1000 – A New Millennium
The world reached the year 1,000 A.D. and despite the Christians’ fears, it was not the end of the world, though the Plague had convinced many that the Four Horsemen of the Apocalpyse had been released. But while the world had not ended, it had been reshaped by the Plague and other events of the past 50 years.
Let us begin with the Horde that had been the people of Merya’s foe for centuries, the Khaganate of Khazaria. It is a threat no longer. It had never really recovered from the defection of the Yabghumakh Clan, when they abandoned the nomad life to found the Kingdom of Al-Jazira under Khan Bihor ‘the Evil’ in 970. Internal squabbles and revolts over which clan would lead the Khaganate had weakened it, and many of the peoples that had been subjugated over the centuries broke free. The once mighty Khazaria is now reduced to a tiny foothold on the shores of the Black Sea, lead by Khagan Mënümarót of the Çatid Clan. Just to their east is the Kingdom of Al-Jazira and the clan that abandoned them to their fate.
The Alans under Khagan Urdure III 'the Seducer' of Sathisi, now dominate the plains south of Merya with the Bulçir, one of the Khazar clans, under Khagan Samsam of Bulçir, that abandoned Khazaria, as their tributary. Further east is the other Khazar horde, the Ashina, under King Velmayka’s recent foe, Khagan Yerneslu 'the Lecher' of the Täbärid Clan who had claimed the Khaganate as a direct result of the Plague weakening the previous ruling Clan, the Azovi.
The eastern Steppe, beyond the small Pecheneg horde of the Çepni, is dominated by the Mazdan hordes, the Kirghiz under Khagan Kül 'the Lionheart' of Kirghiz and the Uyghur under Khagan Bars of Uzur. The power of the Western Protectorate is broken, the Protector General Wu Yanshang 'the Cruel' no longer commands tribute from the steppe nomads in the north or from the Tibetan Empire to the south, though he still commands some tribute from farther south in India. But Tsenmo Purgyal Tricham of Tibet is free from the Chinese influence.
To the south in fabled Hindustan, the Buddhist Pala Kingdom is growing more powerful under Mahahraja Mahendrapala, encroaching on the lands of the Hindu Ayudha Kingdom, pushing Mahahraja Vajrayudha II toward the west. The Ayudha Kingdom has absorbed some of the smaller Rajs that bordered his western boundary to make up for what he had lost to Pala in the east.
The south of India is still dominated by the Hindu Rashtrakuta Kingdoms. Mahahraja Govinda of the Rashtrakuta Kingdom and Mahahraja Srivikrama of the Tamilakam are the last remaining tributaries to the Western Protectorate. But the other Rashtrakuta Maharaja, Maharaja Satyasraya of the Maharasta is free from outside influence. Maharani Kubira 'the Just' rules the Lambakanna Kingdom, a Buddhist sanctuary on the island of Sri Lanka.
West of India are the Muslims lands. The Sunni Sultan Ghalib 'the Monster' still holds the various Kingdoms, including Persia and Khorasan, Punjab and Sistan, and Transoxiana, that make up the Taib Sultanate. The Sultanate has remained stable for the past 50 years with little change to its vast borders.
West of Sultan Ghalib are the eastern lands of the Shia Caliph. The Fadlid Caliphate continues to grow, slowly but steadily, the scattered pieces of the sprawling lands slowly uniting as intervening lands are absorbed. The fall of the Muhallabid Sultanate to decadence has left Anatolia in pieces and ripe for the Shia to finally unite its eastern and western arms.
Emir Jabir II of the Subaid Emirate is the one of the larger remnants of the northern half of the fallen Muhallabid Sultanate and he is already under attack from several of the Shia Caliph’s vassals. The southern half of the Muhallabid Sultanate has broken up into a dozen Emirates and they are still adjusting to their sudden freedom after hundreds of years as vassals to the Muhallabids.
While his vassals were attacking the Subaid Emirate, the Shia Caliph Musa was focused on his Jihad against the Byzantine Empire, trying to claim the slender toehold that the Greek Empire still held in Sicily. Basilissa Romylia ‘the Just’ had not lived long, and Basileus Anatolios II of House Mamoulianos now ruled the the Byzantine Empire. He had already lost most of his holdings in Italy to the new Ghaznavid Sultanate, and was losing the Jihad for his last holdings in Sicily. The Byzantine Empire was shrinking and almost completely surrounded by expanding Muslim powers.
Sultan Sabuktgin ‘the Conqueror’ was at peace for the moment. The Ghaznavid Sultanate had already defeated the two most powerful Christian Empires in the space of 10 years and now controlled most of south end of the Italian Peninsula. Even after the devastation of the Plague and defeating the Holy Roman Empire and the Byzantine Empire, he still commanded close to 40,000 troops. The question on everyone’s mind was where would he go next.
It was certainly on the mind of Pope Ioannes IX 'the Wicked’ as the lands of the Papacy were directly adjacent to the Ghaznavid Sultanate and stood between Sabuktgin ‘the Conqueror’ and the rest of Europe.
Ghaznavid’s other neighbor, Sultan Ghalib of Maghreb, who owned Messina on the island of Sicily as well as the coast of Africa to the south, was too exhausted to be worried. He was the last powerful member of House Muhallabid, but he had just barely survived a revolt against his tyranny. Whether Sultan Sabuktgin ‘the Conqueror’ might want Messina or a foothold in Africa, Ghalib would worry when war was declared, not before.
To the west of Maghreb was the Umayyad Empire. Badshah Mansur 'the Holy' had claimed the Sunni Caliphate and now called himself Caliph Mansur 'the Holy' of the Umayyad. While physically he was a coward, he did not fear any Kingdom or people. Kaiser Emelrich Stephanid of the Holy Roman Empire could not match his strength and the border between their two Empires had not changed in a century. Sabuktgin ‘the Conqueror’ had more men than Caliph Mansur, but the previous Caliph Ali III had shown that Sabuktgin would listen to the head of his religion and wouldn’t challenge Caliph Mansur.
So, the Umayyad remained strong in the west and in the east, the Umayyad continued to slowly absorb the Muslim lands in the Holy land and the Arabian Peninsula. With the fall of the Muhallabid Sultanate, there was no one to challenge them in the east as long as they didn’t encroach on the Taid Sultanate’s territory.
Caliph Mansur had not turned his attention toward west Africa. South of his territory, the once united Kingdom of Ghana had collapsed into three realms. The largest piece, the Kingdom of Mali, was ruled by 8-year old Mansa Gane of the Hodhid Clan. His clan had adopted the Sunni religion.
To the east, Mansa Mar-Chindin 'the Pious' ruled the Kingdom of Songhay and still followed the African gods. The smallest piece of the old Kingdom of Ghana was Yatenga, ruled by High Chief Amir 'the Holy', another who had refused conversion to the Sunni religion. The Tunkara Clan who had ruled the united Ghana were all but gone, only the Elder Kolonkan Tunkara, sister to the last Tunkara King remained. With her would die the last memory of a united West African people.
Looking north, we first have the stable Holy Roman Empire. It has lost several Emperors during the Plague years, but its system of electors has kept the throne occupied. Kaiser Emelrich Stephanid is the current ruler. But he has come to rule following the Empire’s greatest defeat in centuries and the loss of its lands in Sicily. Muslim strength is growing all along the southern border. Will the Empire finally face a threat it cannot shrug off?
Next, we go to the British Isles, there we find the isles divided between two young Queens, those of England and of Alban. Queen Æthelhild of England of House St. Cuthbert is still ruling England and a large chunk of Ireland. She is the last of her house, still unmarried, but now has bastard son. If she marries matrilinneally and has children she can continue her line, but for now her current heir is Duke Crimthann 'the Kind' of Lancaster of House Mac Mathgamna. Further north, the former Kingdom of Pictland is now ruled by Queen Denis of Alban, a Welsh Queen of house Seisyllwg. She holds Alban, Wales and a portion of Ireland. She has married matrilinneally and has a son as her heir.
East across the North Sea is Scandinavia. We have seen the troubles that Sweden has suffered during the Plague, yet it still survives under the Polish Queen Judyta of House Polan. The other power in the north is King Reko Karjalainen who holds the Finnish Kingdom of Suomi, who have always been friends and allies of the people of Merya.
But the Kingdom of Norway is no more, the throne of Norway vacated as 8-year old Queen Máidna loses her last holding, Finnmark, in the utter North. The Ulfings had ruled Norway for 200 years, since Steinn Ulfing had united the Norse tribes and created the title, becoming the first true pagan King in northern Europe, and his heirs had held the thrones of Norway, Sweden, and Denmark. Now only eight Ulfings remain, with only the independent High Chieftess Gerðr II of Finland, clinging to any power.
