Out of the Steppe, Into the Fire

[Tristuskhan]

Cool update!

.... wrote by a good storyteller.

[Slim_Ghost]

You know what I first did as a Saka king?

Right at the begining I ordered all my men to gather and march to Patala, the fabled city of gold in India. It took me a painfully boring 20 years and 5 digits of debt to get there, but after I captured it I am rewarded with an insanely high-income city.
Of course, I wouldn't be able to recruit Sakan units for the time being. That will have to wait until I take over the surrounding cities after I cleared off my debt.

[theycallmetighty]

The Calm: Introduction

A short little update that I was too lazy to include in yesterdays post


"What can I do for you my Yabghu" said Moga as he and Hasa kneeled before Sapalbizes.

"Please rise, my friends. Although I do not hesitate to say my victory was great, I must admit I did not do it myself. No, I owe my victory to the gods, who gave me foresight and strength, my warriors who fought and died so bravely for me, and perhaps most of all you two. Moga, who has with his bravery saved me and my sons by sacrificing his own men. For that I will never forget you, and I will make sure my sons do not either. I grant you the lands of the southern pass, the tax income from the silk trade will make sure you live well."

"Thank you master!" Moga was a very young man, and for a man to rule over such wealthy lands was unheard of. He quickly took his leave after being excused by Sapalbizes.

"And you Hasa, have saved my life. I am indebted to you and humbly ask you to serve me as you did today."

"Of course my friend" spoke Hasa as he too shuffled out of the newly captured hall.

[theycallmetighty]

"Oxyboaxes chance has past, now it is my time."

The winter storm raged outside, snow fell relentlessly and blanketed the entire town, going unprotected into the open was something even the hardy riders of Saka Rauka were too frightened to attempt. Under normal conditions they would be grumbling and moaning to leave to leave Gava Haomavarga and stretch their horses. But today sitting in their huts draped in expensive blankets and watching the roar of the fire, they did not complain.

"He is a simple man and he took the simple approach. But he does not understand men, you cannot expect to hold there loyalty for long simply by winning glorious victories, soon enough a man with an even more glory will come along and were would you be then? stuck in some peasant town infected with plague.



No, the only way to truly hold a mans loyalty is through fear. Glory is fleeting, but fear will stay with a man for as long as the earth exists."

Zeionises shifted himself in his chair and rearranged his blankets.

"I want you to take this note and go to Alexandria Eschate. Find the Baktrian King and give it to him."

"Yes lord" replied the servant as he excused himself.

[Tristuskhan]

Slooow pace but it's still delectable, keep on going!

[theycallmetighty]

I was a bright day on the steppe, Sapalbizes had just come back from his daily chores and sat atop his horse as it trudged forward toward his encampment as he crested a slope he could see his family camp, but something was not right. The horses were gone. as he got closer he could see columns of smoke rising up from the camp. Something was definitely wrong, his horse as if reading his mind burst into a gallop. As Sapalbizes rode even closer , he saw the burning tents and horse carcasses. Sapalbizes jumped from his horse and ran to the camp his legs failed him when he saw his pregnant mother lying before the encampment, clutching her stomach. Sapalbizes crawled to her and put his arms around her only to find them stained with blood.

"They took her, they took your sister" She groaned.

Sapalbizes said nothing, but could feel the tears well up in his eyes.

"The Haoma drinkers took her."

Still Sapalbizes said nothing as he felt his mothers breathing stop. At this, his sorrow burst forth and Sapalbizes cried as he picked through the camp and saw his father with arrows in his back, and his brothers with their wounds.

then he heard a whisper, as if out of the blue skies

"This is from Aryandes"

Sapalbizes opened his eyes and began to get up but was stopped by the knife held to his throat. He wasted no time and landed the knife wielder a blow to the nose, and grabbed the dagger from beside his bed. Just as soon as he sprung up another attacker rushed at him. Sapalbizes stepped aside from him and plunged the dagger into his throat, quickly pulling it out and repeating the movement to the first attacker, dealt him his deathblow.

His guards rushed in to the room after hearing the commotion only to see that Sapalbizes was safe and the assassins dead.

**********
Only one hour later Sapalbizes sat in his chair as a man entered the dark room.

"This night their was an attempt on my life, which only by quickness of reflexes, and will of the gods I escaped. The Assassins made clear that they were in the employ of Aryandes, my one and only heir. You are the last remaining son that I can still trust, Oxyboaxes is clearly disloyal, and now it seems in his greed Aryandes wishes not to wait until I pass but and obtain the throne peacefully, but instead to grab it now for himself. Thus I turn to you my son, to help me keep my throne, which will now pass to you and not Aryandes.

"I will serve you faithfully and loyally, my lord." said Zeionises as he knelt before his father.

Zeionises voice indeed sounded grim with all the gravity that situation such as this would bring, but in the darkness, he smiled.

[theycallmetighty]

The storm

Sapalbizes was atop his horse staring off into the far off settlement. Ten years since the massacre of his family, and he had raided the Hoama drinkers with his band, then after killing many, he had warred with the saka chieftains, forcing his will on the. The clan had grown in size and Sapalbizes took a wife, and as more and more families joined his group he gained more power and fame. As soon as his sword was raised, he and his group galloped off to the camp, quickly gaining momentum, getting closer and closer to there hapless victims and then they were upon them. shooting arrows into backs of fleeing women cutting down unarmed men with the stroke of an axe, and taking children for prisoner. A flurry of great injustices committed in the space of a half hour and then it was over, and there sat Sapalbizes, just outside the smoldering ruin that once was a camp. Before him a line of men, all offering gifts.

"Ahura Mazda honors you, And I following his example do likewise great Yabghu."

"As tribute I give you a herd of my twenty best horses, and I pay homage to your power, Yabghu"

"You are a most gre..."

Sapalbizes rose from his mat and opened the flap of his tent, surveying the valley before him. After the assassination attempt, at the advice of his son Zeionises, Sapalbizes left Gava Hoamavarga to deal with a rebel problem while his son took care of Aryandes. His men had already had the fire going and were eating their breakfast.

“good morning Hasa, did you sleep well?”

“better than you it seems” replied Hasa.

“It has been weeks and we have not seen rebels, or anyone for that matter. I enjoy an expedition as much as the next man but I’m beginning to think there are no rebels”

“for a great lord, you have the patience of child Sapalbizes.”

“I’ll have you know that I once rode out into the steppe for two weeks by myself looking for steppe rabbits and took no food and did not come back until I had caught fifty of them”

Hasa was about to reply when a rider galloped into the camp, half stumbled of his horse and fell at the feet of Sapalbizes”

“Yabghu, an army, all blue, they are over that hill.” The rider pointed to the ridge, which gave the encampment shade. “they are many, so many”

Sapalbizes rode towards the ridge, Has right behind him.”

As they almost crested the hill Sapalbizes dismounted from his horse and crawled to the top of the hill, soon his head peaked over the crest of the ridge and he stared into the low ground before him.

[theycallmetighty]

its been gone for awhile, but now it's back, hopefully I can update more often now. The surprising thing is I actually got about 500 views in three week without updating once.

[Thaatu]

I'm glad you continued. Though it's still a few miles away, I can't wait to see an Indo-Saka kingdom.

[theycallmetighty]

thank you Thaatu, actually, as you'll see in the next update, if things don't go right there won't be an indo sakan kingdom. Or a sakan Kingdom for that matter.

[Chirurgeon]

awaits next update...

[Nikolaus]

i, too, am waiting for the update.