Sprig
めんどくさい
~ ~ ~
In the lands of the Calabim, there is a dark secret. It is suspected but no one knows the whole truth. Sudden disappearances within Calabim lands are widespread. Whispered tales reach foreign lands and only the hushed tones of which they are whispered give any credence to the tales; Stories of Immortal leaders and men who sacrificed the mortal life to achieve the everlasting. Tales involving blood and death and the rumours of creatures who drink blood. Some call it ‘The Curse’, the learned call it ‘Vampirism’, however, the Calabim call it ‘The Gift’.
Exar, the Immortal Vampire King, Son of the Calabim Emperor, Flauros, rules over the eastern part of the Calabim Empire. The land was conquered by himself and his armies in a distant past, forgotten by almost all save perhaps Exar himself. The land itself is interesting; it occupies most of a naturally fortified and very fertile valley called Sutlej. Nestled at the entrance to the valley is the City of Adonias. The land and city hold a strategic importance to the Calabim Empire. It is the main trade route for most of the major nations and should any nation be foolish enough to declare war, there could be no victory without first controlling the Sutlej Valley. To the south is the Sheaim who once, in ages past, fought for control of the valley. Bordering close to the north is the Amurites and finally further to the east through the Jungles and forests is the lands of the Ljosalfar. Under normal conditions lands like this would be ravished with war. But though the Calabim, Sheaim, Amurites and Ljosalfar are certainly not friends, they are all held in check by the power wielded by Exar.
Under the protection of Exar, (one could say under his protection from the rest of the Calabim empire as well), the eastern part of the empire has flourished for although the aristocracy of the Empire is maintained, the serfs are usually far better off. For unlike the rest of the empire, there is one golden rule, that not even the aristocracy can break, you can not take the life of another without permission from the Vampire King. While deaths still occur they are usually performed by the Lords and Governors of the local towns as representatives of the King in order to deal with local crime. There are, as accustom within the Calabim Empire, other deaths that are much more secretive but generally, serfs are afforded a much more protected existence than is usual for a Calabim serf. Not only that, while peace was maintained, the trade routes flourished and Adonias became a cultural Mecca. There were many races from different nations who now called the Sutlej valley their home. As long as traders and visitors did not wander too far into Calabim lands and out of Exar’s territory, they were generally safe from harm.
~ ~ ~
Sita was a very gifted seer, not ‘gifted’ in the Calabim sense but in the ability sense. Yes, she had taken her fair share of blood, not for consumption but for rituals to help divine the future. In one particular evening, deep within a trance using blood procured from a young Sheaim trader, her sense failed her. She stood in a desert with nothing but sand dunes, she saw great mountains in the distance in opposite directions however it was what she felt that scared her. This place just felt eerily familiar. Suddenly she felt danger, a Sandstorm blew up from nowhere obscuring her vision but she was sure this was not the danger she felt. She could still feel an oncoming wrath, the smell of death came from the sand as if it was fused with blood. Slowly out of the mist a Traveller came, he was wrapped in a heavy, stained clock which hid his face from view. “Welcome to the Sutlej Valley.” said the Traveller “It has improved much since the passing of the Vampire King.”
Sita fought for control of her vision, she concentrated hard on getting rid of the sandstorm. The sandstorm slowly lightened, the winds lessened and the dust became less dense. The Traveller laughed, “It is no use, you cannot see the doom that will befall your people.” The sandstorm renewed itself with even greater fury. Sita looked up in anguish, such a thing had never happened before. Finally she took measure and stared at the traveller. “Who did this?” she asked with a controlling voice that urged obedience. “I did.” Replied the traveller. A look of surprise appeared and soon turned to one of delight. ”Very good, your powers are quite pronounced.” The traveller paused in contemplation but then continued on before Sita could interrupt. “What I mean to say is that I killed Exar.” Sita gasped but the Traveller continued. “Not that I had much choice in the matter, not after what he became. This place would have been much worse had I not.” Sita looked in horror. “But this is a wasteland!” she exclaimed. “True.” Nodded the Traveller. “This land has been ravished by war and Exar’s successor devoured the lands with his unending hunger. But this is not the worst that could have happened.”
The Traveller turned and headed into the sandstorm. “Wait!” Yelled Sita “Why can’t I see this future? Why have I never seen this before?” her voice was restrained but it did not completely hide her angst. The Traveller paused as the the wind and sand swept around him. “You already know within your heart why.” His voice began to trail off and he began to fade into the storm. Sita collapsed on the ground. “I am… dead?” she murmured. The Traveller had already disappeared into the sand but his voice echoed around her. “Danger is coming, you can’t stop it but you must warn the Vampire King. He must not search for this evil himself least it destroys him. The enemy is close to him, watch out! And perhaps you may right two wrongs.” Sita’s eyes snapped open and she was alone in her meditation room. The Travellers voice still rang in her ears. She jumped to her feet, she knew what she must do before her time runs out.
~ ~ ~
