Kho

I, Arabicus: A story of Rome and the rise of Islam

I do that anyway, just like to format the dialogue of my characters as a personal thing. But I'll remove that too :)

I, Arabicus: A story of Rome and the rise of Islam

@Vilageidiotx Will do. Are italics-bold fine?

I, Arabicus: A story of Rome and the rise of Islam

Ghassanid Syria

Jabiya

Hudhayfah ibn al-Yaman

The martyrs were buried, one by one, and the funeral prayer was conducted, that God most high would forgive them their sins and allow them entry into the highest gardens of paradise. It was painful to part with those who walked and laughed with them but a day before, but the Muslims, if they wept, wept silently. Hudhayfa put his hand upon Harith's shoulder in an attempt to comfort him.
'Come Harith, weep no more. We are all destined for death and there is no better way to depart this world but in the cause of Allah,' Harith took a deep breath and nodded slowly, wiping the tears from his eyes.
'You are right, oh Hudhayfa. But my hearts is saddened greatly by Urwa's death. Our mother will weep rivers at losing him for he was always her favourite and she doted on none as she doted on him,' Hudhayfa was silent for a while before he shook his head and spoke once more.

'No, Harith. Remember the words of Allah and when he did say in his most holy book: 'And say not of those who are slain in the way of Allah: "They are dead." Nay, they are living, though ye perceive (it) not.' Indeed Urwa and all the martyrs are yet alive though we know it not. So weep not, and tell your mother not to weep, she is a mother of a martyr, should she not be happy to know that Urwa has been promised eternal bliss and gardens where he will feel neither illness nor death?' Harith's tears suddenly returned and he let out a few sobs.
'It pains us even more that he has beaten us to that reward while we yet remain upon this earth. It is almost as though Allah does not wish to see us or take us into his mercy. Would that Urwa and I were taken together,' at this Hudhayfa allowed a sigh to leave him.
'Weep not, oh Harith, for you fill my heart with sadness to see you in such a state,' and they two stood together for a while before Urwa's simple grave, and Hudhayfa soon tore the grief-stricken man away and they headed towards the tents.

On the way, they passed by some of the yet unburied bodies of the Romans, and Hudhyafa overheard the men standing over them mentioning what had been done to their commander. He stopped and looked towards them.
'Did Khalid truly do such a thing?' he asked them. They turned to him and one of them nodded.
'Indeed he did, I was there. He demanded that the man's head be cut off and that it be sent, along with the body, to Damascus. He said it would serve as an example for the others and a warning that in Arabia, Rum no longer rules,' Hudhayfa shook his head sadly.
'May Allah forgive Khalid, did he not hear the words of the Caliph of the Messenger of Allah before we set out?' the men looked from one to another and questioned Hudhayfa one what the Caliph had said.

'Indeed, he did stand up amongst us and call us all to him, saying:

Stop, oh people, that I may give you ten rules for your guidance in the battlefield. Do not commit treachery or deviate from the right path. You must not mutilate dead bodies. Neither kill a child, nor a woman, nor an aged man. Bring no harm to the trees, nor burn them with fire, especially those which are fruitful. Slay not any of the enemy's flock, save for your food. You are likely to pass by people who have devoted their lives to monastic services; leave them alone.

I was most certainly there when he said it, and so too was Harith and many others. Did not word reach Khalid? He has most certainly erred greatly by mutilating their commander's body, even if he saw in so doing an advantage for the Muslims,' and with that, Hudhayfa delivered the salam to the men and went on his way with Harith.

Once back in their tent, Harith and Hudhayfa talked briefly about the events of the day and the significance of the fall of the Banu Ghassan capital of Al-Jabiya.
'Al-Jabiya is the heart of the Banu Ghassan kingdom, with its fall, the tribe will most certainly be inclined towards joining us. Indeed, when they see the beauty of Islam and our good treatment of them, they will most certainly be more willing to join us, and what a boon they will be. The Prophet, may the the prayers of God and peace be upon him, was indeed an example for us in this regard. How many were his bitter enemies who, upon seeing his good nature and his treatment of others, became his most willing allies?' Hudhayfa lay down, tired after the long day of digging and burying the martyred.
'And what is more, the Banu Ghassan are of us; they are Arabs and their loyalty must be to their blood. We have removed from them the yoke of the oppressive Rum and now they are free, certainly they have none to turn to but their own, honour is theirs today, for the Arabs have awakened from their ignorance and sleep and have come to deliver them from the hands of their overlords. May Allah guide their hearts and may this victory be another step forward for the Ummah of Mohammed,' Harith smiled slightly, glad to know that his brother had not only died a martyr, but that his martyrdom would had opened the doors of freedom for their Arab brethren.

'Now it remains for us to free our enslaved brethren in the east, for indeed, the Furs have a most powerful hold on the Banu Lahkm,' Harith said. Hudhayfa nodded slightly before he closed his eyes to sleep. The Adhan for the morning prayer would soon sound, and he wanted to get what little rest he could before then.

I, Arabicus: A story of Rome and the rise of Islam

And on that note, I'll get to writing that IC post!

But just a comment on Arab Romanization. While the Arabs did indeed 'inherit' the intellectual legacy of the Romans and Greeks, they very quickly developed a culture of their own, and rather than Romanizing themselves, it was those they conquered who became Arabized - one need only look at the Arab world today to see that. I think Islam and the position of the Arabic language in it ensured that Arabic - and through it Arab culture - did not simply give way.
Conquered people Arabizing was also largely due to the fact that the Arabs actually treated their subjects much better than the Byzantines or Persians ever did, and the taxes they levied (even with non-Muslims paying the Jizya) were less strenuous than those of the Byzantines and Persians, meaning that many people embraced both Islam and Arabic and became Arabized within a generation or two. It's rather shocking just how fast the Muslims managed to assimilate the lands they conquered, and with that they managed to very quickly gain Muslim administrators and bureaucrats, helping the Rashidun build some rather efficient bureaucratic systems in the various regions they had under their control.
Kinda like of a more advanced version of how Romans managed to quickly assimilate those they conquered with promises of citizenship and whatnot, thus vastly increasing their manpower to those famed reserves.

Of course, it would be interesting to see Arabs Romanize, as unlikely as that would be.

I, Arabicus: A story of Rome and the rise of Islam

I didn't see that the OOC was up until now for some reason!

I'M HERE

@babbysama

Nice, was really disappointed when I noticed you weren't here (since I read through the interest check and you seemed really excited xP plus, having Persian characters makes it so much more interesting ;P)

@Drunken Conquistador

Hmm, one of the fortes of the Roman Empire was its phenomenal manpower. While it certainly was not the kind of Empire that just threw human waves at its enemies, it was certainly capable of doing so. As early as the Punic Wars, with Hannibal marauding through the Italian country-side, Rome could afford to lose 50,000 men in one battle (Battle of Cannae, with estimates as high 70-80,000), then punish those who lost against Hannibal by decimating them, and then raise another damn army to crush Hannibal.

Given that was 800 years ago in our current IC time, Roman manpower was something amazing even without the Western half - Byzantium was capable of calling up an army of 100,000-400,000 men at the Battle of Yarmouk (at a time when the Rashidun manpower was 70,000 at the max.)
If we add the manpower pools of North Africa and the Western half of the empire, then the Empire at this point in time is a manpower behemoth. Meanwhile, the Rashidun had a manpower pool of some 41,000 in 634 AD.
While I understand that Rome had issues in the West, it is likely that it's manpower is great enough in West to maintain itself there, thus meaning that it was capable to fend off the Persians in the East simultaneously.

Thus looking at it from a completely military-power perspective, Rome seems to be an undeniable powerhouse. Of course, whether increased Roman manpower in this alt-timeline would be able to make up for the fact that the Rashidun were extremely skilled warriors and were adept at taking advantage of Roman weaknesses (that being the lack of mobile, light cavalry) and were also constantly defeating armies far superior to them in numbers anyway, remains to be seen I guess.

We also need to take into account what having control of the West really means: pretty much undisputed control over the Mediterranean. Being able to move armies swiftly by sea was vital to Roman supremacy, and I'd assume that if they've managed to hold onto the West, that Rome has managed to develop a rather formidable navy and is capable of landing armies wherever there is a threat in a reduced amount of time. There is also internal trade, no doubt a safer Mediterranean means increased internal trade, more revenues etc.
As a whole, whether Rome is embattled from all sides or not, there is no denying that it is in a a far better position than the Byzantines could ever be, militarily and economically.

While I'm very interested in Ancient History, I admit that my knowledge on it is not as great as later times (I much prefer my Ottomans, Safavids, Mamelukes, Englandss and HREs and France(s), even Spain and some Murica), so feel free to correct me if I've said something stupid xP

Morituri te Salutant: Arkreidian Gladiators

I would continue, but I don't want to god mod our opponents.

Morituri te Salutant: Arkreidian Gladiators

Though Gar did not know why, but it seemed that the elf, Eltharion, and the little man somehow knew each other and were not on the best of terms with each other. That would not do at all, whatever enmity lay between them had to put to the side, or neither would live through whatever was ahead of them, let alone live long enough to wreak whatever vengeance they wished against the other. Gar was about to speak up in an attempt to temporarily conciliate between the two, but then the all too familiar voice of the Tree-Leg sounded out. Gar glanced at Ktaker, who was closest to the two, and the Skytalon gave him a nod of understanding before moving to separate the two. As the Tree-Leg spoke, he pried the two apart, one clawed talon pressing down on the stubborn Griffith's head and the other pushing Eltharion back.

When the red-garbed man spoke about Gar breaking some kind of rule, the Treemind looked towards the child on his shoulder in confusion, asking if he had done something wrong without realising.
Yes, you're too bloody big that's what's wrong! the child's sarcastic thoughts came back, try shrinking six or seven feet.

Well, he couldn't do that, now, could he? It was not an ability Treeminds had, as far as he was aware. He quickly realised, however, that the child was simply being its sarcastic self, and he quickly gathered that the red-garbed man did not seem too fussed by Gar's overly large size.

They were soon shuffled out of the small armoury and a disembodied voice said something about those under a Lanista 'Draigo'. The Tree-Leg had not actually told anyone his name, Gar suddenly realised. Tree-Leg Draigo he was, it seemed. As they were shuffled onto they tiny cage - at least, tiny with Gar in it. It was rather uncomfortable for the huge Treemind, having to bend down slightly while also attempting not to crush anyone against the bars of the cage. The cage rose and the stench of the pit hit Gar like battering ram, and when he finally saw the blood and the limbs, the effects on him grew even worse. He gave a slight growl - or was it is a groan of pain? - as he tried to focus himself and expel the nausea. The roar of the crowd came to him as if across a large expanse of land, echoing in his mind in an almost mocking manner. It only increased his agitation and unstable state, and the tattoos on his body were green and dripped down his body like some kind of disgusting mucus.

His sight blurred and his hearing distorted and the smell of blood and death overwhelming him, Gar barely registered what was being announced, though he did recognise the rise in the crowds of the cheers and the odd movement in the pit which betrayed the positions of their opponents. It was the final cheer, however, which overwhelmed Gar most of all. Far too loud. There was far too much noise and too much blood in this place. He could neither stand it nor handle it. He had the oddest feeling that someone was talking in the cage, but he did not hear what they said. There was but one thing on his mind: stop the noise; stop the blood.

Releasing a most thunderous roar from his chest, deafening his comrades, he leapt towards the bars. Had they not opened at that second, there was every possibility the Treemind would have torn them apart with his inhuman strength. As it were, the cage was saved and the wild bearman burst into the pit with speed, the child flying from his shoulder due to the speed and falling into the terrified Prinny.
Reaching the middle of the pit, Gar stood to his full height and fired off another ear-piercing roar, before he instinctively turned upon the greatest source of danger. His eyes focused on the disgraced soldiers and his singular desire to put an end to the noise and the blood made them the source of his suffering. Without hesitation, the Treemind charged towards them, range bared and claws prepared, and his fur bristling upwards like some kind of porcupine. But perhaps the most terrifying of all were the tattoos upon his body, now fully black and crackling upwards, and upon his chest was the undeniable face of a most terrible, cackling demon.

It seemed that, whether Gar had intended it or not, he had gone right ahead with the plan he'd suggested. Whether the others would take this opportunity, while the undoubtedly terrifying form of Gar took up the attention of all, to gather weapons and prepare themselves remained to be seen.

Mid/High Casual - Divinus: The Deity Roleplay (Rebooted)

@Lugubrious The healing of Ialu - Invidia 11 Khookies

Morituri te Salutant: Arkreidian Gladiators

I'll get a post up today ;)

Go through the Alphabet before someone posts a My Little Pony Picture

I'm here now, might as well aid in the effort.

C