And so it begins...
"Sit down, yes, prepare to listen young ones. For old Ahmed will tell you tales, tales of things that have passed or maybe never came to pass, of the Glory of God and the frailty of men, of war and peace, of love and hate, of victories and defeats, in short, of all that exists in God's creation...my young talibs, listen and learn from these tales for it is through looking at the actions of our ancestors that we can learn how to best do God's will in the present."
The First Tale
"It is said that Muhammed the eight, our must glorious sultan, was a man of the common people that rose to the rank of sultan through cunningness and ambition, this is not true.
In fact the sultan was a man of most remarkable beginnings, for he was found at the doorstep of the Royal Palace, left there no doubt by the djinn and ifrit of the lands, for it was said he had hair red like fire and a temper to match, yet his eyes were black as coal and his tongue blue like indigo from the East.
The Sultan adopted the foundling, and even at a young age he showed remarkable cunning and skill, it was also said that he was truly blessed by God, for he often recieved gifts from his friends, gifts that were so large and costly that he could field entire armies with it. Is it not said that "He who has many friends need never starve?" Muhammed had many friends indeed.
In time however the old sultan grew old, and he gathered all his sons and adoptees and nephews and uncles and said unto them: "You are all of my blood or as close as can be, and if I had a thousand kingdoms I would give you one of each, but our country is poor and small, and I cannot give you what you each deserve: Therefore I say unto you, that you should each here decide who is the most able of you, and you shall all swear him fealty and let him rule."
And there was great consternation and murmurs among the royal household, for each son wanted to inherit the mantle of the Sultan, indeed, the mantle of the rightful Caliph
But not Muhammed, he laughed and smiled and said that he for one would stand behind Sebkha, the sultan's third son with his first wife, for he was a great hunter, a fierce warrior and never touched wine nor missed a prayer.
Idriss, the sultan's nephew, then interjected that this was a sign of a humble person, and that he for one stood behind Muhammed.
And Sebkha agreed, for he himself did not think himself able to rule, and so he said unto the assembled sons: "Look at my brother Muhammed (for indeed tho we do not have the same father I can call him my brother) is he the greatest hunter among us? No, for I am greater than him. Is he the greatest warrior among us? No, for Ali is a fiercer warrior than him. Is he the bravest of our group? No, for Idriss is braver by far. Is he the wisest of us? No, for Old Uncle Abdul is wisest of us all, but he possesses all these qualities in moderation, for even though he may not be the best of our warriors or the bravest, or the wisest, he is not stupid or cowardly or lacks skill in arms, and to that I add that was it not a sign when the ifrit left him at the door of our father? Was it not a sign that he should rule over us?"
And the throng agreed, for Sebkha was a great orator, and his words could enflame the passions of men and make them see things as he saw them.
And so it came to be that Muhammed took the number Eight and was called as Sultan and rightful Caliph, as lord of all of Ishpania and Al-Andalus, and his first act was to promise his brothers and cousins and uncles that they should all be provided for.
Made the country one step more aristocratic: Aristocracy is now 8.
Of all those who grieved the old sultan the one who grieved most was his latest wife, the beautiful Aliah, night and day she wept for her husband, for even though he was an old man when he took her into his harem she had loved him dearly.
The new sultan went to his mother (for even though he was not the fruit of her womb but the offpsring of som ifrit or djinn he had always thought of her as his mother) and said "I feel thy sorrow mother, for the Sultan was as a father to me, if thou but ask I will give thee the whatever you wishes, perchance thou wish to marry anew, for even though no man could replace the Sun I would not see thee alone the rest of thy life."
And the beautiful and wise Aliah answered: "Nay, son of my heart, for even though I am still young I will never love another, and I intend to spend the rest of my life in prayer, for your sake and for that of our kingdom:" And the Sultan acquiesced to his Mother's wishes, for does the Qu'ran not say "Thy Lord hath decreed that ye worship none but Him, and that ye be kind to parents. Whether one or both of them attain old age in thy life, say not to them a word of contempt, nor repel them, but address them in terms of honour."?
But in the kingdom to the north of Muhammed's there ruled a great king of the Unbelievers, and his name was Juan the Second, and it when he heard of the beauty of fair Aliah he sent a stern note to Muhammed, demanding that he surrender his mother to his vile desires or else he would send all the armies of Al-Castilla and al-Aragona and al-Léon to burn the palace of the sultan, carry away his wives and present his head to their Holy Father as a trophy in his battles against the Righteous. But Muhammed did not listen to such threats, "For the people of Fez and Al-Djazir are with me, and also we have the Lord the most merciful and most compassionate on our side, rather would I see the Alhambra burnt and my people scattered before I let an unbeliever lay his hands on my most beloved mother."
When he heard this the king of Castille was taken by terrible wrath, and he sent a message to the King of Aragon, another unbeliever, and he told him to prepare his armies for war, and he sent the Army of Castilla, 40,000 men to sack Granada and carry away poor Aliah by force.
And in truth great woe was upon the Sultan, for his armies were forced away from Granada after a bitter struggle, and the Unbelievers laid siege to it for 12 months before it fell, and tho the sultan escaped before the city fell his poor mother was carried away by the Unbelievers.
But the The Lord smiled upon the sultan, for friends abroad and domestic gathered together a great gift, and for this he set to training soldiers to repel the unbelievers.
Random event: Gift to the State
And great news reached the ear of the sultan, for Sebkha his brother had taken Sevilla and liberated the Faithful who lived there, and even more impressive Idriss the Brave had taken a single ship, secretly constructed in the shadow of Tariq's Rock, and sailed with a small crew to the Islands of the Canaries,. and he landed there and took these Islands in the name of the Sultan.
And Sebkha and the Sultan turned their attention upon the main host of the Castillians, and in the Battle of Toledo they came upon it from two directions and crushed it, like one might crush a nut with a hammer, and Murcia and Toledo fell to the armies of the Sultan.
Now the advisors of the Unbeliever King together told their lord that they were no match for the armies of the Righteous, and that peace should be sought as quickly as possible. But king Juan the second refused, saying that he would rather see his kingdom in ashes than surrender poor Aliah, whom he had taken against her will.
But soon Extramadura and Léon was in the hands of the Righteous, and Bilbao was taken and the Sultan's troops raised the Banner of the Prophet at the shores of the Northern Ocean, as things were thus desperate for king Juan he abased himself before the sultan's emissaries, urging them to name their price.
And the Sultan was most merciful, for apart from liberating the Faithful that lived under the shadow of the Unbeliever (who righftully should be ruled by their own Sultan) and the Islands of the Canaries, whom Idriss had liberted, he demanded only the return of his dear mother and the gold mines of Toledo, for these would serve to pay the price for the King's depravity.
And the king of the unbelievers wept as he signed the documents, and the Castillans vowed revenge and immediately sat down to plot the downfall of the Sultan, but the people of Sevilla and Murcia and Granada and Gibraltar cheered, for they knew they had come under the rule of a sultan who was so brave and benevolent.
