Monday 1 March 2010

The Indus War

The Prajda of Indus, self styled The Masked Tyrant of the South, was largely ignored by the Sithi until 412 when he claimed to be descended from a union between the Usurper and Prince Ineluki’s bloodlines. Subsequent acts in 414 and 415, denying the divinity of the Elven gods and displaying two captured Sithi in his Court of Masks, sealed his fate and War Marshal Thelion the Bold of House Aditu was dispatched with 200 Sithi warriors from four Houses to end the Prajda’s rule. Of his army of four thousand slave warriors, the much vaunted Jevlah, barely 200 were still fighting when Thelion led his Gaetasae to the foot of the Ivory Throne. Convinced of his own immortality, the Prajda chose to engage Thelion in personal combat despite his great bulk and a life of indulgence and excess. He rose from the throne and advanced swinging the Sword of Indus, his badge of office, in a slow, ponderous manner. His hand was separated from his sword-arm a heartbeat before his head was separated from his neck. Despite extortions to surrender, the Jevlah chose to fight to the end and not one of these bonded warriors lived by the end of the day.
A flourishing civilisation lay in ruins, it’s greatest city is now over grown by the jungle and populated by beasts, the wealth of the Prajda, the output of this jade and emerald mines, left lying in the streets. Thelion returned to Jao and presented the Council with the head of the Prajda, still wearing the ornate golden mask of the Tyrant.

Fifteen Sithi warriors had died and many more were injured in the brief war, not least Hathken Aditu, the ranger who had lead the army south. His brother, Beorn the Whole, took his shattered body to the Gorge of Res-Nela to plead the Bone-witches and the High Priestess of Glandu-Gen herself to intercede and save Hathken’s life. Hathken survived but as a broken being, not the ranger he once was. Confined to his home he is sought out by alchemists and healers for his knowledge of plants and herbs outside the Great Wood. His brother meanwhile remains in the Dead Guard, protecting the valley where Glandu-Gen is strongest, paying off his debt to the diseased goddess for his brother’s life

2 comments:

  1. I think that there's a couple of things need changing in this story - the mostly that the Sithi would have beaten the Jevlah in a series of fights rather than taking on and defeating an army 20 times thier size. Whilst I like the heroic aspect of those numbers we don't want anyone to think that we (ie John et al) think that we are really 20 times better than everyone else.

    Afterall, why put ourselves down...

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  2. Indeed, mention the fact their are multiple victories as you say but also actaul numbers need not be metioned at all, or only referenced in terms of 'dozens, thousands etc'

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