[b]Sarnath, Kingdom of Poertia[/b]

Cold steel death flung over their heads, so close that Javid could hear the pan-pipe whistle of the blade's instrumental tubes as it passed near his ear. Its song played quietly compared to the sound of the echoing crowd under the endlessly tall ceiling of the old Vishaput castle and the beheaded statue that towered into the darkness. 

The Nalayak was a weapon from ancient myth, one that the bravest and most skilled warriors of those days wielded against the demons and Jinn that they were known to fight. The Nalayak is a scythe-like blade, likened to a curve tooth with a sharpened edge on both the inner and the outer angle. The blade is attached to a chain long enough to equal the height of a petite woman, connecting it to the handle of the weapon. In this was it is similar to a morning star, though the chain on the Nalayak is much longer. The length of the handle allows a second hand to hold it steady as it swings, but the rigidity of a two handed grip is such a detriment to the movements needed to keep it swinging that the men who choose to wield the weapon have to learn how to swap between styles as required.

It was a ridiculous weapon. On the battlefield, it required so much space to use that a man had to leave the support of his countrymen and their formations in order to wield it in a fight. That meant danger to him, as his enemies could easily envelope him. The Nalayak also made it near impossible to effectively parry or defend against an attacker. The attention of the wielder was reserved for what he chose to wield, and he was limited in the ways he could react in a fight. It was frightening to observe, this was to be sure, but it gave its possessor no advantages to trade for its many faults.

It had another use though, one that had endured it in the estates and market places of Poertia. However useless it might be in battle, a practiced user could make the weapon look beautiful in its usage. It was favored by entertainers, who could use it so long as they had no enemy to fight. All they had to focus on was the arc of the blade and the continuing power of its geometric path as it swung through the air. These men were called the Nalayaka, and they were rarer than jugglers and fire-eaters. Brave men enjoyed standing near the Nalayaka as the performed their dangerous feats, showing that they feared death as little during peace as they did on the battlefield. This was why the Gul Shapur had hired five Nalayaka for their Sacrificial Ball, their mustaches oiled and pointed and their faces covered with ash so that they looked pale-gray. They stood on silent, swinging decoratively etched blades from their perches on top of stubby stone plinths. Many of the warriors chose to gather beneath the swinging Nalayaks to trade stories and brag about their own exploits.

"I do not mean to describe a legend." Javid's partner in conversation spoke. He was a Peacock Kshatra, one of the men who learned to fight at a Temple of the Peacocks. There were no temples like this in Poertia, and members of his sect rarely visited lands so far to the north, but this man had endeavored to make the journey. 

"Neither fame nor praise is what I seek to find, as my Sect of the noble Peacock serve the humble importance of war so that peace can be found. Still, this is a story that is enjoyable to hear."

"And my ears want to hear them." Javid said.

The Peacock Kshatra nodded and smiled. He was an average looking man with thick mustachios crowning his lip. He wore robes covered in Peacock feathers, and a tightly-wrapped turban wound around his head. A single peacock feather rested in the folds of the turban. His arms were covered in bracelets, some were iron or steel or copper, while others looked silver and gold. 

"And I am here to tell." the Peacock Kshatra smiled, not flinching as the Nalayak blade whistled over his head.

"In the southern lands, where the plains and the fields turn to fierce jungles full of wild and hateful things, There are strange and unnatural races that do not bend to the will of the good and godly world! You know this. All the world knows this! These are the places where a man can see stubby men with faces in their chests, and races of hideous women with feminine parts so wide and monstrous that a man can climb inside of one and rest in her womb. And there are lizards too, some as large as an elephant, with teeth so sharp that they make the blade of that whistling Nalayak look as rounded as a river pebble." He held a finger up for emphasis in spire of the blade. For a moment, Javid wondered if the foreigner would be foolish enough to raise his arm too far and lose it. The Nalayaka was skilled, but he was not perfect.

"And this is not touching the half of it all!" the Peacock Kshatra continued. "They say in the deep places, there are communities of plant and moss that think and do and act as if they were people! The jungles swallow places were small people with skin as orange as the fruit of the tree that bears that color as a name, and there are men who wed small horses and live with them as if they are like man and wife because they are so far from the civilized world that they have forgotten the excellence that is a soft and virtuous civilized woman!"

"These things are all true, or so I have been told before." Javid replied. "But this is not a story of you. Are you a historian that went accounting of these things?"

"I do not say as such!" The Peacock Kshatra bristled "And if we were not enjoying ourselves I would have taken offense and challenged you so I could test my honor against your armor! But we are happy here so we do not need to fight. It is true, I did not only see things but I also did things when I was in the deep jungles and marshes of the south. And I will tell you these things as I promised to do."

"On the coast there is a small fortress town called Vinrash, and it is ruled by a young and adventurous Rajput who is called Jali-Ali. Though it is barely but a village, the walls of Vinrash are a wonder and a glory to its people. Those walls are ten times the height of a man, and so thick that if three ox carts passed through the gatehouse at noon, the shadow of the wall above them would cover them all. That is not the end of the wonders that this wall presents. The outside of the wall is polished so fine and so smooth that, from a distance, it looks like the marbled floor of a great Raja's palace. When weather brings age to the thing, their workmen work diligently to smooth it over. This is how it is, and how I found it when I followed a call to the city for warriors willing to fight along side its brave Rajput, the youthful Jali-Ali."

"I marveled at the thing, and at how humble a town it protected, for half of the buildings inside of that impregnable shell were made from the bamboo and jungle teak that grow in the southern places, and the others were made out of mud brick and poor quality stone. It seemed like half of the people of the town were children, not old enough to fight or guard the walls that surrounded them. When I saw this, I feared what kind of enemy would make a people who were so poor spend so much on the powerful walls that they had built. But I am a warrior, and fear is my favorite wine, so I strutted to the palace and presented myself to the Rajput Jali-Ali."

The blade of the Nalayak disturbed them just then, crying through the air between them and cutting off the last few syllables that the Peacock Kshatra spoke. Javid understood what those lost syllables were, because he knew that there was only one Rajput in this story and that man was Jali-Ali. He let the Kshatra continue.

"Jali-Ali was a beautiful man I will say, because he was a young man who had just came of age, and being a man of noble blood and a man who practiced the warrior's art enough to have gained a warriors body, he was comely enough to look like the avatar of one of the many Gods of this world. Warriors from all far across the land arrived at his court and payed him tribute, and we all praised his nobility and handsomeness as he hosted us for a feast. When the food was cleared, he apologized that his palace did not have enough rooms for all the men who came to attend him, but just enough for the mercenaries of noble blood, so he offered us the comforts of his courtyard and by way of apology allowed us to sample the beautiful women that he had as servants for his household. We were impressed by how young the girls and women who attended us were, as only a few of them looked as if they had received the blood of womanhood, and they reminded us of the children that filled the streets of the village outside of the Rajput's manse. We slept well that night under the cosmos stary blanket, and we all woke the next morning, well fed and well bed, so he invited us to breakfast and explained why we had been brought to his presence."

"'[i]I know that you have wondered at the walls, though you are all courteous enough not to ask about them, but I will tell you why they are there because they are important to the story.[/i]' This is when the noble Jali-Ali told us what we all wanted to hear. '[i]You see, when my grandfather ruled in this place, he decided that the old wood that grew in the dark jungles near our lands should be ours, because there was no true Prince on this earth who claimed that place. He knew that the old teak trees in that forest would have a beautiful wood and that he could sell it for a significant profit, so he encouraged the young men in the villages nearby, those who were second sons or third sons so they had no need to worry about the estates of their families and had the need to find a place in this world that was their own, to converge on the jungles and make their place as woodsmen. And so they did so, and it was as my grandfather had said, so he amassed a small amount of wealth and was contented[/i]'"

"'[i]However[/i]'" the Peacock Kshatra pointed up into the air again, and Javid watched his arm nervously while the Nalayak still circled overhead. "'[i]In those jungles there was a Raja who was neither a man nor a civilized being, for this was a Raja of all the apes of the deep jungles and woods, and though their language is vexing there are a few who can translate it and their translations have told us that the Raja of the Apefolk was Aha-Ah-Mah-Ah-Ah-Uh. He lived in the trunk of a great Baobob tree. His attendants were the small monkeys of the canopy and his Kshatra were the powerful red apes that were his own kin, and he wore a crown of fruits in place of the metal and gems that civilized people wear. When this Raja of the Great Apes was informed of the woodsmen and their labors, he saw it as an assault on his kingdom. But this Raja Aha-Ah-Mah-Ah-Ah-Uh was a wise old ape, and he said that his subjects should simply warn the woodsmen of their encroachment, and so that is what they did. When the woodsmen went out to fell the trees as was their labor, the apes and the monkeys threw volleys of fresh dung at them so they would have to flee or perform a function more suiting for the bottom of a latrine.[/i]'"

"'[i]And so the Ape Raja decided that the matter was concluded. But my grandfather heard of this, and he thought of an plan. He ordered that his woodsmen wear robes that flowed down from their heads and covered their entire bodies, with nothing but two holes carved for eyes, so that no part of their bodies would be touched by the dung and they could continue their work with less fear. The woodsmen did this, and when the Apes saw that this was effective and their poop warnings meant nothing, they lamented.[/i]'"

"'[i]But the Apish Raja was not a coward, as the Red Apes of the forest are known to defend their own and never cow, he decided that a more drastic path would be taken. He declared revenge for the attack on his land, and he ordered that the Ape Kshatra who serve him enter the villages and homes of people at night and steal away their children. So this is what they did. In the night, the Apes would sneak into the villages and focus all their wiles on taking away a single child, so that no matter what the people did they could not vex the apes. When they build walls, the apes showed that they could climb. When they posted sentries, the apes drew them away. Because of this the people saw no victory in sight, and my grandfather died vexed and uncertain.[/i]'"

"'[i]My father was next in line, and it was he who answered with the great wall you all have seen. You see, my grandfather had amassed much wealth from the teak that had been gathered from the forest, and my father decided that this wealth would best be served in the defense of his lands, so he spent it to pay the wages of the masons and to ship strong red stone from the north. When it was finished, he requested his people bring their children to his new fortified capital here in Vinrash, and the people who feared for their children obliged him. When an ape was caught trying to climb the wall, my father ordered the outside of the walls smoothed, which is the condition you see it in now. Now it is the only place of all my lands that the apes do not touch. When my father died, he left this family burden to my work.[/i]'"

"It was then that we asked the noble young Jali-Ali '[i]Excellent Rajput, is the problem not fixed? Have the apes not been thwarted?[/i]' and he replied. '[i]A healer does not cure a fever by putting ice on a man's head, neither is a a struggle concluded when one effect of it is thwarted. The people who tended the land in my fathers time sent their children to live with me, and like my father they have grown old and began to pass to the next world. It would fall to their children to take up their plows and shepherd's staffs, but these children have grown up in the town, and they no nothing of the work that their families professed. Because they do not know to do their jobs, the crops fail. Woodaxes are wasted on the wrong trees, and the shepherds run when they see wolfs. I think that time will teach them, but if they follow the example of their parents and send the new generation of children they spawn to live in these walls, then all the knowledge they gain will be lost again. How can the works and arts of civilized man ever continue if the young cannot learn from their elders? We know this is a curse, and it is a curse that the apes still apply to us, for when a farmer in the countryside fails to send their children to me, the apes make off with them and the farmer is left to grieve.[/i]'"

"'[i]But Rajput, you who are excellent, why do their parents not come to town to teach them these crafts, like letters are taught to scholars? What of the classroom?[/i]' and the Rajput said, "'[i]Would I have them raise grain in the market place? Would I flood the houses with sheep? Would the blessed cheesemakers make their blessed cheese in the privies? You cannot have all of life in one place. In the same way that a civilized man does not make love in the same place he eats his dinner, so to must the farmer avoid farming on the roof of the inn. Men learn their professions through practice. I know that there are no wandering Kshatra's who learn their craft from reading books, and so too no farmer can learn theirs through lecture.[/i]' At that point we were quieted because we agreed with him on this matter."

"'[i]This is what vexes me now, and I have resolved that there is no other choice. I cannot command the forests to grow, and no man can reason with a monkey, so I have decided that I will go to battle against the apes and I will conquer. I did not have the armies I needed before, but I have them now. Who will go with me to battle against the apes of the woods?[/i]' We all answered yes, because we wondered at his story and we all felt like we had became part of a legend of old."

"It sounds like a legend." Javid agreed. Was this man a soldier or a bard? The Nalayak rushed over his head, and he bent down so that it did not shave the top of his hair. 

"I admit it does. But I swear it is true. And i will tell the rest. You see, when breakfast was done we assembled and left out the town and went through its mighty gates with all of the equipment we would need to bring war to the jungles and the Raja of the Great Apes, who we knew must be different from the one named Aha-Ah-Mah-Ah-Ah-Uh since so many years had passed..."

"You are Irjanu?" a woman's voice interrupted. "The Peacock-Kshatra?"

Javid watched the Kshatra turn around, raising his hand to slap the woman who had interrupted his story. His hand fell to his side when he saw who it was that was speaking. "My... my lady." he said. "My worship. What may I do for you."

The woman was one of the Gul Shapur. When Javid saw her, his heart jumped into his throat. He had faced hundreds of men on the field, and every one of them had been willing to see him dead, but they had never made him feel as uncertain as the Gul's did. These were creatures that ebbed power, and their women were no exception. 

"My majestic uncle wishes to meet our distinguished foreigner guests at his throne."

"Yes." the Kshatra bowed. "Yes, of course. Were do I go?"

The female Gul grinned and pointed to the top of the behemoth Vishput statue. It was the crater where the head had been, Javid knew. That is where the throne could be found.

When the Kshatra left, Javid was surprised to see the Gul stay. She was a pale beauty, with skin of polished alabaster and eyes that were grey, though they seemed pink in a certain light. Her hair was a blonde-pink as well. Javid had been told that pink hair and pink eyes meant that she was older, but she looked as if she had not yet reached twenty five. 

"You were the last man to bring sacrifices tonight." the she said. "I saw from the window. You delivered that droll little thing my cousin freed."

"The girl." Javid said. He bowed. "I am Javid of Chultec" he said courteously. 

"So you are." she grinned. She wore a dress as pale as she was. It bared her shoulders, where silver clasps in the shape of vultures held her dress in place. A silver circlet inlaid with pearls rested in her blonde-pink hair. There was a quality in her voice that was unusual in the women of Poertia. She spoke as if everything around her was a mildly entertaining show put on for her personnel entertainment. "The peasant girl he saved is in this room now. Over there, with him." she pointed with one hand, and held a crystal flute filled with red liquid in the other. He tried not to stare at her drink, and allowed his eyes to follow to where she was pointing.

He saw it immediately. It was the same Gul who led the sacrifices at the steps of the castle. That Gul had changed out of his breastplate and into a white and gold kaftan robe synched at he waste with a jeweled belt. The girl he had saved at the steps followed behind him. She had been bathed, though Javid knew a simple bath could not fix everything that had afflicted her on the road. He wondered how the Gul hid the blistering that the young girl's feet had suffered, but there was no way to tell through the crowds. She had been given the simple, short sort of tunic dress that a wealthy peasant might own. He watched them for a moment, the girl following scared behind him. As he watched, he realized something that made him uncomfortable. The girl was not following him, but rather he was leading her by a thin chain-leash connected to a silver collar around her neck. There was no honor in the way she was being treated. Mercy would have been slitting her throat with the rest and letting her die in the glory of ceremony.

"He will keep her with the rest of his pets, until he grows bored." she smiled. "I know that this offends you."

"It is not my place to be offended, your magnificence." he bowed stiffly.

She cocked her head, pink hair brushing softly against her shoulders. "I know enough to know that is a lie. It bothers your kind, and that was always fascinated me. Can you tell me why it seems more natural to die covered in shit, having your throat slit by a stranger? That seems as ignoble an end as there can be. She... she won't live a happy life, I will admit that. A concubine, different sort of meat I suppose. But she will be alive, and that is the most precious thing."

"It is not holy." he said. The fact that he had spoke stunned him. "I... I am sorry, your magnificence. I should not talk."

She eyed him. "You should." she said. "But you won't. Not right now. And that is tragic, for me at least." The Nalayak flew between them, cold steel death and its haunting whistle.