Legends of the Khan - WotK2 story thread
Enter the Khan
The young Turk was dragged to the Great Khan’s ger by his beard, his robes covered in dust and filth and his face and body bruised and bloodied by the rough treatment he had received from his Mongol captors.
In his right hand, knuckles white, he gripped the scroll, his reason for still breathing.
His tormentors stopped outside the large tent of skins, one of them shouting “no-khoi kho-rio!” before he drew back the flap and entered.
The Great Khan, Temujin, known as Genghis, sat at the back of the ger facing the entrance. On his right were his sons Aradai, Bayan and Nayuk. On his left, his grandsons Jebe and Chindu, followed by the generals Mengadai and Mamdu. Together they passed bowls of airag and drank heartily while regarding the Turk who lay panting on the rug-covered floor in front of them.
The moment of silence seemed to last forever before finally the Great Khan gestured and the two guards dragged the Turk to his feet. They pushed him and jabbed their fingers at the scroll.
The Turk broke the seal of Shah Mengli Giray of the Khwarezm and unfurled the scroll. He made to begin reading the message but choked on the dust in his throat and bent double, coughing uncontrollably. As his face reddened the assembled Mongols broke into fits of drunken laughter, their mirth at his discomfort uncontrollable.
The Khan barked an order and a bowl of airag was thrust at the Turk. He sniffed the sour, milky liquid before taking an experimental draught. Instantly as the fiery alcohol burned his throat he began coughing once more, worse than ever. His head began to swim. The Mongols laughed more uproariously than before.
Eventually he regained his composure and began to read from the scroll, his throat now warmed and loosened by the airag. The Khan and his family sat in silence as the Turkic words tumbled through the thick, stuffy air of the ger. When the Turk finished, he knelt on the floor and bowed his head to the Khan, awaiting a response.
Temujin turned to his translator, a Merkit by the name of Chuluun. “What does he say?”
Chuluun grimaced. How best to express the meaning? His Turkic was rusty, though he dare not tell the Khan this.
“Great Khan, he says that if you do not make peace he will send his grandfather to fight you.”
Temujin grunted. “This man’s grandfather?”
“No Great Khan, I understand him to mean the grandfather of his Shah.”
The ger erupted into laughter once more. Aradai in particular found this so funny he snorted airag out of his nostrils and down the front of his felt coat onto the rug below. The Great Khan did not laugh and as the others slowly realized this they suppressed their mirth and struggled to keep a straight face.
“What do we know of the Shah’s grandfather?” He appeared deadly serious. Chuluun was unsure.
“Ah…I…he is long dead my Khan.”
Jebe let out a giggle and strangled it quickly. Those around him held their breath, trying not to laugh.
Temujin squinted one eye in thought. “Does he say anything else?”
“Yes Great Khan, he says he will put a scorpion in your tent.”
Temujin frowned. “I have been stung by a scorpion before. It was not pleasant.”
All the while the Turk knelt waiting. He felt the eyes of the Mongols burrow into him as they stared. A long few moments of silence passed while the Khan thought.
“We will give him his answer. At Khiva, Urgench and Konjikala we will express the same point we expressed at Samarqand and in the same language. We shall trust in Great Tengri to deliver us from the vengeful shade of the Shah’s grandfather and in the evening my tent will be swept clean of scorpions.”
He gestured at the young Turk.
“Take this man from here and flay him alive. Subsequently cause him to be torn into four pieces by horses. If he dies before being separated thus you will yourself suffer the same fate. Then remove his head, place the Shah’s message in his mouth, dip his head in hot wax and send it to Mengli Giray at Embi where he skulks in his panic. Thus he shall have ample warning to summon his illustrious ancestor and send him against us if he so wishes.”
Seemingly satisfied, the Great Khan reclined and called for more airag.
The Turk was dragged from the ger by his beard, ignorant of the painful death that awaited him. As he departed the Mongols laughed cruelly once more.
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Re: Legends of the Khan: WotK2 story thread
After a long discussion with the Moorish Generals and trusted advisors, the Moorish Caliph decided to wage a war on the Kingdom of Portugal and destroy the tiny kingdom. Caliph Ayyub himself lead an army to besiege the mighty Portuguese Citadel-Capital of Oporto. The Moorish army under the Caliph was quite outnumbered by the portuguese. But reinforcements were marching to help the besieging army. Two armies, one under General Asim ibn Faris and another under General Mahbub ibn Mu'awiya were sent to help the Caliph. While Mahbub's army was sent from Leon, Asim lead his troops from Seville and decided to meet with the Caliph via the hills of Galicia and Estremadura. Another separate army under General Mu'awiya ibn Rashid was also quickly trailing the vanguard force. The Caliph's men were growing tired and became weak due to starvation. They were on the verge of deserting the siege. Every now and then the Portuguese harassed the small army under the Caliph. The Caliph was hesistant to attack the Citadel as he did not have enough siege machines to break down the inner walls. But when the reinforcements arrived with fresh supplies, the men rejoiced and were eager to assault. Asim ibn Faris knew that the fortress will need atleast half a dozen of trebuchets to bring down its walls and so he brought some with him. With the Siege machines ready and the men eager to fight, the Caliph signalled the assault. What followed was a bloody siege. The siege machines were bringing down the citadel walls, and the Portuguese started to lose heart. When all seemed to be going well for the Moors, an arrow struck Asim and he fell on the battlefield enjoying a noble death. This made the Moors to berserk and they started to butcher every single man on their way fearing little about death. In the end the Moors captured Oporto ending the Portuguese rule. The city was sacked and looted and Imams were called for converting the population.
With Oporto secure, and the Portguese destroyed, the Moors now turned their eyes towards mainland spain. The Moorish forces split up with a bulk of the force under Caliph Ayyub, Mahbub, Mu'awiya, Ahmad heading towards the city of Salamanca, while another one under Atiq ibn Nuh besieged Toledo. Atiq didnt have the enough siege machines to break the inner walls, but decided to go ahead with what he had. The outer walls fell but the moors ran out of ammo to bring down the inner walls. Leonese decided to sally out trying to rout the Moors by surprise. But when they opened the inner gates opened for the leonese forces to sally out, Atiq quickly rallied his forces and ordered them to quickly get through the gates. The Moors overwhelmed the Leonese and panic struck the ranks when they Leonese General fell. They broke ranks and were run down by the Moors. In the end, the moors won a convincing victory at Toledo. The Roman Empire was impressed at the recent incidents.
Meanwhile, at Salamanca, a moorish spy informed about a Leonese army marching towards the city to save it from Salamanca. But the Moors beat them to Salamanca and besieged it while the Caliph watched over the proceedings. Although they won a clear victory, the Caliph was concerned with the losses incurred and ordered for reinforcements to be sent immediately. With Seville, Oporto and Toledo secure, reinforcements was not a problem and were sent for immediately. Salamanca was exterminated to restore order.
