985 - 986 The Blood of Kings
985 - 986 The Blood of Kings
The Chieftains of Merya had chosen a new King. There was no band of malcontents to upset the election this time, no Lettigallian contingent to put one of the lesser Kardazid lines on the throne again. This time, the Chieftains were able to choose the son and heir to one of the most royal bloodlines amongst all of the 210 living Kardazids. A man from the senior surviving branch of King Erziya ‘the Bold’s bloodline. The new King was descended from the first two Kings of Merya, Erziya himself and King Dergun, through Dergun’s oldest son Azyren ‘the Youthful’ and his son, High Chief Kezhay of Vologda, (Kezhay’s older brother, Ovtay ‘the Cruel’, had died leaving no sons, only a daughter). And then from Kezhay’s oldest child., High Chief Uzhara of Vologda, to Uzhara’s only child, Chief Kichay of Tver, whose oldest son was now the chosen King.
Only the descendants of King Nuyat, son of Nuyat, could challenge the superiority of this bloodline, as they boasted three Kings in their lineage. But the first Nuyat had been Azyren’s little brother, and High Chief Kezhay of Vologda had been the closest challenger to Nuyat, son of Nuyat’s bid for the throne, only a few stray votes had kept him from his rightful place as King.
So crowning Velmayka Kardazid as King was just returning Merya to the course it should have been on already. There were some who argued that Velamyka’s father, Chief Kichay of Tver, should have been crowned, a brilliant strategist, proven warrior and shrewd and experienced man of the same impeccable bloodline. But the younger Chiefs, surprising led by the both the sons of King Syrka and the sons of his rival Nuyaksha ‘the Wise’, had banded together to choose the younger man, someone closer to their own age. So Velamyka became King, but his father became the heir.
King Velmayka was already an experienced warrior who had studied and mastered siegecraft and possessed a martial prowess almost the equal of his father’s despite being scarred and maimed, having lost a hand in the Battle of Yaroslavl during the war against Vladimir. He had been raised as the son of a Chief and a noble bloodline, so was a well-groomed young man, kind and hardworking with a lust for life, though he could be exceedingly stubborn at times.
Velmayka was the oldest of his father’s three sons, and second oldest of his six children, with an older sister named Pemka, who was married to Nishkepaz Nishkepazid, a bastard son of the late Chief of Mochkava and who had one daughter. Pemka was the spymaster of Mochkava, serving her husband’s nephew. Velmayka’s sister, Mel’Shay, was next in line, she was also married, to Dangeruthe Vidins, the son of Chief Gerden of Selija and Deltuva and heir to Deltuva. She had had a bastard daughter of her own. Then came 17-year old Deryab, who had just recently come age and was married to Sinyava Kardazid, the daughter of Chief Andyamo ‘the Just’ of Rzheva. Finally, there were the two youngest of his siblings, his half-sister, Chinzhay, and his half-brother, Paksyut. The three youngest remained in Tver with their parents, Chief Kichay and Chieftess Hüüp Ingeri, the mother to the four older children, and Mastorava Kardazid, Kichay’s concubine and mother to the two youngest children.
Velmayka, himself, was married to Tetyava ‘Dry-Throat’ Yaroslavlid, the daughter of Saksa Yaroslavlid, the Steward of Mozhaysk, and the late Tetyava Kardazid, who carried the bloodline of Erziya ‘the Bold’, though through the bastard Yaroslavlid line of the High Chiefs of Murom. She was a brave and virtuous young woman who had been well trained to manage everything from a household to a domain, this training would serve her well in her sudden rise to Queen of Merya. Her nickname ‘Dry Throat’ came from her friends who joked that she must always be parched as her temperate nature caused her to never quench her thirst as much as they did at gatherings.
The young couple had no children of their own, as of yet. They liked and respected each other, but it had been an arranged marriage, they had not married for love, but perhaps that would grow in time. Demonstrating that respect, one of Velmayka’s first acts as King was to name Queen Tetyava as the designated regent of Merya.
During Velmayka’s convalescence after he had been wounded and lost his hand, he had spent time considering the Gods’ plan for him. Why had he been spared at the Battle of Yaroslavl, when so many others had died? He would continue his studies and focus on theology even as he took of the reins of the Kingdom.
At the time of Syrka’s death, his domain had included eight major tribal villages, but the bulk of these territories had been inherited by three of his five surviving sons. Syrka’s oldest living son, Chief Tutyra of Peresyaslavl Zalesky, all of the Syrka’s tribal areas within in Polotsk, Lukoml, Vitebsk, and Orsha, as well as the title of High Chief of Polotsk. Tutyra had used his rise in rank to break his vassal contract with King Purysho ‘the Monster’ of Vladimir and declare his independence, yet he remained an ally in at least one of Vladimir’s wars. He was a dangerous and ambitious man with a claim on Velmayka’s crown, but for the moment they were allies in the war against King Gosciwuj ‘the Hunter’ of Sweden.
Syrka’s youngest son, 15-year old Inzhay, inherited the High Chiefdom of Turov and the two dejure territories of that title as well as Syrka’s original holdings in Syktyvkar. Inzhay also had a claim on the throne, but for now he was simply a seemingly loyal vassal.
And finally, Syrka’s most recent acquisition, Cheremisa, had gone to his son Viryas, the High Chief of Latgale. (Cheremisa and Tynea had been built up enough to avoid nomadic uprisings during the succession. But King Syrka's efforts to curb the nomads in Vorotynsk and Novosil were too little, too late. A Khazar nomad named Khatir has taken advantage of the King’s death to claim this territory for himself, and claim independence from Merya.)
So Velmayka inherited only the Royal Domain of the High Chiefdom of Merya and the tribal villages of Yaroslavl and Uglich. Of course, these were by far the most developed and richest villages in all of Merya. Velmayka had also gained control of the Merry Men, the most formidable war band in Merya and Syrka’s sizable war chest, which held some 700 gold. He also claimed the royal treasury, with the heirlooms and war trophies of the Kings of Merya, including the Kuninkaan Terä, the Blade of Kings. The well-balanced short sword was the perfect weapon for a one-handed King. The weapon had been long neglected, as it had seen little use by the crippled King Syrka, so Velmayka spent some of the overflowing war chest to put it to rights.
Once King Velmayka was settled in Yaroslavl, he took a look at the Council he had inherited. Three of King Syrka’s Councillors remained, the Voice of Merya, Chief Saksa 'the Shadow' of Merya and Tikhvine, the War Chief, High Chief Suni II of Iceland, and the Steward, Chief Valto of Belo Ozero. The positions of spymaster and Diviner were empty. Velamyka decided to leave the current Councillors in place, though he quickly learned there was some rivalry among them, as almost immediately Chief Saksa accused High Chief Suni of slandering the new King, and presented evidence of this. Velmayka was not sure how much of this to believe, so he decided to keep the information to himself until he got to know both men better.
But it did indicate that he was in need of a spymaster as soon as possible. He chose High Chief Num of Nidaros, who had just usurped the title of Jamtland from his nephew Yadne. Yadne had, like his father before him, embraced the Tengri religion. His removal had for some reason triggered a revolt among the Norse peasants in Jamtland, but High Chief Num had been expecting the unrest and had dealt with it personally, saving Velmayka the trouble.
For the Royal diviner, Velmayka invited a well-known Komi scholar and adventurer named Koksha Viryayid to Yaroslavl to serve as the court diviner and help Velmayka with his own theological studies. Koksha eagerly accepted the invitation, as his days of adventure were behind him, as he suffered from a touch of gout. He and wife Yiltis soon arrived.
With his his Council now filled out, Velmayka now turned his attention to the two Vladimir wars King Syrka had committed Merya to. The Meryan army had taken point in the Vladimirian Conquest of Käkisalmi while the Vladimirian army was focused on defending against the subjugation by Estonia. King Syrka had had little desire to fight his son in-law King Nalka and his pregnant daughter Queen Sochava, even though his suzerain contract had forced him to join the war. The Meryan army had already captured Käkisalmi and sent prisoners back to Merya and had won a brief skirmish at Raivola, adding another prisoner, commander Hakon Skarfr, the son of the Chief of Käkisalmi. Eskild of Käkisalmi was quick to pay ransom for his only surviving son.
The Meryan army then captured Uusimaa and took the brilliant Skuld af Austergautland, the wife of Bo of Uusimaa, prisoner. Bo was also eager to ransom his wife, but the lustful King Velmayka instead claimed Skuld as his first concubine. She was unhappy to be separated from her son, Dan Bosson, but her ambition saw the advantages of being the concubine of the powerful King of Merya, as Velmayka showered her with gifts. Bo of Uusimaa swore venegeance against King Velmayka for stealing his wife. But that didn’t stop him from soon taking another wife, a Pomeranian woman named Zdenka z Rujani.
The capture of Uusimaa was enough to get King Gosciwuj ‘the Hunter’ of Sweden to surrender Käkisalmi to King Purysho of Vladimir. This returned the Suomenusko Holy site of Raivola back to the control of a Suomenusko King. This meant all five of the holiest sites of the Suomenusko Gods were safely in the hands of the Suomenusko faithful, though only two, Pereyaslavl Ryazanski and Perm, were within the boundaries of Merya. Raivola and Solsty in Novgorod were controlled by Vladimir and Hiiumaa was in Estonia.
With the war against Sweden over, Velmayka was free to lead his army against Estonia. He did not have the personal connections to the King of Estonia to make him hold back his aid as King Syrka had. In Izborsk, King Velamyka led 5,000 Meryans against 1,200 Estonians led by King Nalka. Half of the Estonians were killed, while Velmayka lost only 38 men. His first victory as King.
But while Velmayka was leading men in battle, his wife was straying. Word soon reached Velmayka that Queen Tetyava was pregnant. He knew he could not be the father and sent a spy to find out the truth. It was soon discovered that High Chief Viryas of Latgale, one of King Syrka’s sons, was the true father of the child. Tetyava pleaded that Viryas had seduced her, taking advantage her jealousy that Velmayka had taken Skuld as his concubine, and she had strayed just once in a moment of weakness. But Velmayka had not forgiven her, despite her excuses, and revealed her adultery.
But before her adultery had been revealed while the King was still away at war, Queen Tetyava had been proclaimed the Queen of the Harvest by the King’s Council, in Velmayka’s name, at the festival that was held in Yaroslavl and she had won the love of the peasants. The shaman had blessed her pregnancy and her unborn bastard. This made had made it politically impossible for Velmayka to divorce her or do anything else to her. She soon secluded her self to not flaunt her adultery before the King and the people of Yaroslavl. The strain of her adultery was effecting her mental stability though.
King Velmayka continued to fight the war, defeating the remnants of the Estonian army in the Battle of Latgale. This was followed by the Battle of Ledurga, not against an Estonian army, but an allied army. With the victory at Ledurga, King Nalka called off his war to subjugate Vladimir. Velmayka’s inherited obligations from King Syrka were now resolved.
He returned home to find his wife with her new born son, the bastard, Murunza Viryasid.
The Chieftains of Merya had chosen a new King. There was no band of malcontents to upset the election this time, no Lettigallian contingent to put one of the lesser Kardazid lines on the throne again. This time, the Chieftains were able to choose the son and heir to one of the most royal bloodlines amongst all of the 210 living Kardazids. A man from the senior surviving branch of King Erziya ‘the Bold’s bloodline. The new King was descended from the first two Kings of Merya, Erziya himself and King Dergun, through Dergun’s oldest son Azyren ‘the Youthful’ and his son, High Chief Kezhay of Vologda, (Kezhay’s older brother, Ovtay ‘the Cruel’, had died leaving no sons, only a daughter). And then from Kezhay’s oldest child., High Chief Uzhara of Vologda, to Uzhara’s only child, Chief Kichay of Tver, whose oldest son was now the chosen King.
Only the descendants of King Nuyat, son of Nuyat, could challenge the superiority of this bloodline, as they boasted three Kings in their lineage. But the first Nuyat had been Azyren’s little brother, and High Chief Kezhay of Vologda had been the closest challenger to Nuyat, son of Nuyat’s bid for the throne, only a few stray votes had kept him from his rightful place as King.
So crowning Velmayka Kardazid as King was just returning Merya to the course it should have been on already. There were some who argued that Velamyka’s father, Chief Kichay of Tver, should have been crowned, a brilliant strategist, proven warrior and shrewd and experienced man of the same impeccable bloodline. But the younger Chiefs, surprising led by the both the sons of King Syrka and the sons of his rival Nuyaksha ‘the Wise’, had banded together to choose the younger man, someone closer to their own age. So Velamyka became King, but his father became the heir.
King Velmayka was already an experienced warrior who had studied and mastered siegecraft and possessed a martial prowess almost the equal of his father’s despite being scarred and maimed, having lost a hand in the Battle of Yaroslavl during the war against Vladimir. He had been raised as the son of a Chief and a noble bloodline, so was a well-groomed young man, kind and hardworking with a lust for life, though he could be exceedingly stubborn at times.
Velmayka was the oldest of his father’s three sons, and second oldest of his six children, with an older sister named Pemka, who was married to Nishkepaz Nishkepazid, a bastard son of the late Chief of Mochkava and who had one daughter. Pemka was the spymaster of Mochkava, serving her husband’s nephew. Velmayka’s sister, Mel’Shay, was next in line, she was also married, to Dangeruthe Vidins, the son of Chief Gerden of Selija and Deltuva and heir to Deltuva. She had had a bastard daughter of her own. Then came 17-year old Deryab, who had just recently come age and was married to Sinyava Kardazid, the daughter of Chief Andyamo ‘the Just’ of Rzheva. Finally, there were the two youngest of his siblings, his half-sister, Chinzhay, and his half-brother, Paksyut. The three youngest remained in Tver with their parents, Chief Kichay and Chieftess Hüüp Ingeri, the mother to the four older children, and Mastorava Kardazid, Kichay’s concubine and mother to the two youngest children.
Velmayka, himself, was married to Tetyava ‘Dry-Throat’ Yaroslavlid, the daughter of Saksa Yaroslavlid, the Steward of Mozhaysk, and the late Tetyava Kardazid, who carried the bloodline of Erziya ‘the Bold’, though through the bastard Yaroslavlid line of the High Chiefs of Murom. She was a brave and virtuous young woman who had been well trained to manage everything from a household to a domain, this training would serve her well in her sudden rise to Queen of Merya. Her nickname ‘Dry Throat’ came from her friends who joked that she must always be parched as her temperate nature caused her to never quench her thirst as much as they did at gatherings.
The young couple had no children of their own, as of yet. They liked and respected each other, but it had been an arranged marriage, they had not married for love, but perhaps that would grow in time. Demonstrating that respect, one of Velmayka’s first acts as King was to name Queen Tetyava as the designated regent of Merya.
During Velmayka’s convalescence after he had been wounded and lost his hand, he had spent time considering the Gods’ plan for him. Why had he been spared at the Battle of Yaroslavl, when so many others had died? He would continue his studies and focus on theology even as he took of the reins of the Kingdom.
At the time of Syrka’s death, his domain had included eight major tribal villages, but the bulk of these territories had been inherited by three of his five surviving sons. Syrka’s oldest living son, Chief Tutyra of Peresyaslavl Zalesky, all of the Syrka’s tribal areas within in Polotsk, Lukoml, Vitebsk, and Orsha, as well as the title of High Chief of Polotsk. Tutyra had used his rise in rank to break his vassal contract with King Purysho ‘the Monster’ of Vladimir and declare his independence, yet he remained an ally in at least one of Vladimir’s wars. He was a dangerous and ambitious man with a claim on Velmayka’s crown, but for the moment they were allies in the war against King Gosciwuj ‘the Hunter’ of Sweden.
Syrka’s youngest son, 15-year old Inzhay, inherited the High Chiefdom of Turov and the two dejure territories of that title as well as Syrka’s original holdings in Syktyvkar. Inzhay also had a claim on the throne, but for now he was simply a seemingly loyal vassal.
And finally, Syrka’s most recent acquisition, Cheremisa, had gone to his son Viryas, the High Chief of Latgale. (Cheremisa and Tynea had been built up enough to avoid nomadic uprisings during the succession. But King Syrka's efforts to curb the nomads in Vorotynsk and Novosil were too little, too late. A Khazar nomad named Khatir has taken advantage of the King’s death to claim this territory for himself, and claim independence from Merya.)
So Velmayka inherited only the Royal Domain of the High Chiefdom of Merya and the tribal villages of Yaroslavl and Uglich. Of course, these were by far the most developed and richest villages in all of Merya. Velmayka had also gained control of the Merry Men, the most formidable war band in Merya and Syrka’s sizable war chest, which held some 700 gold. He also claimed the royal treasury, with the heirlooms and war trophies of the Kings of Merya, including the Kuninkaan Terä, the Blade of Kings. The well-balanced short sword was the perfect weapon for a one-handed King. The weapon had been long neglected, as it had seen little use by the crippled King Syrka, so Velmayka spent some of the overflowing war chest to put it to rights.
Once King Velmayka was settled in Yaroslavl, he took a look at the Council he had inherited. Three of King Syrka’s Councillors remained, the Voice of Merya, Chief Saksa 'the Shadow' of Merya and Tikhvine, the War Chief, High Chief Suni II of Iceland, and the Steward, Chief Valto of Belo Ozero. The positions of spymaster and Diviner were empty. Velamyka decided to leave the current Councillors in place, though he quickly learned there was some rivalry among them, as almost immediately Chief Saksa accused High Chief Suni of slandering the new King, and presented evidence of this. Velmayka was not sure how much of this to believe, so he decided to keep the information to himself until he got to know both men better.
But it did indicate that he was in need of a spymaster as soon as possible. He chose High Chief Num of Nidaros, who had just usurped the title of Jamtland from his nephew Yadne. Yadne had, like his father before him, embraced the Tengri religion. His removal had for some reason triggered a revolt among the Norse peasants in Jamtland, but High Chief Num had been expecting the unrest and had dealt with it personally, saving Velmayka the trouble.
For the Royal diviner, Velmayka invited a well-known Komi scholar and adventurer named Koksha Viryayid to Yaroslavl to serve as the court diviner and help Velmayka with his own theological studies. Koksha eagerly accepted the invitation, as his days of adventure were behind him, as he suffered from a touch of gout. He and wife Yiltis soon arrived.
With his his Council now filled out, Velmayka now turned his attention to the two Vladimir wars King Syrka had committed Merya to. The Meryan army had taken point in the Vladimirian Conquest of Käkisalmi while the Vladimirian army was focused on defending against the subjugation by Estonia. King Syrka had had little desire to fight his son in-law King Nalka and his pregnant daughter Queen Sochava, even though his suzerain contract had forced him to join the war. The Meryan army had already captured Käkisalmi and sent prisoners back to Merya and had won a brief skirmish at Raivola, adding another prisoner, commander Hakon Skarfr, the son of the Chief of Käkisalmi. Eskild of Käkisalmi was quick to pay ransom for his only surviving son.
The Meryan army then captured Uusimaa and took the brilliant Skuld af Austergautland, the wife of Bo of Uusimaa, prisoner. Bo was also eager to ransom his wife, but the lustful King Velmayka instead claimed Skuld as his first concubine. She was unhappy to be separated from her son, Dan Bosson, but her ambition saw the advantages of being the concubine of the powerful King of Merya, as Velmayka showered her with gifts. Bo of Uusimaa swore venegeance against King Velmayka for stealing his wife. But that didn’t stop him from soon taking another wife, a Pomeranian woman named Zdenka z Rujani.
The capture of Uusimaa was enough to get King Gosciwuj ‘the Hunter’ of Sweden to surrender Käkisalmi to King Purysho of Vladimir. This returned the Suomenusko Holy site of Raivola back to the control of a Suomenusko King. This meant all five of the holiest sites of the Suomenusko Gods were safely in the hands of the Suomenusko faithful, though only two, Pereyaslavl Ryazanski and Perm, were within the boundaries of Merya. Raivola and Solsty in Novgorod were controlled by Vladimir and Hiiumaa was in Estonia.
With the war against Sweden over, Velmayka was free to lead his army against Estonia. He did not have the personal connections to the King of Estonia to make him hold back his aid as King Syrka had. In Izborsk, King Velamyka led 5,000 Meryans against 1,200 Estonians led by King Nalka. Half of the Estonians were killed, while Velmayka lost only 38 men. His first victory as King.
But while Velmayka was leading men in battle, his wife was straying. Word soon reached Velmayka that Queen Tetyava was pregnant. He knew he could not be the father and sent a spy to find out the truth. It was soon discovered that High Chief Viryas of Latgale, one of King Syrka’s sons, was the true father of the child. Tetyava pleaded that Viryas had seduced her, taking advantage her jealousy that Velmayka had taken Skuld as his concubine, and she had strayed just once in a moment of weakness. But Velmayka had not forgiven her, despite her excuses, and revealed her adultery.
But before her adultery had been revealed while the King was still away at war, Queen Tetyava had been proclaimed the Queen of the Harvest by the King’s Council, in Velmayka’s name, at the festival that was held in Yaroslavl and she had won the love of the peasants. The shaman had blessed her pregnancy and her unborn bastard. This made had made it politically impossible for Velmayka to divorce her or do anything else to her. She soon secluded her self to not flaunt her adultery before the King and the people of Yaroslavl. The strain of her adultery was effecting her mental stability though.
King Velmayka continued to fight the war, defeating the remnants of the Estonian army in the Battle of Latgale. This was followed by the Battle of Ledurga, not against an Estonian army, but an allied army. With the victory at Ledurga, King Nalka called off his war to subjugate Vladimir. Velmayka’s inherited obligations from King Syrka were now resolved.
He returned home to find his wife with her new born son, the bastard, Murunza Viryasid.