Last of Dead Kings [A WTWSMS AAR]
- Thread starter Enlil
- Start date
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It's hard to imagine for me how the expansion of Zoroastrian faith in Rus and beyond took place. As far as I've been taught, Zoroastrianism was not - at least not in those times - a proselytic religion, although I guess the game engine doesn't take notice of this fact. If you have a historical narrative for your game, how exactly did that happen? How were the Slavs convinced? A new prophet emerged, or what?
Well, to my knowledge, the Herulians were converted by the Iazyges, a migratory Zoroastrian people. Currently the Zoroastrians can't send preachers into other realms, so they had to have either converted to end a holy war, or the Herulians made their old capital in an Iazyges province. After that, they became rulers of Rus, and began either conquering, or forcibly converting. In Germany, an Empire of equal size and power, the Jhossrik was converted, and its echoes still resonate through Germany and Scandinavia.
So, now that the mod is available, would it be possible and would you be so kind as to share the savefile of the starting point of this game with the public? 
Just a heads up, I assure everyone that this AAR is not dead, and will began updating shortly.
Chapter 4: Godogost Triumphant
The day began peacefully for the Emperor, he was congratulated, and happy, for today was an important day. His son, Damianos VI (IV) was born, securing the
succession from the pagan Anastasius.There was celebration in the streets, and all seemed perfect on that wonderful day.
Then, only a few days later, the news came. His wife, though truly not his love, Ulpia perished days later to Pneumonia. Though there was never any love between the two, Damianos was shattered. He rarely left Antioch, and claimed it would take the end of the world to bring him out.
And so it did.
A brief civil war among the Avars had occurred, resulting in the deposition of their ruler Bori. This turmoil is normally expected among the unrepentant heathen, but this was not what made the Emperor's blood run cold, and strike fear into the heart of all. The new Khagan was Godogost.
Once the shock, and the fear passed, a question was asked. What will happen on the dark man's death? The promises of wild revelry and celebration aside,
many feared that the Avar title will pass leadership to the distant Rogovlad, King of Bengal. People then pointed out a more dangerous possibility. What if Rogovlad died? In that case Bengal would fall back into Godogost's hands! Godogost was the only man known to enter the Hidden Country and return and an Empire now at both sides would spell doom. (Tzanichites aside)
The people of the Orient, and the West in general feared India. The Hidden Country was home to the Hepthalites, barbaric religions, heathen cultures, and great hordes, waiting to break out and destroy all civilization. What more, the horrors that lurk behind the Caliphal Prison (modern Hindu Kush Mountains) were able to defeat Godogost, to drive him out!
The tales of Caliph's defeat to them, the death of 40,000 Muslim Jihaddists, lost forever into the shadows of the Hidden Country, made more men terrified than overjoyed. The Muslims were within the realm of the known, as all men in the Orient had dealt with the Arabs, and many trade deals still existed between the Orient and the Caliphate. These Hunas! These Chubnan! these Rai! These were monsters on earth!
Rumors and books in the court of the Ghassanids, given back when they were Zoroastrian, still had accounts from the Immortals, of a people called Hindus, who ruled all of India. They say they had great and powerful Empires, and names like Gupta, Vakatakas, Kalabhras entered the ears of the Eastern Romans. Tales of how they each burned to the Hepthalites brought fear to all, for the Orient may be next.
A few months prior, before the death of his wife, Damianos V (III) visited the Caliph, who was a generous man, and greeted him cordially. The Caliph spoke of wars against the Kidarites, former vassals of the Horde, and he expressed a fear to the Emperor. He feared that if the Caliphate was to grow weak, the Hordes would burst from the Hidden Country and destroy all. The tolerance and kindness does not exist under the Caliph's son Is'mail ibn Aram Dinnid, a zealous and warlike man, who spat on the Empire on his exit from Baghdad.
One can only hope Caliph Aram would live forever.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Emperor, knowing the need to maintain the line, made an alliance with Decius Constantius of Italia. As enemy Emperor Marcus III seeks to invade Italia,
and alliance between the two lords would enable them to perhaps finally win the Succession War.
A few moths ago, Shah Farrukhzad passed away, leaving his child Khadadad on the throne. Declaring the Avan dynasty illegitimate to the Seat of al-Hirah,
the Orient went to war, this time to place a Nicene noble on the throne.
In this, people began to see Damianos V (III) as a symbol of piety, as a form of religious warrior, spreading the Nicene church further East. To solidify this, Damianos agreed to personally march East with his soldiers.
They clashed in the Battle of Hafar al Batin, where the Emperor showed his military genius, and along with his most trusted generals, Praetorian Clemiant Doukas and Mobad Abkarib of Sela, the Emperor led his forces father than any Oriental Emperor before.
While in Basra, news reached the Emperor from South Arabia. Apparently, the Queen of Raydan, Niki the Swift created a Republican state following a war with the Immortals. Incredibly, one of the new patrician families is that of Azd'Uman! These ancient rulers of Oman have persisted in Niki's court, and demanded Patrician status, which was summarily granted to them. Another oddity was that she usurped the Somavansha, a patriacian family for the Republic in Socotra into her own republic, forcing the Socotrans to elevate their own as a new family. (I have no idea how this happened, or how the Azd'Umani became a patrician house. I also don't know how she was able to "steal" a patrician family and all of its trade posts from another republic.)
In time, Kufa and AL Nadjaf fell to the Oriental Armies, and al-Hirah was brought in as vassal Kingdom, and on that day, in the city of Basra, Damianos V (III)
looked out to the sea and said spoke his generals,
Imperator Damianos V: "Look out at the sea, look at the mist, of untold lands! Lands that could be ours! I am Trajan, Alexander, staring into the unknown! I have felt more alive in heart of the Umma, than in that prison of grief back in Antioch!"
Mobad Abkarib: "Indeed, but what are your goals, my Emperor?"
Imperator Damianos V: "I seek to push our borders ever eastward, to connect Al Nadjaf and Basra to the rest of the Empire. I will not rest until the Empire stands at the Caliphal Prison (modern Hindu Kush Mountaints) itself! I shall be a great bridge-builder, connecting the world to the light of the Latins!"
Praetorian Clemiant Doukas: "But sir, what of Rome! You seek to lead us into lands never exposed to the light of Christ! I may remind you that my family still makes abode in the mountains of Anatolia! The ills of Rome may seal our fate!"
Mobad Abkarib: "But you are one family, and we stand in the ruins of another family, greater than yours, which we have now overthrown. The Orient does not need Rome! We need to look towards the Oriens and beyond!"
Praetorian Clemiant Doukas: "Civilization lay in the west! What is there eastward! Do not try to tell me you wish the Emperor to invade the Hidden Country! Godogost could not!"
Mobad Abkarib: "The Emperor is not Godogost, he is the 5th Damianos to rule the Orient, known as the Great by all! The Orient cannot conquer the Roman Empire, and it may not be able to reclaim Egypt, but the East remains ours for the taking! What more, the tensions between the Nicene Church and the Frisians break each day, in time the West will return to the grasp of heathens and heretics!"
Imperator Damianos V: "The Mobad speaks truth!"
Praetorian Clemiant Doukas: "When have you taken advice from a Pagan?! What of the Cappadocian Candidate?! He depends on us to win the Succession War! We cannot let Marcus III win! We cannot let Pontus, and the Ecumenical Patriarchate fall again to slavery!"
Mobad Abkarib: "You can not allow the Caliph's successor to come to power! He will spell the death of us all! Strike at the son, then feast on the Caliphate's failure! We shall wage was against the Mohammedans until we slay the Kabul-Lords of the Northern Door!"
Imperator Damianos V: "The Orient is torn between two worlds! Two different lands are crushing my Empire!"
Praetorian Clemiant Doukas: "And either you will make the correct decision, or I will..."
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The day began peacefully for the Emperor, he was congratulated, and happy, for today was an important day. His son, Damianos VI (IV) was born, securing the
succession from the pagan Anastasius.There was celebration in the streets, and all seemed perfect on that wonderful day.
Then, only a few days later, the news came. His wife, though truly not his love, Ulpia perished days later to Pneumonia. Though there was never any love between the two, Damianos was shattered. He rarely left Antioch, and claimed it would take the end of the world to bring him out.
And so it did.
A brief civil war among the Avars had occurred, resulting in the deposition of their ruler Bori. This turmoil is normally expected among the unrepentant heathen, but this was not what made the Emperor's blood run cold, and strike fear into the heart of all. The new Khagan was Godogost.
Once the shock, and the fear passed, a question was asked. What will happen on the dark man's death? The promises of wild revelry and celebration aside,
many feared that the Avar title will pass leadership to the distant Rogovlad, King of Bengal. People then pointed out a more dangerous possibility. What if Rogovlad died? In that case Bengal would fall back into Godogost's hands! Godogost was the only man known to enter the Hidden Country and return and an Empire now at both sides would spell doom. (Tzanichites aside)
The people of the Orient, and the West in general feared India. The Hidden Country was home to the Hepthalites, barbaric religions, heathen cultures, and great hordes, waiting to break out and destroy all civilization. What more, the horrors that lurk behind the Caliphal Prison (modern Hindu Kush Mountains) were able to defeat Godogost, to drive him out!
The tales of Caliph's defeat to them, the death of 40,000 Muslim Jihaddists, lost forever into the shadows of the Hidden Country, made more men terrified than overjoyed. The Muslims were within the realm of the known, as all men in the Orient had dealt with the Arabs, and many trade deals still existed between the Orient and the Caliphate. These Hunas! These Chubnan! these Rai! These were monsters on earth!
Rumors and books in the court of the Ghassanids, given back when they were Zoroastrian, still had accounts from the Immortals, of a people called Hindus, who ruled all of India. They say they had great and powerful Empires, and names like Gupta, Vakatakas, Kalabhras entered the ears of the Eastern Romans. Tales of how they each burned to the Hepthalites brought fear to all, for the Orient may be next.
A few months prior, before the death of his wife, Damianos V (III) visited the Caliph, who was a generous man, and greeted him cordially. The Caliph spoke of wars against the Kidarites, former vassals of the Horde, and he expressed a fear to the Emperor. He feared that if the Caliphate was to grow weak, the Hordes would burst from the Hidden Country and destroy all. The tolerance and kindness does not exist under the Caliph's son Is'mail ibn Aram Dinnid, a zealous and warlike man, who spat on the Empire on his exit from Baghdad.
One can only hope Caliph Aram would live forever.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Emperor, knowing the need to maintain the line, made an alliance with Decius Constantius of Italia. As enemy Emperor Marcus III seeks to invade Italia,
and alliance between the two lords would enable them to perhaps finally win the Succession War.
A few moths ago, Shah Farrukhzad passed away, leaving his child Khadadad on the throne. Declaring the Avan dynasty illegitimate to the Seat of al-Hirah,
the Orient went to war, this time to place a Nicene noble on the throne.
In this, people began to see Damianos V (III) as a symbol of piety, as a form of religious warrior, spreading the Nicene church further East. To solidify this, Damianos agreed to personally march East with his soldiers.
They clashed in the Battle of Hafar al Batin, where the Emperor showed his military genius, and along with his most trusted generals, Praetorian Clemiant Doukas and Mobad Abkarib of Sela, the Emperor led his forces father than any Oriental Emperor before.
While in Basra, news reached the Emperor from South Arabia. Apparently, the Queen of Raydan, Niki the Swift created a Republican state following a war with the Immortals. Incredibly, one of the new patrician families is that of Azd'Uman! These ancient rulers of Oman have persisted in Niki's court, and demanded Patrician status, which was summarily granted to them. Another oddity was that she usurped the Somavansha, a patriacian family for the Republic in Socotra into her own republic, forcing the Socotrans to elevate their own as a new family. (I have no idea how this happened, or how the Azd'Umani became a patrician house. I also don't know how she was able to "steal" a patrician family and all of its trade posts from another republic.)
In time, Kufa and AL Nadjaf fell to the Oriental Armies, and al-Hirah was brought in as vassal Kingdom, and on that day, in the city of Basra, Damianos V (III)
looked out to the sea and said spoke his generals,
Imperator Damianos V: "Look out at the sea, look at the mist, of untold lands! Lands that could be ours! I am Trajan, Alexander, staring into the unknown! I have felt more alive in heart of the Umma, than in that prison of grief back in Antioch!"
Mobad Abkarib: "Indeed, but what are your goals, my Emperor?"
Imperator Damianos V: "I seek to push our borders ever eastward, to connect Al Nadjaf and Basra to the rest of the Empire. I will not rest until the Empire stands at the Caliphal Prison (modern Hindu Kush Mountaints) itself! I shall be a great bridge-builder, connecting the world to the light of the Latins!"
Praetorian Clemiant Doukas: "But sir, what of Rome! You seek to lead us into lands never exposed to the light of Christ! I may remind you that my family still makes abode in the mountains of Anatolia! The ills of Rome may seal our fate!"
Mobad Abkarib: "But you are one family, and we stand in the ruins of another family, greater than yours, which we have now overthrown. The Orient does not need Rome! We need to look towards the Oriens and beyond!"
Praetorian Clemiant Doukas: "Civilization lay in the west! What is there eastward! Do not try to tell me you wish the Emperor to invade the Hidden Country! Godogost could not!"
Mobad Abkarib: "The Emperor is not Godogost, he is the 5th Damianos to rule the Orient, known as the Great by all! The Orient cannot conquer the Roman Empire, and it may not be able to reclaim Egypt, but the East remains ours for the taking! What more, the tensions between the Nicene Church and the Frisians break each day, in time the West will return to the grasp of heathens and heretics!"
Imperator Damianos V: "The Mobad speaks truth!"
Praetorian Clemiant Doukas: "When have you taken advice from a Pagan?! What of the Cappadocian Candidate?! He depends on us to win the Succession War! We cannot let Marcus III win! We cannot let Pontus, and the Ecumenical Patriarchate fall again to slavery!"
Mobad Abkarib: "You can not allow the Caliph's successor to come to power! He will spell the death of us all! Strike at the son, then feast on the Caliphate's failure! We shall wage was against the Mohammedans until we slay the Kabul-Lords of the Northern Door!"
Imperator Damianos V: "The Orient is torn between two worlds! Two different lands are crushing my Empire!"
Praetorian Clemiant Doukas: "And either you will make the correct decision, or I will..."
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter 5: Bridgebuilder Emperor
Decree of War: 665
It is the will of Damianos Polkarios V (III), that war be levied against the King of the Ghassanids, Qabisah ibn Itha'il Ghassanid.
It has come to knowledge, that King Qabisah's father, Itha'il the Accursed, a notorious infidel, usurped control from the Christian Assad , better known as Assad Hotspur. This usurpation of his rightful Kingship is an adulteration of the Ghassanid succession, which had been unmarred for its entire existence till this point. Under out guidance, Assad Hotspur has come to Antioch, where he shall be restored to his rightful throne.
Whatmore, as it has been deemed that the smaller Christian states are not in the position to defend themselves from the Caliphate, Assad has agreed to accept the rule of Empire, and enjoy Kingship under Oriental protection.
One can only hope that Qabisah does not protract this war, and see the error of his father's ways.
Long Live the Cappadocian Candidate,
Legatus Herculius Polkarios, Princeps Senatus
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Already, the Orient has developed the genius plan of placing agreeable men on foreign thrones, who intern expand his own Empire.
Already successful twice, the Emperor hopes to bring the Ghassanid under the fold, but Leo Agapitus claims that this will not be the case should he claim the imperial throne in Iader.
It is also hoped that this war can be won solely by the virtue of professional soldiers, led by Tribunus Palatinae Artemios, and Legatus Augusti Maurikios Doukas.
The Ghassanids, though evenly numbered,were unable to shatter the Oriental legions, and the sheer mass of the shieldwall tore through the Arabs in the battle of Shabakah.
After a great many battles, the King was shattered, and was forced to acknowledge the rightful Assad back to the throne.
On the auspicious date of 666, the Oriens joined a war with the heretics.
Disregarding that petty war, the Oriental Emperor had a new, more ambitious plan in mind, and, on July 5th, barely 2 days after the death of the kind Caliph Aram,
war was made against Is'mail, the new Caliph.
A short while later, an new faction had arisen in Arabia and the Khurramite Qurayza Kingdom came to rule all of what is called Great Rabi'ah. The Khurramites are a heretical branch of Zoroastrianism, heavily influenced by Islam and Mazdakism, and highly anti-Caliphal, pro-Zoroastrian independence. A united Khurramite front will only spell later troubles for the Caliph, but for now, the enemy of Islam is the Orient.
The war began slowly, without any major conflicts, until the cataclysmic Battle of Qalat Sukkar, in which the Orientals faced a crippling defeat. Regrouping in Al Nadjaf, the legions reunited with the Emperor's and proceeded to crush the Arabs in the Second Battle of Qalat Sukkar.
The fate of the East was truly decided many days later, in the Battle of Wasit. Emperor against Caliph, Roman against Arab. The Emperor, not willing to put his beloved Mobad at risk, replaced him with the Corduenian Bedros Domitius, a masterful commander. One enemy flank was led by Azar ibn Murad, one of the Qurayza, and Mirza ibn Sa'daddin Ahmadid, another powerful ruler in the Caliphate. Early on, Mirza was killed on the field, and at the last minute, the Corduenian defeated the right flank, in time to relief the Emperor on the field. 3 days later, Maurikios Doukas barely surpassed the left flank, with the desert-men almost gaining the upper hand.
Barely succeeding, as the flanks began to falter, the Emperor charged forward, killing many and driving the Caliph from the fields. Many Arab lords were captured, and countless more were slain. Then, with the path open, the Emperor marched on Baghdad itself, but not before tracking the last remnants of the Caliph's armies, and engaging a secondary army of 7,000 mercenaries. And another massive army was brought to battle in the Battle of Badra.
This was the last force of the Arabs, with the rest of its wealth spent and its men dead. If the Caliph was to gain victory against the Orient, it would be in Badra. But the Emperor shone, defeating two flanks at the same time, as Maurikios had faltered. The Caliph was brought to Antioch in chains, and the war was over.
The Bridge has been Built:
Decree of War: 665
It is the will of Damianos Polkarios V (III), that war be levied against the King of the Ghassanids, Qabisah ibn Itha'il Ghassanid.
It has come to knowledge, that King Qabisah's father, Itha'il the Accursed, a notorious infidel, usurped control from the Christian Assad , better known as Assad Hotspur. This usurpation of his rightful Kingship is an adulteration of the Ghassanid succession, which had been unmarred for its entire existence till this point. Under out guidance, Assad Hotspur has come to Antioch, where he shall be restored to his rightful throne.
Whatmore, as it has been deemed that the smaller Christian states are not in the position to defend themselves from the Caliphate, Assad has agreed to accept the rule of Empire, and enjoy Kingship under Oriental protection.
One can only hope that Qabisah does not protract this war, and see the error of his father's ways.
Long Live the Cappadocian Candidate,
Legatus Herculius Polkarios, Princeps Senatus
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Already, the Orient has developed the genius plan of placing agreeable men on foreign thrones, who intern expand his own Empire.
Already successful twice, the Emperor hopes to bring the Ghassanid under the fold, but Leo Agapitus claims that this will not be the case should he claim the imperial throne in Iader.
It is also hoped that this war can be won solely by the virtue of professional soldiers, led by Tribunus Palatinae Artemios, and Legatus Augusti Maurikios Doukas.
The Ghassanids, though evenly numbered,were unable to shatter the Oriental legions, and the sheer mass of the shieldwall tore through the Arabs in the battle of Shabakah.
After a great many battles, the King was shattered, and was forced to acknowledge the rightful Assad back to the throne.
On the auspicious date of 666, the Oriens joined a war with the heretics.
Disregarding that petty war, the Oriental Emperor had a new, more ambitious plan in mind, and, on July 5th, barely 2 days after the death of the kind Caliph Aram,
war was made against Is'mail, the new Caliph.
A short while later, an new faction had arisen in Arabia and the Khurramite Qurayza Kingdom came to rule all of what is called Great Rabi'ah. The Khurramites are a heretical branch of Zoroastrianism, heavily influenced by Islam and Mazdakism, and highly anti-Caliphal, pro-Zoroastrian independence. A united Khurramite front will only spell later troubles for the Caliph, but for now, the enemy of Islam is the Orient.
The war began slowly, without any major conflicts, until the cataclysmic Battle of Qalat Sukkar, in which the Orientals faced a crippling defeat. Regrouping in Al Nadjaf, the legions reunited with the Emperor's and proceeded to crush the Arabs in the Second Battle of Qalat Sukkar.
The fate of the East was truly decided many days later, in the Battle of Wasit. Emperor against Caliph, Roman against Arab. The Emperor, not willing to put his beloved Mobad at risk, replaced him with the Corduenian Bedros Domitius, a masterful commander. One enemy flank was led by Azar ibn Murad, one of the Qurayza, and Mirza ibn Sa'daddin Ahmadid, another powerful ruler in the Caliphate. Early on, Mirza was killed on the field, and at the last minute, the Corduenian defeated the right flank, in time to relief the Emperor on the field. 3 days later, Maurikios Doukas barely surpassed the left flank, with the desert-men almost gaining the upper hand.
Barely succeeding, as the flanks began to falter, the Emperor charged forward, killing many and driving the Caliph from the fields. Many Arab lords were captured, and countless more were slain. Then, with the path open, the Emperor marched on Baghdad itself, but not before tracking the last remnants of the Caliph's armies, and engaging a secondary army of 7,000 mercenaries. And another massive army was brought to battle in the Battle of Badra.
This was the last force of the Arabs, with the rest of its wealth spent and its men dead. If the Caliph was to gain victory against the Orient, it would be in Badra. But the Emperor shone, defeating two flanks at the same time, as Maurikios had faltered. The Caliph was brought to Antioch in chains, and the war was over.
The Bridge has been Built:
- 1
Interlude: The Caliphal Prison
Darkness loomed among the cities of what was once called Kushanshahr, and the guards and rulers were wary
The great mountains, known as the Caliphal Prison in the west, are the Caliphate's greatest concern. 3 doorways stood between civilization and the horror and shadow of the Hidden Country.
3 doorways needed 3 guards. The Northern Gates, were the most dangerous, with the lands inhabited by the Hepthalites themselves. And so, the fierce and terrible Khaireddin were sent there, and the Kabul-Lords halted all attempts of movement from or to the Hidden Country.
The Central Door, was the most open, with the Khajid guarding the Kalash, a foreign and strange people, who, in their mountain home, practice a religion worshiping a divinity called Zun, the last remain of an ancient cult of an ancient kingdom.
The Southern Door was the least imperiled, with the Azamids, nobles not warriors guarding the Armail entrance. But, new fears came from Armail, as their leader,
Bahir ibn Azam Azamid, was in chains, trapped in the infidel's city of Antioch.
And so, the Caliphate was content to leave the Hordes behind the Prison, locked and forgotten, out of the minds of the House of Islam.
But those there, who tended the prisons, were not easily swayed. The great and powerful Kabul-Lord, the Keeper of the Northern Door, the Chieftain of the mighty Khaireddin stood in a different situation. All of Bactria was not ruled by Islam, but by Abarshahr, Zoroastrians, of the Xionite people. No longer adhering to the Hepthalite's barbaric religion, the Xionites still were a terror upon the Nasiraid, a wide and powerful vassal, often saved by the Khaireddin.
What more, the Hepthalite's religion still ran rampant, with the residents of Basra itself in adherence!
No, the Hordes were not yet imprisoned, they were not yet trapped in the Hidden Country, as they run free throughout the Caliphate, merely plotting the death of Islam.
Zeyd ibn Mahmud Khairedin had never been into the Hidden Country. Neither had his father, or any of his people. None in all of the Caliphate had ever returned from that land, save for the mysterious Greeks, Tzanichites, who fled across the Southern Door, destined to great havoc among the Romans, many screaming with a madness, a madness only seen in those who were lost in those darkened jungles. (The Absent-Minded, Cruel, Infirm, Possessed, or Lunatic traits are in over 65% of all Tzanichites) No, none came from the Horde Lands truly alive, not even the 40,000 strong army of Islam, which had destroyed the Sassanids, the Arabs, the Omani, the Kidarites, who stood prepared to sweep the world into Islam in nary a decade, all marched into the Hidden Country, never to return.
It was said by the Tzanichites that fled the Hordes, that no more than a thousand of the Hepthalites perished in that battle. The Hordes could not be stopped, so they must be contained.
One day, the Northern Door will be opened, and a new Horde, a Khaireddin Horde would pour into the Hidden Country, and they will charge the Hepthalite's dark cities, conquer their capital, and the Kabul-Lords will reign supreme.
One day.
Darkness loomed among the cities of what was once called Kushanshahr, and the guards and rulers were wary
The great mountains, known as the Caliphal Prison in the west, are the Caliphate's greatest concern. 3 doorways stood between civilization and the horror and shadow of the Hidden Country.
3 doorways needed 3 guards. The Northern Gates, were the most dangerous, with the lands inhabited by the Hepthalites themselves. And so, the fierce and terrible Khaireddin were sent there, and the Kabul-Lords halted all attempts of movement from or to the Hidden Country.
The Central Door, was the most open, with the Khajid guarding the Kalash, a foreign and strange people, who, in their mountain home, practice a religion worshiping a divinity called Zun, the last remain of an ancient cult of an ancient kingdom.
The Southern Door was the least imperiled, with the Azamids, nobles not warriors guarding the Armail entrance. But, new fears came from Armail, as their leader,
Bahir ibn Azam Azamid, was in chains, trapped in the infidel's city of Antioch.
And so, the Caliphate was content to leave the Hordes behind the Prison, locked and forgotten, out of the minds of the House of Islam.
But those there, who tended the prisons, were not easily swayed. The great and powerful Kabul-Lord, the Keeper of the Northern Door, the Chieftain of the mighty Khaireddin stood in a different situation. All of Bactria was not ruled by Islam, but by Abarshahr, Zoroastrians, of the Xionite people. No longer adhering to the Hepthalite's barbaric religion, the Xionites still were a terror upon the Nasiraid, a wide and powerful vassal, often saved by the Khaireddin.
What more, the Hepthalite's religion still ran rampant, with the residents of Basra itself in adherence!
No, the Hordes were not yet imprisoned, they were not yet trapped in the Hidden Country, as they run free throughout the Caliphate, merely plotting the death of Islam.
Zeyd ibn Mahmud Khairedin had never been into the Hidden Country. Neither had his father, or any of his people. None in all of the Caliphate had ever returned from that land, save for the mysterious Greeks, Tzanichites, who fled across the Southern Door, destined to great havoc among the Romans, many screaming with a madness, a madness only seen in those who were lost in those darkened jungles. (The Absent-Minded, Cruel, Infirm, Possessed, or Lunatic traits are in over 65% of all Tzanichites) No, none came from the Horde Lands truly alive, not even the 40,000 strong army of Islam, which had destroyed the Sassanids, the Arabs, the Omani, the Kidarites, who stood prepared to sweep the world into Islam in nary a decade, all marched into the Hidden Country, never to return.
It was said by the Tzanichites that fled the Hordes, that no more than a thousand of the Hepthalites perished in that battle. The Hordes could not be stopped, so they must be contained.
One day, the Northern Door will be opened, and a new Horde, a Khaireddin Horde would pour into the Hidden Country, and they will charge the Hepthalite's dark cities, conquer their capital, and the Kabul-Lords will reign supreme.
One day.
- 1
The icons are off track again (or still depending on how you define it).
Last edited:
Oh silly Slavic, what are you doing in India?Interlude: The Caliphal Prison
One day.
Okay, I've played quite a few chapters ahead, and my schedule is back on track, so updates will continue again with regularity.
