KHOR

By ESP

 KHOR is an epic set in a dark medieval world torn apart by an invasion of alien warriors from the eastern steppe led by Khan Magog, the world`s most famous sword fighter.

The kingdom seems doomed, but for a tiny group of brave sword fighters led by a recluse warrior, hiding from the world in a remote mountain valley, whos

• Language: English
• Publisher: VIVA
• Release date: Apr 22, 2021
• ISBN: 9783982319735

ESP

This book does not pretend to be the future: IT IS THE FUTURE! A Dystopia on a man-made epic scale, the human species hurrying down a path of its owm choice towards total disaster. A Utopia driven by the ECOLOGICAL REVOLUTION in the midst or a virtual and a demographic one. A DysUtopia no one would choose if choice were an option.

Book preview

Battle commences

We did not have to wait long if we wanted to pick up a fight, for even though we were still deep in the dark forests of the eastern woodlands, the home of my ancestors, a first group of Mohgools was already on the prowl. If you ask me, they were here looking for General Brock, the only important knight who had survived the battle and had sought refuge in our dense woods or maybe even the Princess herself. We never found out for they did not deign to tell us when battle commenced and afterwards they were somehow indisposed by severe loss of blood.

No, we killed them all, all sixty, not daring to let one escape and tell the fiend there was concerted opposition here in the woodlands, which would have endangered us all.

No, luckily we had been able to assemble enough fighters from the villages nearby and from the remnants of our army who had taken shelter here. We in that case did not just mean the Princess and me, but my cousin and his three woodlander sons we had sought out first as the most reliable allies. Blood runs thicker than even wine after all.

Together we made full use of the swampy terrain the locals knew so well, trapping the unwitting enemy who had advanced further than was good for them, maybe underrating our opposition after the complete annihilation of our King’s army. Who knows. But they stumbled into our trap and they did not leave it anymore.

Now though, I guess, you know enough to understand the basic situation and it is time to change the way I tell this story. Because if I go on like this you will only be able to get to know my side of the events and be prejudiced by it and my limited understanding of other people’s motives. For even though I will still be telling the story I will try to recount what other people did and said - you cannot expect me to tell you what they thought - and although I do not pretend that I can vouchsafe for every detail of every conversation here stated after the passage of time at least its main thrust should be valid and I promise not to spare myself too much by painting a rosier picture of my actions than actually true. Somehow the whole telling of my story is partly a confession I cannot keep to myself. The story has to be told however much I would like to keep mum and let bards fake history.

We will see whether that works but it is worth a try. Let the details force me to be honest and state what happened as if I relived the events one by one.

The General

After the trap had been a success General Brock - who might or might not have recognized me, but my guess was he had - suggested we should take lodging in the Mayor of Maidbrook’s house. We followed his advice and fetched our horses and things and moved in. The village was safe for the moment and a room was a good place for Bell - you see we had already progressed from Princess Bellamine to Bell - to hide from unwanted attention. After we had washed ourselves – Bell inside, me outside in the yard naturally - and changed clothes I went to see the General in his room. This was something I had to do alone, at least at first.

Come in, his voice rang with command when I knocked.

With no witnesses present there was no need anymore for pretense of any kind, and I could see in his eyes that he was not sure whether I had come to talk or to kill him. His past had caught up with him.

You have every reason on this planet to hate me, he said, I know that. And I will give you satisfaction whenever you want to, but I would ask you to refrain from it at the moment, not for my sake, but for the sake of the Kingdom of Khor and its Royal Family. They need us both, if we are to have a chance to beat the Mohgools. I am not begging, I never would, and I do not fear you. Yet if you care for Khor you ought to postpone your revenge.

He stared at me, fixing his eyes intently on mine, as if to impress his lack of fear on me. I smiled, a bit sardonically, I admit.

You are still the Kingdom’s most loyal servant, despite the King’s faults and sins, aren’t you? But do not worry, I answered,if I had wanted to take revenge I would have hunted you down many years ago. And you would have stood no chance in an open fight, therefore consider yourself lucky. Yet I decided differently. I am not hunting ghosts of the past and if at all I would have gone after the King himself. I would not have bothered with someone who only followed orders. And now you are too old for a fair fight anyhow.

There was a gleam of anger in his eyes, and his face turned reddish, but he had enough self-control not to lose his head.

Whatever you say, I don’t die easily, and I’m ready to give you satisfaction if you want to. Forget the past! I stressed the words. There are far more important things to discuss. First I want to know how much you know.

"You mean about you and Princess Bellamine. Well, Princess Kyrja told me – before she went on her fateful last charge - that you are alive and in Khor. I admit I was surprised, as I had forgotten you after such a long time, or at least I did not bother myself with problems out of my reach.

She told me that she had sent Bellamine to your hiding place and that from that moment on you would be her guardian and therefore will act as steward of Khor, rightful ruler of the country until Bellamine marries.

I did not argue with that and whether you believe it or not I was glad to hear you were in Khor. Princess Kyrja even made me swear that I would stand loyally with you, in case I survived. As you see I did survive, I told you that I don’t die easily, for after the Princess went down, the Mohgools’ attacks on our position at the top of the hill were half-hearted. They probably did not want to risk too many lives attacking our defenses. At first we had tried to escape during the Princess’ charge as had been her plan, with the Mohgools being busy on the other side of the hill. Yet only a few of us could manage to escape as the enemy forces where so numerous and they moved so fast that they could hunt down our men at will as long as they could see us in broad daylight. Therefore I ordered a retreat and we stuck it out unto nightfall when we finally broke through and some of us managed to escape, helped on by a moonless night.

I do not know how many survived, probably not many, as the Mohgools did not want anyone at all to escape. They spread out far and wide during the next days, granting us no respite, not even here in the forest as you could witness yourself. But my group was fast and we found good hideouts during the day, traveling at night, trying to get into this area, where she told me I could probably find you if Bellamine had found you before.

Well, she was right. As I told you I had not the slightest idea that you were even still alive. But Princess Kyrja did not seem to know how much I really do know, or she would not have bothered making me swear an oath. Anyway she should have known that I serve the Kingdom of Khor and therefore its rightful ruler, and no one else.

Once, but to my knowledge only once, I made a mistake I have regretted because I did not believe what I was told and the action in question did not appear to bear out the words portent. But otherwise I have always followed my guiding principle of serving our kingdom first and foremost, and he dropped on one knee, if you honor me with letting you serve to my utmost abilities I may be able to partially repay a debt I have to bear. And if against all odds we succeed in our struggle to rescue Khor and I survive you can punish me in any way you want."

Well, what a change of position compared with our last meeting. And who would have thought an old soldier like the General could be so emotional, so in love with the idea of a country – up to my knowledge the sole love of his life - that he even humbled himself in front of a man he had seemed to look down on and of whom he had known nothing for many years, yet whom he would follow and risk his life for just because some whim of fate had washed him into a ruler’s position, ruler of a country that had been conquered and was plundered and raped at the moment.

Well, and who asked me if I wanted to take up that burden? No, I was not interested as the job description was not to my desire. Alas, I had been caught in this trap, a trap of responsibility I could not decline, as at least I ought to try to save as many lives as possible. Making up my mind I responded:

"Rise, please, there is no need to humble yourself. I never doubted your loyalty towards our country and Royal House and I am glad you are on our side. But I guess we should let my cousin Flaggan as well as Mayor Brennon join our war council. The Mayor seems to be a very able commander and we will simply have to risk trusting him. We need him too much. Princess Bellamine should take part, too. She will never accept being treated like a child. I have already learned that much about her.

But before we discuss our further course of action let me ask you to refrain from mentioning two things. First, outside of our small group, nobody must know who the young boy - we had dressed up the Princess as a boy to hide her identity from all and everyone - in our company is. It is safer for our last Royal Princess to remain unaccounted for. Second, do not mention any part of your special knowledge even in our small group as none of them knows about it, even if my cousin probably has an inkling of the true state of things. Some things are better hidden until we reach a point in the course of events where they can be of value. At the moment they would only increase our risks.

Therefore, at least for the time being, you have to play the role of steward and leader of our country. Based on your status all people of Khor who want to fight the Mohgools will consider you to be their natural leader. This is a dangerous role, though, as the Mohgools and their accomplices – and there simply have to be some or they could not have known so much about Khor - will try to kill you."

He had risen during my speech and answered in his deep, dark voice:

I will do so with pleasure and happily risk my life that way. As I mentioned before I do not die easily.

Don’t underestimate the Mohgools, they are neither stupid nor inexperienced. They are not here for the plunder alone, even if that is always their first goal. They are here to conquer and rule, directly or indirectly through a vassal, having succeeded in many other countries before. They are past masters at this game.

With that I left to fetch the others. It was time to discuss our strategy.

The war council

An hour later a small group had assembled in the General’s room. General Brock, Princess Bellamine, Flaggan, Mayor Brennon and myself, Rascal - my half-breed dog - at my feet, with my cousin’s sons standing guard at the door and under the window, as this was a war council, the war council of the Great Kingdom of Khor, and no one was allowed to hear what was spoken in this room. People would have laughed at that: an underage princess, the mayor of a small village, two woodsmen and an old general, that was all we had to offer. But who says that the genteel and supposedly smart people who normally rule a country like ours would have done a better job than us.

Honestly I liked what I saw, people who did not lower their eyes when you challenged them, people who spoke their mind without procrastination, people who were ready do die for what they believed in. These were some of the people who were the true backbone of our country, who would go on fighting to the end when Dukes and Lords had already made deals with the enemy.

When we all had crowded into the room, leaning at the wall or sitting at the edges of various pieces of furniture – the room was too small to afford us more comfort – I began to lay out the facts, especially for the Mayor, who did not know much.

Let me make clear to everyone here where we stand. The King is dead, his daughter Princess Kyrja probably, too. But she had made her will before she went to battle. Mayor let me introduce you to the heiress to the throne, Princess Bellamine, wearing the Light Ruby of Khor as the symbol of her Royal Power. It is her future husband who will become the next King of Khor.

Bell had taken of her hood when she had entered the room and I had seen the Mayor wonder at her presence. Clever as he was he had probably already guessed her identity, as he definitely did not look very surprised. He was actually a person who never looked very much surprised as I found out later.

When I introduced Bell, the Mayor and the General dropped to their knees and kissed the Ruby on her outstretched hand – she was already quite good at accepting such attentions – which forced Flaggan who hated such behavior as kneeling in a subjugated position to do the same. When they had risen again I went on: Princess Kyrja invested me as her guardian by sending me her own royal symbol of power. I showed them the Dark Ruby of Khor I had put into a small purse I carried around my neck. When they started to drop to their knees again I made them halt.

No, never do this, do you hear. Nobody shall ever kneel before me. That is an order I will not discuss! We are all equals in this fight.

The General was grumbling when he heard that. He loved the laws and rituals that ruled the court. But he also liked obeying orders so he had no choice.

As the Princess is still young and a few years shy of being legally able to marry at eighteen, the final say on all matters regarding our country will be mine in the next years, at least in case Princess Kyrja is really dead, as otherwise she can take up her position as Queen and rule the country, if, and that is a big if, we manage to get our country back.

The General was grumbling again. I threw him a look to keep him quiet, making him shrug his shoulders but not keeping him from stating:

No woman has ever ruled this country. That is against the legal tradition. No woman could be hard enough to do it. We need a male ruler and in difficult situations like that in the past the Princesses simply had to marry quickly or otherwise we would risk instability or even civil war. If Princess Kyrja is alive she will have to marry whatever she says.

His face suddenly lighted up as if he had had a great idea.

"Oh, yes, and the solution is so simple, really so simple. You have got to marry her!

Then all is fine and fixed!"

He looked at me with bright eyes, smiling.

That would be the absolutely best solution for all. You might even be able to beat her in a fair duel, if she insisted on it, though I must admit that she is an extraordinarily good sword fighter, who would in all probability have beaten me even in my best days.

What a nice idea. I guess Princess Kyrja had other problems at the moment if she was still alive in a dungeon and I personally was not exactly on the hunt for a new wife either. I would hunt Mohgool wolves, nothing else.

Well, nobody could ever accuse our good old General of being a romantic. He had an utter disregard for feelings like love, as his life was ruled by simpler feelings like unquestioning loyalty.

Anyhow why should a woman who could beat any man in a fair duel with swords and charge at the head of our heavy cavalry an enemy many times our number not be able to rule a country? Sometimes traditions have to be broken. Bellamine for one did not seem to be very happy with what the General had said. Her face looked deeply upset, either by his ideas about the rules regarding women or because she did not want Princess Kyrja to have to marry against her will. But before she could say anything I retorted:

This is of no importance at the moment and it should be clear to all who know me well enough I looked into his eyes that I do not marry for power but only for love. But I am sure we will find a solution if ever necessary.

Well, if there was anyone in the room who had to understand this hint it was him and he refrained from any further suggestions. Bellamine somehow looked much more pleased, too, so that we could get back to the main reason for our war council.

We needed a strategy; a strategy that would save the lives of as many people as possible, but also drive the invaders out of our country. The first thing therefore was to gather as much information about the enemy’s actions and intentions as possible and I therefore asked the General to give us all the information he had about the invasion.

To be honest, he started, we have been utterly surprised. I mean we knew that they had attacked the Kingdom of Liwa east of the Kalkalpey mountains last year. But we were not too bothered, as Khor is a much bigger and much more powerful country then Liwa and is protected by high mountains with only a few passes that offer a route to an invading army. Especially the Felspass, by far the best and easiest route across the mountains, the one larger armies have to take if they don’t want to split their forces or move very slowly, was extremely well guarded by the castle at its eastern end and the two hundred soldiers stationed there. We were quite certain that these men could at least stop the Mohgools long enough under the walls of this mighty fortress to give us time to assemble a huge army to beat them back before they could reach the city of Haerton.

So how could this happen? Brennon wondered, looking doubtful.

"No idea. I really can’t tell you, for we weren’t even warned by a messenger. They must have taken the castle by total surprise, improbable as it seems. We were only informed of the invasion when a messenger from Haerton arrived, telling us that they were besieged by a huge Mohgool army, who had come down from the mountains and out of the woods so fast that they had barely time to close the city gates and that the people who were too slow to reach the city were killed in front of the walls. The messenger actually was not from the city, but a trader on his way to the market who saw the attack from a distance.

Well, we had to help Haerton as quickly as possible. You simply can’t leave one of your richest and biggest cities being devastated by a plundering horde of Mohgools without sending help. Based on the messenger’s guess of about five thousand attackers we really believed this to be no more than a plundering foray, for who would have dared trying to conquer a country as big and powerful as ours with only such a small army.

As we know now they set us a trap and we took the bait. It would have taken several weeks to assemble all our knights and their soldiers from Tronbargar to the West to the border with Langardia in the South and then move the whole army to Haerton. Thinking that we only had to deal with a small enemy force we assembled what forces we had at the palace or could enlist en route to Haerton, gathering a force of about ten thousand men centered on our elite Royal Guard of one thousand knights.

And we sent Lord Vultren north to Orla to assemble another force of about the same size to reach Haerton from the west and attack our enemies in a pincer movement. Based on what we knew that should have been a sufficient force. Alas, we never reached Haerton, despite the speed with which he had assembled our troops and started out. About a day south of the city we met the enemy, in the hilly and sometimes boggy area of the southern Haermark, where about five thousand of them had taken up their position on top of a hill. As this number corresponded with our information we believed to have come up with the whole body of the invading army. So we set up our camp on a hill opposite of them, which was easy to defend, and discussed whether to attack or wait for our reinforcements from the west. Princess Kyrja did not like the situation at all. Right from the beginning she had warned us not to underestimate this specific antagonist, Khan Magog, as we had no really reliable information about his army and intentions.

But we, and I am ashamed to admit this includes me, did not want to listen to her warnings. We were too proud and arrogant, since no army of Khor had lost a major battle in a hundred years, as the heavy cavalry of our knights had simply ridden any opposition into the ground. How were those Mohgools here on their little ponies going to stop us, outnumbered as they were? The King, especially, was loath to wait for reinforcements as that would have let a victory in battle have seemed less impressive. The more of us and the fewer of them the less chivalric it would be. And you have to remember that this was his first chance after a reign of more than thirty years to lead his knights into a real battle. He had hated the peaceful times with nothing but minor clashes with revolting peasants or small raids into the borderlands of Langardia, the tournaments and hunting trips.

I think he considered himself to be a great warrior - he definitely was a great swordsman - but a warrior who never had had the chance to prove how good he really was. He must have relished this opportunity and did not want to miss out on it. The thing that set everything in motion though, was a clever Mohgool trick.

They sent a messenger to our camp, but it wasn’t one of their own men. No, it was the Mayor of Haerton, covered in blood and grime, tied naked onto the back of his horse. Worst of all his eyes had been blinded and his ears cut off. And this horrible figure of what was once a human being had a terrible tale to tell. For though the soldiers in Haerton had been able to close the gates of the city in time and the city was surrounded by enormous walls and other defense structures, the siege had not lasted more than a few hours. Once the Mohgools had surrounded the city to make sure no one could escape they had used the blackest kind of magic to destroy all four gates leading into the city at the same moment with a big bang. There was no need for any kind of ramrod or something like that for with their sorcery it took them no time at all to rush into the city where they killed every living being the city contained. You should have seen us, strong men that we were, when the Mayor told the story of his once proud city’s annihilation. Men whether armed or not, whether old or young were slaughtered, women raped and then set a fire in their houses and children thrown of the walls towards their death. They had caught the Mayor soon after their attack had started and forced him to watch this monstrous and utter destruction of his city before they took his eyes.

It was this tale of indescribable depredation and horror that raged through our hearts and minds as we imagined the terror our compatriots must have felt before they were impaled or saw their children’s heads being smashed against stone walls until the grey of their brains leaked out. What would we have felt if it would have been our young daughters that were raped by gangs of stinking devils, and we would have had to watch helplessly? Yes, it still makes me rage and lose control if I think of it. We all felt like that and like one man we ran to our horses and threw ourselves into the saddles to take revenge at once, to dismember any Mohgool we could catch. The Princess wanted to stop us, I remember that dimly, but our thirst for revenge was too strong. We were killing mad, forgetting any kind of caution and rode like fools into Magog’s trap where he slaughtered us like sheep, for stupid sheep we were!"

The General could hardly breathe, while he pressed out the last words, and his face was a strange mixture of rage and dismay, contorted beyond belief, his rage infecting us, hands gripping sword butts and teeth grinding. Magog and his Mohgools had played psychological warfare of the most terrible kind and King Merowine had behaved like a fool, rushing into action without thinking.

Actually our army command had made more than this last and fatal mistake. They had not shown enough respect for their enemy, believing mistakenly in their own strength - unproven so it was - against these invaders. It does not pay to underrate other people, with arrogance being one of the most dangerous traits of character in the leader of an army, or any fighter in any armed conflict. And it is based on the worst mistake of all: fighting blindly without information, for knowledge is the most vital ingredient in any successful campaign. The Mohgools seemed to know everything about us, yet we nothing about them. Had our leaders known their abilities and tactics they would still have been furious at the destruction and rape of Haerton, but they would have controlled their rage, for they would have known the danger that was lurking behind the tattooed faces of our enemies.

On the other hand I am not sure how I would have acted if I had been in their position, as I have found out to my dismay that pushed beyond a certain point I have been prone to blind rages myself before I retired to my lonely valley. I could understand the King, yet still he should have been more careful and should have fought down his rage.

Well, we would see if I was able to control myself in such a situation now, for otherwise I would not be worth to lead an army and should better get back to my valley. But one thing was clear. I would give my life if necessary to punish anyone who had a part in these massacres. Anger shook me but I did not fight against it too hard as a bit of rage is good in battle and hardship as it gives you extra strength and stamina as long as you don’t lose your head! I had already made the one mistake in my life I should not have a long time ago, and yet that should help me to be more cool this time as I had nothing much to lose anymore.

At least for the moment I could play my role and set the course we would take, trying to quash any outbursts for revenge by my enraged comrades.

"Believe me, if there is any possibility to save our people, and I really mean any, we will take it. We will free our country and bring back peace and stability. But to be able to do that we must first of all preserve our own freedom, especially yours Princess, for if we are caught or killed who could unite our countrymen? I know the Mohgools, there tactics, but also their intentions. Nothing they have done so far is new or surprising to me. They have behaved like that before on their conquests further East during the last twenty years, when they began to flow like an unstoppable wave of destruction across the lands between Chindu and Liwa.

Had the ruling class of Khor been more interested in the world beyond our borders, more curious and knowledgeable, they would never have underrated such an enemy. Sure, their attack was a surprise and they have not been around in the Western half of our continent for long, only attacking Liwa last year.

Still some things ought to have been known. For example that no country, listen carefully now, for I really mean no country so far has been able to throw off their yoke once conquered, for whenever there was opposition or a revolt they burnt everything to the ground, they reacted with total – there is no other word for it - total destruction.

I have seen it with my own eyes and I tell you that we will not cause any further killing in Khor if we can avoid it and until we are strong enough to be able to defeat them. Does everyone understand this, for I will not allow any dissent in this respect? I looked around at their sobered up faces. These instructions had been necessary for if we would let ourselves be guided by desires and emotions we would forfeit any chance of victory. Coolness had to reign at least until the final battle had commenced. Mayor, you have your work cut out for you anyhow, for our first need is to find out what is going on. You have got to send out scouts, reliable ones, who have to make sure that they won’t be caught, for however brave they are, under torture they could give away our hiding place here. That is also the reason why the General will officially play commander-in-chief of our forces, few as they are at the moment. Princess Bellamine’s and my role must be an absolute secret, for the less the Mohgools know the safer she is. They would try everything in their power to hunt down the heir to the throne.

If they don’t know anything about us, they will stay away from the forest and we can prepare our counterstrike without disturbance. This is a war we only have a chance of winning if we outsmart Magog and he is clever, no doubts about that. So first things first, we got to gather information and news, and we have to send out guards to the edge of the forest, so that they can’t surprise us. We should be rather safe here as long as we are warned in time, for we can easily lose ourselves in the deeper woods if they really attack.

One more very important thing! All humans err, so if you find fault with my reasoning, let me know. I have learned a lot about warfare and I may know the Mohgools and Magog better than anyone else on this side of the mountains and that is a big advantage. But I don’t know our countrymen so well, especially the important Lords who could strike a deal with the Mohgools to improve their own position, as I have been away far too long.

We, that means the Princess and me as her guardian, will need your help, but if we work together we may just have a chance. Do you agree?"

They nodded, and when I looked into their eyes I could see that they liked what I had said. General, I went on, from now on you are our official commander-in-chief, as we agreed on. Mayor, let’s change your official title into Major Brennon as you will lead our mountain men and are responsible for the scouts and have to guard us here and therefore are responsible for the safety of all the inhabitants of the Eastern woods and mountains. Do you accept such a demanding job?

With all my heart, I swear to keep our forests free of Mohgools!

Then kneel down.

He did as ordered and I drew my sword.

As legitimate ruler of the Kingdom of Khor, I herewith knight you, Lord of Maidbrook. Stand up. May you be able to defend our woods from the hordes of the East.

He thanked me gratefully, but also wondered at the sight of my sword, a type of sword no one in this country had ever seen.

When the General, a lover and collector of any kind of weapon, said so, I asked him if they had ever heard of the islands of Cipangu, the easternmost country on the surface of our planet, the place where by far the best swords were made by smithies who considered it a sacred duty to their gods to make the perfect swords. He answered that he had heard rumors about such swords from far to the East but had never known anyone to own one.

That should be no surprise, for Cipangu is several years travel to the East and they do not sell or trade their swords to strangers. I traveled to the island to make good on a promise I had given to a friend whose father was one of the few masters of the sword-makers guild and he made this sword especially for me. Look at these symbols on the steel. That is its name: Uun itrai kuh which means To kill the one. It has got the sharpest blade you can imagine.

I saw that they would have liked to try it out, but I had to disappoint them.

I’m very sorry, but I had to promise never to sell it nor even to give it away for a few moments, not even to my friends. That was the condition its creator insisted on. It was made for just one special purpose, a purpose I have definitely failed to achieve so far. Yet it seems as if fate wants to grant me a second chance – ah, whatever - what I can do now, though, is show you how sharp it is. Princess, I know you have a bloodstained silk scarf you do not need anymore. Would you fetch it for us?

She was back in a second and I told her to throw it into the air. The scarf unfolded and floated slowly to the ground until it met the sharp edge of my sword I had thrust upwards cutting it into two pieces. The others gasped with astonishment for no sword they had ever seen could do anything like that to a silk scarf. Normally the scarf would have simply draped itself around the sword, maybe a bit torn but never smoothly cut.

Well, the whole thing was not merely an act of showing off, however proud I was to own such a sword, as our all fate depended on their trusting me and staying loyal to the cause. The more I could impress them the better. In retrospect I have to admit that once I had understood that I would have to lead this fight I did plan - I do not like the word scheme for I was no schemer working for personal gain - to win and worried about all the multitude of tiny things that could hamper our victory. And that despite knowing full well that worrying too much was bad as it tied you down and confused you. But knowing something is wrong does not always mean one can keep oneself from doing it. Brains do not always rule hearts. So I had showed off my sword, so what. There is more to tell anyhow.

Actually, this is not the only sword like this in our hemisphere. Strange as it seems, there is another one in Khor at the moment, a far bloodier one than mine.

Magog! Bellamine asked, her feminine intuition hitting the nail on the head.

Yes. I admitted.

"He took it of the dead body of a famous warrior from Cipangu who had left his island trying to prove that he was the best sword fighter of all. He had beaten many antagonists in show battles in Cipangu and then on the continent in Chindu. Finally he decided to challenge Magog, the best sword fighter of the Mohgool lands. The fighter from Cipangu had been warned, for Magog did not bother with chivalric rules or other nonsense. If he wanted to kill he did so, and he had done so whenever he met an opponent who could on a good day match him as that was nothing he would ever allow to happen again. The knight from Cipangu was really good and his sword even better, he even injured Magog when his Mohgool sword broke.

In other show battles that would have been the end of the fight. But Magog was furious. So when the knight stepped back to let Magog rise, the treacherous villain threw his broken sword at his surprised opponents throat, cutting deep into it, then chopping of his head with a new sword one of his men had thrown to him. And since that day Magog has never used another sword again, but the one he had gained so unfairly, slaughtering opponents wherever he went until no one would dare to fight him anymore.

In all the countries he ever set his foot he is considered to be the best sword fighter of all. That is one reason why he is the unchallenged leader of his branch of Mohgools. The other reason is his cunning and ruthlessness. The Mohgools always choose the best as leaders, and he is the best of the best. Remember that, but also remember that he is mortal. Everyone can be defeated and maybe his time was up when he dared to invade Khor!"

Surprises

A day went by without any news. Major Brennon had posted his guards and sent out a few scouts but as our numbers were still minuscule we had to wait for reinforcements who trickled in one by one or in small groups every hour of the day. We also waited impatiently for the return of those villagers who had followed the escaped Mohgools into the woods. It was near evening before they finally returned with good news. For so it had taken them quite a while to get the last of them, who was quite fast on his feet, until they finally came up with him. He even managed to kill one of our men before he finally succumbed to the superior number of his opponents. With all those Mohgools gone and our guards watching we should be safe here for the moment and could wait for more men and especially for news. Patience, patience, and more patience was the order of the day. But sitting around restless and aimless is not easily born in a situation like ours. The General and the Major at least had started practice drills with the newcomers in order to create a disciplined troop instead of a bunch of – though admittedly tough and able - too individualistic fighters who would be unable to withstand a coordinated cavalry charge.

While they were busy I kept Bell form sight and did so myself, too, at least most of the time, and kept Flaggan and his sons nearby. They were kind of our private bodyguards, the most trustworthy of all, as I had known them for a long time and blood still counts for more than mere friendship.

We had dinner together with the General and the Major, where we discussed the sparse news that was worthy of a discussion, but were otherwise quite listless as the constant suspense sapped our desire to communicate. Retiring early I went to my room when Mort knocked at the door a minute later and wondered whether I would see the old hunter we had met at the end of the battle in the swamp, as he wanted to have a private talk with me.

When I agreed, Mort left and a moment later, making hardly a sound, the old hunter stood in my room and looked at me with his curious brown eyes that seemed so familiar.

There, there, he said, "here we meet again and you still have no idea who I am, haven’t you? But how could you for you are blind like all men, easily deceived by outward appearances, prone to judging people by clothes and behavior. Fool of fools, how blind can you be? There is no single person you have seen more often than me in the last seventeen years in places from here to Chindu and back, but you still have not got the slightest idea who I am.

Open your eyes and remember how we swam through the holy river of Hind at Benara or crossed the Mohgool plains, me riding and you on a stretcher, weak like a newborn babe.

Or remember the storm in the Mirtma Sea one night when you were still young and nearly went overboard while hanging over the rail and throwing up.

Don’t you remember the fetid jungles of Buhgal, with their uncounted tigers or our winter trip on the frozen rivers of Sbir in minus thirty degrees?

Hah, you make me proud, for even though you never paid too much attention to your fellow travelers, as you always seemed so occupied with yourself and your thoughts, it was quite a feat to change roles over and over again and never being recognized by the prey.

And you were our prey, as we, my brother, my sister and I, were charged with following you."

He paused, looking at me, but I was totally flabbergasted, wondering whether I had lost my wits for I had been at all the places mentioned by him, but never in the company of the same people. As I was not looking for friendship or company on the long trips that took me from one place to another, I really had not cared much for the people around me, loner that I was. I had always been more interested in the sights to be seen or wisdom to be gained or had debated my future plans with myself. Still this could not be true. He must be an impostor of some kind!

Yet that was impossible as I had told nobody much about my travels. They were my travels, travels in search for knowledge and unmatched ability with weapons, especially the sword. I looked for perfection and it took me a long time, while getting better and better, to understand that there is no perfection, no absolute security. That was the most important piece of wisdom I had gained on my travels. Having seen the beauty but also the horrors of our world I had aspired for nothing but peace anymore which I had found in my mountain hideaway. This had been a very personal journey of many years that suddenly sounded like a group trip with me playing the fool who was watched from the sidelines.

No, considering everything, it did not matter, even if I had shared part of my travels with others, they were mine, they had formed me and changed me and I had set the route. Still it was time for an explanation, and the simple question was why.

"Why? It is time to tell you why. That’s one of the reasons why I’m here tonight. You must know that my real name is Khuram and I belong to an ancient tribe of travelers, the Gatani, one of several tribes that you mistakenly call gypsies, for there are fundamental differences between the tribes.

Anyway, we the Gatani consider ourselves to be the kings of travelers, for we have seen more of this planet and know more about it than any other group of people. We have a natural abhorrence to being confined to one spot or even one country, our blood craves for the far horizons and the unseen places. That does not mean that we are constantly moving around or that we are shiftless. We sometimes stay in one place for a few years and we do enjoy the luxuries of life as much as anyone else and employ our superior knowledge of markets, trade routes and contacts to earn a good living transporting and dealing in goods or information. As we hardly ever invest our money in land or buildings we are always ready to move on and hard to pin down. Wealthy as most of us are, we are also less recognizable than poorer tribes of gypsies and we have learned to adapt and seemingly integrate into the society where we temporarily live. This has started as a useful trick to protect ourselves from unwanted attention and aggression, but it also really helps when moving around as foreigners are always viewed with suspicion. And the less suspicion we cause the more smoothly we can travel and the better we can trade. Therefore it has become a trademark of the Gatanis that from early age on their children learn different languages, customs, ways to dress and behave, which all accumulates in the art of disguise.

And the older you get and the more countries you have seen the easier it becomes to deceive people. We do not only know their languages and customs, wear their typical clothes, but also produce wigs of different styles and colors, use make up for the appropriate skin color and facial contours or even print tattoos on our skin that look real but aren’t permanent. The only thing we can not really change is our eye color, which is the reason why we have problems in countries like Khor where our dark eyes don’t fit as nearly everyone has blue or green eyes. In such countries we try to avoid eye contact during the day time, but otherwise I guess you can understand now why it is easy for us to travel freely and mostly undisturbed.

Now if you wonder why we followed you, you have to know that my family is rather poor for a Gatani clan. We always enjoyed adventures and freedom more than business and had therefore come on hard times in Andul, when Queen Marwei of Andul, King Merowine of Khor’s sister and therefore as you know Princess Kyrja’s aunt, one of the few people who know the Gatanis and their special abilities better, employed us.

She loved to hear about far of countries and their customs, but she also liked to trade and profit by it. Queen Marwei used the Gatanis as her traders of choice and repaid our services not just with money but also by giving us protection. She really is a very clever and shrewd woman, and generous, too."

I had to agree with that having met her after leaving Khor. For I had gone their at Kyrja’s advice as I had left Khor without the money or means necessary for longer travels and Queen Marwei had staked me after she had found out why I had come.

She also gave me the names of several people in cities like Orman or Begas and even much further away, names to whom she told me to apply for money if I needed some. She told me to take my time, but not to waste it working for money, rather to concentrate on my fighting skills and to return in a few years when I was ready.

On the other hand, she said, if I agreed, she could also arrange excellent mentors and teachers in Andul and I would not have to travel at all.

I declined her offer, grateful so I was, because I could not bear her proximity, reminding me too much of what I had lost. Naturally I pretended that I thought I could grow into a bigger man, a stronger and wiser one more quickly by traveling to unknown coasts and more challenging climes. She relented but made me promise to come back in at least six or seven years time if possible.

It was clear that she expected me to challenge her brother, whom she had never liked, but now hated from the deepest depth of her heart. But I had to be ready to stand a chance.

Losing would only mean certain death and one more trophy head in his collection. Yes, he was considered to be the best fighter in the kingdom and I, though I had a good teacher in my father, who was an excellent fighter himself, was not ready for such a challenge, still lacking strength, but especially experience. As the King was a harsh man and without scruples I knew right well that he would cherish killing me with a smile on his lips while telling me what he had done to ensure his rule.

Was I a coward? Maybe! But would a dead fool have been the better person? All in all I am glad I ran away while the running was good, as I have learned since then that timing is everything in a fight.

Yet I do admit that this lack of courage and feeling of helplessness, added to my grievous loss, was the main reason why I wanted to become the best fighter of all. Never again did I want to have to flee for lack of skill. And believe me, a desire for revenge is a strong motivation to work hard at improving oneself. Yet without Queen Marwei’s help I would have struggled to find the means to pursue my plan. With no money you will find no teachers and hungry you can hardly fight. Without her I would have failed. No doubt.

Actually now I knew that she had done even more as she had sent three Gatanis, experienced travelers and masters of disguise, to follow me.

What for? To protect me and ease my travels or to make sure that I would come back and fight her brother?

When I asked Khuram whether she had told them why they should follow me he replied:

"No, she didn’t. We were only told to keep an eye on you and help you if necessary.

Hey, that was just fine for us, for as I told you we love adventures and you seemed to promise quite a few, and who would mind being paid for one’s favorite pastime? Not us.

And you kind of kept your promise of rewarding us with adventures, going to the other end of the world and back, always looking for masters of the sword and other wise men. We enjoyed following you, but we made sure not too attract unnecessary attention, most of the time keeping some distance, with just one of us around all the time, each of us taking his turn, especially during those times when you had temporarily settled down. We often, or rather most of the time, pretended to be mere servants, who never attract much attention anyhow.

But there is something else that you should know. We Gatanis have a means of communication across long distances, for we use carrier pigeons and have developed a special code of minuscule symbols, which does not just make sure that no one else can decipher our letters, but also that we can transmit longer messages on very small pieces of paper. That way we were not only able to keep the Queen informed about your exploits, she could also send orders.

What surprised us though, was that she was so patient. I mean, let’s be honest, ten years is a long time. Only once, about seven or eight years into our voyage, did she imply that it might be opportune to tell you to come back if you still would not return voluntarily. But that was just around the time when you had to go to Cipangu and when the Queen was told about the reasons for this trip she did not refer to the matter of your return anymore. She only told us that we were free to do as we pleased.

We had not been able to follow you to Cipangu, as you were of in a rush without telling anybody, but we stayed in Chindu and the Mohgool lands as we knew that you would come back sooner or later. That made it possible for us to follow you again on your final excursion and get your half-dead body out of the steppe and make sure that you survived.

When after your recovery you started to go back to Khor, taking the northern route through the boreal forests avoiding the Mohgools, we followed you at a distance for the last time, informing the Queen once that was possible from the eastern fringes of Liwa that you seemed to be on the way home and were told to contact Princess Kyrja in the Royal Castle after reaching Khor."

Strange, truly strange. Now I knew who I really owed my life after my fateful excursion to the Mohgool lands that had ended so disastrously – three Gatanis dressed as steppe warriors, with one of them actually a woman. Well, I was hardly conscious for the first month, so how could I have recognized them, especially since they had constantly been in disguise around me, and – praise where praise was due – they had done an excellent job hiding their true identity.

People, talented as they were, made great allies or horrible enemies, so how could I use their talents to help our cause? And would they want to help? And what about Queen Marwei? Not only had she given me an extra lease on life by sending the Gatanis after me, she would also be a valuable ally in our fight. With her brother dead now, even though her plans based on me had not worked out after I had lost all inclination to fight the King or anybody else, she should be keen on helping her kinsmen