and spend a lot of time wandering around. Basically, they could be just about anywhere you like between Syria and Central/Eastern Asia.