Gnarl: Caliphs and Kings: Concluding the Gnarl Trilogy

By Jeff Hopkins

There have been twenty years of peace and prosperity in the known world, but the bellicose Ali-Ali from the Caliphate in the south threatens all of that. He has formulated an audacious plan to turn the young King Louis of the Great Ocean City State against his father, Lord Gnarl, and conquer the City State in the north.

Two decades of rule has seen Lord Gnarl consult less and trust his own judgement almost exclusively. It is a dangerous developing flaw in his character. As a result, he is becoming increasingly distant from his family and friends and now appears estranged from both his twin sons.

Lured into a trap, Lord Gnarl becomes a hostage in a diabolical scheme characterised by a striving for power and revenge. Aurelien, who is a lot more than a Head Gardener, recruits Serheed, a survivor, to attempt to rectify the deteriorating situation. In his mission Serheed gets extra security from some alchemical experiments, which allow him to turn the tide of despair, with courage and determination.

Battling a bitterly cold winter, Lord Gnarl is locked in a life and death struggle to survive. He experiences heartbreaking loss, demonstrates great bravery, and remembers some important skills long forgotten. For Lord Gnarl, it is a desperate attempt, and compelling desire, to travel back home and seek forgiveness and redemption.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Tellwell Talent
• Release date: Aug 16, 2020
• ISBN: 9781922440303

Jeff Hopkins

Jeff Hopkins (1950) is a retired schoolteacher. He lives in Walyalup, Western Australia. Walyalup which means 'lungs' is the Whadjuk name for Fremantle, and is part of the Noongar Nation. As the drama master at Hale School in Perth, he wrote ten original musical plays and produced and directed them at the school.In 1992, he researched and wrote a family history, 'Life's Race Well Run', and after retiring in 2006 he has written twenty novels, a memoir, and three 'faction' biographies.

Book preview

Part One

Summer

Chapter 1:

The State of the Known World

More than two decades of peace and prosperity passed in the known world. Even the physical environment seemed to be unusually settled. There had been no earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, or unexpected weather events causing floods, drought, or fires. The seasonal variations were predictable, and farmers sowed their crops, watched them grow and flourish, and harvested them at the same time each year. Harvest festivals came and went and were duly celebrated. Those who herded sheep and cattle had little difficulty in breeding seasons, and saw their flocks and herds expand and their beasts grow large and strong on good reliable pastures. No pandemics swept through the known world as they had done in the past, causing untold death and grief. It was a good time!

However, there had been some changes. In the Ocean City state in the west, King Francis had died. The old King aged gracefully, content in the knowledge that his line of succession had been secured, and he took great joy in watching his grand­son, Louis, develop from a boy into a young man. Even the old King’s death did not have any of the usual dramas associated with the passing of a monarch. He simply went to his bed one night and did not wake up the next morning.

Louis Francis Gnarl Genet, the second son of Lord Gnarl and Lady Jolie, became King of the Ocean City State in the west. Louis was one of twin boys born to Lord Gnarl and Lady Jolie of the City State in the north. In an unusual prenuptial arrangement, King Francis insisted that his daughter, Lady Jolie’s, second son be sent to him to groom as his heir. This had been done when the boy was just six months old. Now he was the ruler of the Great Ocean City State in west. His elder brother, by just thirty minutes, Jeorg, was the heir apparent to Lord Gnarl who continued to rule in his City State.

Young King Louis was crowned during his eighteenth year. His childhood had been idyllic even though he was brought up by his grandfather, and the court of the Ocean City State, and his parents lived a long way away in another City State. He was educated in the classical way, and was encouraged to learn to play a number of musical instruments. At eight years of age he had shown a fascination for dance, and a ballet master was employed at the palace to teach the finer points of that art to the little boy. He proved to be a lithe and athletic pupil. There was no compulsory military service in the Ocean City State, as there was in the City State in the north, but Louis’ physical training was not neglected. He was taught to fence and then fight with a heavier sword, and his ballet skills made him light on his feet, and quite exceptional in mock combat.

In his quieter moments, he loved to read and the young King immersed himself in books that dealt with history and the legend and the lore. He was particularly fascinated by stories of warrior princes, and heroes of the past, who risked their lives in the fight for justice and the rule of law, and had torrid love affairs along the way. By age sixteen, Prince Louis found himself hopelessly infatuated with a maid from the palace kitchens, and he discovered the pleasures of intimacy with her. Once he had tasted the fruits of the flesh, Louis indulged himself freely, and gained a reputation as a very keen and capable lover, and young women were only too willing to surrender to physical entangle­ments with the young King to be.

In the City State in the north, Lord Gnarl was now in the twenty-second year of his reign. For the most part, in his first decade as ruler, Lord Gnarl had displayed strength, wisdom and fairness. He had sought to provide justice for all, and improve the living standards of the poorest people in the City State. His marriage to Princess Jolie had been a happy and fruitful one. Apart from the twin boys, Jeorg and Louis, the Princess, now known as Lady Jolie, had delivered three more healthy children. Two girls Goljan and Jargent and a third son who Lord Gnarl and Lady Jolie agreed should be called Genjeisle. He quickly became known in the family as ‘Genje’.

Lord Gnarl and Lady Jolie were a partnership and worked hard to maintain the welfare of their people. Lady Jolie championed the causes of women and children in the City State, while Lord Gnarl concentrated his efforts on maintaining security and prosperity through building trade relations with other City States. They both collaborated on the extensive building works in the capital, that saw it transformed into a beautiful destination. Many travellers came to admire the buildings, parks, fountains and lakes that now formed part of the City.

Then things began to change. Lady Jolie tended to set the agenda and drive innovative programmes, which Lord Gnarl supported, but in which he did not actively participate. When he approached his fortieth-year Lord Gnarl became distracted and somewhat distant. Where once he only took decisions after careful consultation, and lots of time to reflect upon his proposed actions, he now seemed much more impulsive. He consulted less, and trusted his own judgement almost exclusively. He was prevented from making some catastrophic errors only by the intervention of Lady Jolie.

Visits to his foster parents, Cuanzo and Shiedel, who had for so long been his sounding boards, and given him such wise counsel, became rare. He never stayed in the little cottage to share in Shiedel’s wonderful meals, or went fishing with the retired naval commander, Cuanzo. Rumours began to circulate that Lord Gnarl had become a different man to the one who had saved his City State from invasion by the Caliphate in the south, over two decades ago, and been such an impressive young ruler in the first ten years of his reign.

Part of the change in Lord Gnarl could be put down to his relationship with, and attitude to, his son and heir, Jeorg. He seemed disappointed in the boy, who had now become a young man. This situation was exacerbated when news that Louis, his second son, had been crowned King of the Ocean City State in the west. In quiet contemplative moments, Lord Gnarl wondered whether he had done the right thing in signing that now infamous prenuptial agreement which seemed to have cost him so much. Although he never shared the thought with anyone, it did cross his mind that perhaps he had sent the wrong son to the Ocean City State to be groomed as their future King. Lord Gnarl had become a deeply troubled man.

As a consequence, he did not attempt to train Jeorg for the role he must ultimately undertake, and he avoided involving him in any major decisions of state. Jeorg sensed he was being ‘shut out’ by his father and every attempt he made to impress Lord Gnarl, and seek his approval, seemed to fall flat. Lady Jolie saw the developing situation. At first, she thought, that given time, there would be a resolution to this distance between her husband and eldest son, but as the years passed she became more and more concerned. She drew Jeorg closer to her and tried to prepare him for leadership, but this only seemed to annoy Lord Gnarl who eventually stated, in an unguarded moment, that Jeorg had become ‘a mother’s boy’. It was a hurtful remark that cut very deep.

Lord Gnarl’s great friend Kyler, the palace baker, continued to bake the palace bread requirements. This included the day to day consumption and the bread and cakes that needed to be provided on special feast days and celebrations. Kyler and his wife, Ygritte, had completed their family with two more boys. They now had four children. Yarrick, the eldest son, had concluded his military training and had gone to work at the stables of his ageing Grandfather, Tey, who was struggling with the demands of running the stables in his declining years. Yarrick was an enormous help and was shouldering most of the workload now.

Yarrick and Ygritte were also chiefly responsible for the horse breeding establishment in the hinterland. Kyler had asked Lord Gnarl for the grant of this land, and he and Ygritte, and their expanding family, had meticulously developed the undulating property, outside the City walls. They now employed many people, who found them to be fair and generous employers. Kyler’s grey Arab stallion, Harkeem, had served mares on the property for many years and his progeny were eagerly sought after. Sadly, in his twentieth year, Harkeem died, and Kyler had him buried, standing up and facing east towards the land of his birth.

In the first years of the horse breeding establishment, Ygritte’s father, Tey, had travelled widely throughout the known world and purchased heavy horse sires and mares, which were shipped back to the City State in the north. They formed the basis of the heavy horse breeding programme, which Lord Gnarl had made a condition of the grant of land to Kyler. The heavy horses that were bred, broken in and trained on Kyler’s land, formed the basis of the City State’s cavalry division. This was part of Lord Gnarl’s vision for an expanded military that would be ready to respond if any unexpected events occurred that threatened the peace. Ygritte was always at Tey’s stables or the breeding estab­lishment to advise Yarrick on how he might go about certain tasks. She became a highly-respected woman of energy and enterprise with the City State.

The life of the palace baker’s family was happy and fulfilling, but Kyler had just one regret. He no longer enjoyed almost unlimited access to Lord Gnarl, who seemed to have forgotten, or had chosen to no longer remember, the friendship and adventures they had shared as young men. Kyler became concerned for his Lord, but remained silent on the matter.

The Cosmopolitan City in the east had proved to be the most problematic area in the known world. As a transit point linking the mysterious lands to the far east with the City States, to its west and south, it had proved unstable. A succession of rulers had come and gone in the past two decades. Sibling rivalries for power had seen established rulers murdered and replaced, and then the inevitable retribution for such actions saw only short periods of stable rule. At times the civil strife in the Cosmopolitan City unsettled the other City States’ and Caliphate rulers. They feared the internal troubles might precipitate a larger conflict perhaps even disrupt the current peace. At the very least the uncertainty did threaten existing trade arrangements. Some of the more belligerent nobles, and advisors in other City States, and the Caliphate, suggested the Cosmopolitan City in the east was ripe for invasion and conquest. They realised it could provide great wealth and future trading monopolies. No one took the opportunity to break the peace, and the Cosmopolitan City remained a vibrant, if concerning, centre of commerce and trade.

In the two decades without a major war, knowledge of the areas outside the known world became a little less shrouded in mystery. Adventurers had speculated on another major centre of civilisation that lay far to the east beyond all those lands that were currently thought to exist. A few brave travellers had set out to confirm this possibility, but they had disappeared without trace.

The sea that lay to the west of the Great Ocean City had not been explored. Vessels plied their trade close to the shore and often in sight of known lands, and were never tempted to risk their lives and cargoes by venturing too far out to sea. There was a famous revelation when a shipwrecked sailor was washed ashore on the southern extremity of the coast of the Great Ocean City State. He claimed that his Captain’s ship had been blown off course far to the south and west and had chanced upon a beautiful island paradise, which he described as one of the most perfect places he had ever seen. However, when they attempted the return voyage to bring this news to the known world, their ship had floundered in a storm and then foundered on a rocky outcrop. The sailor was the only survivor. His story was reported and repeated, and then largely forgotten, except by one or two brave seamen who dreamed of one day emulating the voyage and perhaps seeing the fabulous island.

In the Caliphate in the south, the old Caliph had died under suspicious circumstances. Although he was full of years, the old man seemed spritely enough, until one night, celebrating at a sumptuous banquet, he suddenly collapsed clutching his throat, as if he was finding it difficult to breathe. The chief physicians in the Caliphate, whose reputation for diagnosing and healing difficult conditions was legendary in the known world, were called to attend to old Caliph. Even their exquisite skills could not save the dying man and he succumbed in the most horrible and excruciating pain. Two physicians exchanged knowing glances when they smelt the dead Caliph’s breath, but they said nothing. To voice their suspicions would probably have only resulted in their own demise.

The dead Caliph’s first-born son, Ali-Ali succeeded him. Ali-Ali had gained a reputation for ruthlessness, and undertaking any strategy that would allow him to enforce his will upon his people. Some rumours, spoken only in whispers, suggested that Ali-Ali had poisoned his father to gain power. It was dangerous to speak of these suspicions, and wise men kept their own counsel on this matter. Once he was installed as the new Caliph, there was no doubting Ali-Ali’s ambition. He not only wanted to rule the Caliphate in the south, he had set his sights on becoming ruler of the known world.

Chapter 2:

The Ambitions and Proclivities

of Ali-Ali

The new ruler of the Caliphate in the south was not a man with which to be trifled. He was tall, clearly above the average height of most men, and he moved elegantly. Ali-Ali had a magnificent body, with glowing olive skin, which he loved to display. Once he became the new Caliph, he quickly abandoned the traditional flowing white robes. He would often appear in public wearing only ballooning pantaloons of sheer material, through which his legs could be clearly seen and a tight-fitting gold decorative jerkin, open at the front, which showed most of his bare arms and chest. He eschewed the traditional turban, and wore instead a woven golden headband, which held his long anthracite black hair in place. As footwear, he chose open-toed sandals. He always carried a dagger, the hilt of which was decorated with precious stones. The dagger was held in a jewel encrusted scabbard attached to a woven golden belt secured around his waist. He presented as the epitome of the warrior prince.

Ali-Ali was also an arrogant young man who had supreme confidence in his own abilities, and believed he had a divine right to rule. He thought he was infallible in his decision making, and when he set his sights upon a particular course, he believed that the Gods would favour him and he would always get what he wanted. Ali-Ali had not been disappointed so far in this view of himself.

The wives of Ali-Ali were not treated well. Rumours, again only spoken in whispers, in discreet locations, suggested that Ali-Ali had strangled a number of his wives who had not satisfied him in his love making. There was also muttered talk that he took handsome young soldiers, or sailors, to his bed. Palace gossips were able to confirm, to the best of their knowledge, that this had happened on one occasion only.

Ali-Ali favoured his daughters, but treated his sons badly. Most were castrated at an early age, and attended the court as eunuchs. A few favourite sons, who resembled their father, in many physical aspects, were spared castration and were sent away to a military camp, or a naval shipyard, where they were brought up under the strictest discipline and harshest lifestyle. This was done with just a handful of his sons, but the Caliph failed to keep careful records of where his male offspring had been sent, and as a consequence, he lost contact with most of them. Ali-Ali intended one of these boys to be his successor, and they were to be taught to be physically strong and to work hard, in complete ignorance of their future prospects, until Ali-Ali was satisfied which one he was going to choose. However, he never gave the succession much thought, and so some of his exiled sons grew up not knowing their father, and the Caliph simply forgot about them.

When he assumed the role as ruler of the Caliphate, Ali-Ali immediately began rebuilding his military and naval forces, which had been neglected in the final years of his father’s reign. When the young King Louis assumed the throne of the Ocean City in the west, Ali-Ali set his sights on that place as a vulnerable location, ripe for conquest, and the extension of his power. He calculated that if he could capture the Ocean City in the west, and strike up an alliance with Lord Gnarl’s second son; he could then move on Lord Gnarl’s City State in the north both by land, across the alpine route, and from the south by sea. He planned to put right the humiliating defeat the young Lord Gnarl had inflicted on his father’s Caliphate a generation ago. If he succeeded Ali-Ali knew he would be ruler of more than half of the known world and then he could pursue his ambitions in the Cosmopolitan City in the east and beyond.

When the whim took him, Ali-Ali would advise the Commander of one of his military barracks or the Admiral in charge of one of the five naval shipyards, that they were to select the twelve best young men they had under their command and send them to the palace for his favourite sport, which had become known as the sacrificial games. Everyone knew what this meant. The selected twelve would be put through almost impossible physical tasks for the Caliph’s pleasure and amusement. Sometimes he would even participate himself in the combat games, just to prove how strong and potent he was. The diabolical catch was that at the end of the games one of the twelve chosen would be killed. This might occur to the man who proved least able in the various tasks, or sometimes, when all twelve seemed to be equal in their skills, Ali-Ali would simply select one at random, or by ballot, and they would be executed. The Caliph used to tell the twelve chosen at the start of the games that:

‘If you want to rule, you must learn to exercise power through sacrifice.’

On the day that Serheed arrived with his eleven naval shipmates he knew full well what faced him or one of his friends. He seemed strangely at ease with the situation and was looking forward to seeing the legendary Caliph up close, despite what the outcome might be.

Ali-Ali had instructed his builders to create a special area in the palace gardens where his sacrificial games could be conducted. It was a high walled enclosure which included a large artificial lake designed for swimming, diving or staged war games on water. There was also a square tournament area. This was large enough for horses to manoeuvre easily and was covered in soft sand that made hand to hand combat even more stressful because the combatants could not easily get a strong foothold and secure their stance. There was a viewing platform built into the wall on the western side of the enclosure and this is where Ali-Ali positioned himself to watch the contests. His personal bodyguards were positioned around him on the raised level and spaced along the walls to ensure the Caliph’s safety. No other spectators were permitted.

The overseer, who was an imposing figure in full combat dress, marched Serheed and his eleven companions into the enclosure, and made them stand in line abreast. They were dressed in their naval outfits, which consisted of pantaloons gathered at the ankle and tied around the waist with a cord drawstring, and a small sleeveless jerkin, which was worn open at the front, and did not quite come down to the top of the pantaloons. The pantaloons and jerkin were made of coarse white hemp. They were barefoot and the twelve wore their hair in different styles. Some had it pulled back from their faces and tied behind their head. Others simply let the hair fall shoulder length.

When they were assembled Ali-Ali came down from the viewing platform and inspected each young man who stared straight ahead and did not engage the Caliph’s eye, as they had been warned not to do by the overseer. When he stood in front of Serheed, for the first time, Ali-Ali was taken by the physicality of the young man. The Caliph sensed an unusual bond between himself and the youthful sailor, which he could not immediately explain. He made a mental note to watch this competitor particularly as the games proceeded.

Without speaking a word Ali-Ali returned to his raised observational position. The overseer then moved to a position in front of the twelve young naval men and spoke just one word.

‘Prepare!’

The young men had been well briefed on what this meant and they immediately started removing their naval jerkins and pantaloons. When all was done, they stood again, in line, wearing only tight-fitting loin cloths. One of the body guards gathered up the discarded clothing and placed the items in a receptacle near the eastern wall. Ali-Ali noted that they were all fine physical specimens, and he let his eye linger on the exposed body of a man he didn’t know by name, but who he would later know intimately as, Serheed.

The overseer marched the young men to the end of the artificial lake and again positioned them in line abreast. His tone was flat when he instructed.

‘Swim as many laps of the lake as you can. I will count your completed laps until you are exhausted. Begin!’

As young naval men, all twelve knew how to swim and they entered the water almost as one with neat diving actions and began to swim to the other end of the lake. Ali-Ali watched with great interest, but his focus kept drifting back to the young sailor he had noted before.

All twelve drove themselves to keep going, swimming to one end and then turning and coming back to the other. Try as they might, some faltered quickly, and although they knew it would count against them they eventually stopped and were ordered out of the water by the overseer. A final three kept going and Serheed was one of these. Gradually, he drew ahead of the other two and finally Ali-Ali called a halt by standing and signalling to the overseer that he had seen enough.

All twelve were now out of the water, and in various stages of physical exhaustion. That is just how the Caliph wanted it to be. The overseer then directed them to the long staves that were lined up against the wall. Each stave was heavily padded at both ends with a leather ball. It was clear how the staves were to be used. When every sailor had a stave, they were directed to form a circle facing one another. Then the overseer simply announced:

‘Fight!’

Slightly nonplussed at first, the young sailors realised that this was to be a free-for-all combat and the winner would be the last man standing. At first there was chaos as blows were struck and parried, then a little more semblance of order was achieved as pairs began to fight one another. This was pure delight to Ali-Ali; the young sailors had been exhausted by their swimming, and now in the soft sand, struggled to remain upright and protect themselves while trying to strike their shipmates.

Some fell quickly and were ordered off the sand by the overseer. A few battled sheer exhaustion and physical injuries to continue on. Serheed