Ah-cwuti's reign

weren’t always dragons in the valley.

There wasn’t always a valley.

Hogoroth was once a grand capital. The seat of the largest kingdom in all of Adria. Traders from as far east as Ro I Dan and performers as far south as Polarin voyaged thousands of miles to ply their trade in its borders. One of the few kingdoms allied with most of their neighbors, king Ah-Cwuti Hogorah was known as a shrewd but kind patriarch. The jewel of Adria once sat in a mineral rich but unstable feudal warlord overseen land until Bo-Rinsia Hogorah, through both bloodshed and alliances, united most of the territory under a single powThereerful banner. Even the Qwima islands to the very west sent emissaries to pledge fealty to the new king. The Provinces to the north, arid and dry but rich in a substance important to the machina driven countries of Okrod and Noreat. The winding rivers and inlets through the center Borto region created almost perfect conditions for agriculture. Even the South, once known as a mountainous almost inhospitable region, became a hub for tourism and entertainment as careful and creative bureaucracy enticed many an entrepreneur to its reaches. Even Magaleth was moved to outlaw chattel slavery, though pockets still remained even to the kingdoms end.

There weren’t always dragons in the valley.

There wasn’t always death

There is an ancient fable that goes “ The first generation will mourn their lost loved ones atop their thrones of fresh skulls. Their children will take up the axe and lance to protect the kingdom. The Third generation will become lazy and fat on taxes and plenty. The fourth hungry and entitled as they become cousins to kings… the fifth bloodthirsty to take what they desire …the final forgotten as no one will remember what was sacrificed to create their kingdom”

There were always cracks. No vessel, no matter how solid, no matter how strong, will start to weaken. A chip here..a chip there. An unhappy villager taxed to his last by a greedy collector. A corrupt official looking the other way as crimes are committed under his nose. Or perhaps..a spurned lover… promised a title she will never receive.

There weren’t always dragons in the valley.

There was once a kingdom

A hollow echo rang out in the chamber as Ah-Cwuti tapped his finger on the armrest of his throne. He hated the rose and lavender color of his fathers throne. A gift from the Qwima to commemorate their induction as a vassal state of the kingdom. His father hated it as well, but the craftsmanship was second to none and dishonor their lord would no doubt lead to skirmishes on the western sea we could ill afford. They relished battle and almost every citizen was not only a skilled sailor but a member of the standing army as well. Beside being a garrish color in an otherwise muted throne room. The hollowness of the throne made a most irritating echo when tapped in an empty room. Ah-cwuti spent a lot of time tapping these days.

He eyed his vizier as the poor man stuttered through the kingdoms accounts. Knowing the news of further decline would not please his majesty.

“ Governor Xali has sent word from this month’s affairs with Okrod, they are once again asking for us to come to the negotiating table with a new deal for our Cobalt and Oil prices. They will be soon be ramping up production and will be importing larger quantities than have ever imported before.” The man looked up from his papers and nervously eyeballed the minister of finance , after several long silences..the woman looked to Ah-cwuti and nodded in confirmation.

“ Instruct Xali to offer them 75% of what they require, we can not allow them to produce..exactly what they need if we are to give them any deals, Lagali will be dispatched to my cousins realms to discuss these terms in more detail to make sure they are…amicable and acceptable for both parties…” Ah-cwuti eyed the man for what to him must have felt like forever before narrowing his eyes and clearing his throat. After several more seconds he cleared his throat again and put his hand to his temples in exhaustion “ Anything else Bo-san..so far you have only given me positive news…but not a single word from Borto or Ya-Ulan.”

Bo-san seemed to straighten up and tighten at the mention of Borto and Ya-Ulan, center most and most…stubborn of provinces. Part of both were annexed to create the current castle capital on which the throne of power now sits.

“Yes…Both Governors Entudi and Yim Ro-El have reported harvests are not yielding enough crops to keep up with our growing population my lord. They are requesting more workers and more money for their coffers. Ro-El has requested an audience with his liege at his most early convenience. He is still not…shall we say..happy with his territories current taxes and would like to… plead with your majesty for–” Before Bo-san could finish his sentence the large doors at the end of the long throne room opened with a creek.

A tall, slim yet toned man entered the room tailed by 2 of the castle guards. His boots clanged on the ground, heavy with each step. His pants tucked into his boot as was the style of the midlands. Even most of the elite class were still farmers, mostly growing and tending to show crops for contests and to sell to other rich, bored, bureaucrats. His shirt had not a speck of dirt on it covered by the jacket worn by the royal family of Horgorth, Yellow to symbolize the sun that gives life, and green to symbolize the crops that create not only food…but wealth for the kingdom. A large mustache adorned a pursed lip, and though his green eyes showed no emotion to the naked eye, they stared forward to ah-cwuti signaling purpose. His Brown hair twisted up behind his head , sunkissed caramel skin covered in tattoos used to signal victories in battle, a tradition normally reserved for the Qwima proper, but adorned by those who marry into their traditions in the new modern times of the kingdom. The sword by his side clanged as he steadily made his way to stand next to Bo-san and stopped.

Bo-san had not stopped stuttering the entire time the man walked through the throne room and up to the throne itself. He looked the man up and down startled but was still trying his best to deliver his messages to the king and his counsel. One stiff stare from the grizzled man was all it took for Bo-san to shut and bow his head. If this man were in the capital, it was a big deal. The king stood up, stared and the man silent, and began to make his way down the small staircase that elevated the lord over his subjects. The long table that when full, signaled either war or celebration was only half full with only the necessary advisors for month to month finance. Each person at the table, some who may have or may not have been asleep, were not at full attention. Ah-cwuti stood in front of the coarse man , the room still silent. The two men exchanged glances, green eyes searching the other person up and down. After some time, both men's gazes softened, warm smiles spreading across their faces. Ah-cwuti resting his hand on the man’s shoulder.

“ Uncle, I see you are well!”

“ And I see being a king has left you with entirely too little time to practice your swordsmanship and battle readiness. That soft midsection of yours can attest to that acky.” The entire room seemed to tense up at that comment, with Bo-san audibly swallowing spit after an..exasperated and dramatic gasp. The king’s eyes narrowed and after a long pause…a loud bellow of laughter uttered from his lisps .

“ HAHAHA , uncle, always the same, always the same. I have other duties to attend to now, we can not all go galavanting on conquests with our legion of warrior island men. Shirking the ever important duty of feeding our kingdom. I'm sure Ro-El would appreciate you returning to your governorship..even in old age.” He roared, slapping the shoulder of his uncle repeatedly as he spoke. The pale air in the room dissipated with that exchanged through a slight sensible tension still laid under the surface.

Ah-cwuti looked similar to his uncle, as his uncle and the late king were twins, though ah-cwuti was softer than the hardened worker and warrior class bodies of his father and uncle. His hair was locked and draping down his shoulders. He wore a full beard unlike his uncle and his red and black royal mantle of Hogoroth sat over a red and black jacket to signal the capital’s royal family. Ah-cwuti eschewed the large crown his father wore in favor of a very thin more circlet style. He did not care for such displays and never understood why his father did either.

“ Nephew, I understand you have…kingly affairs to attend to. But I come to you with a matter most mysterious and most dangerous. You know I despise coming to the capital at all costs, so if I am here acky..”

“ Yes yes uncle I understand.” With a wave of his hand, everyone gathered any paperwork they had not yet presented and scurried out of the room. Ah-cwuti sat in one of the chairs and politely signaled to his uncle to take one of the others. After taking a seat he looked up at the ceiling and let out a long sigh. The look in his eyes let Ah-cwuti know this was a serious matter.

“ Nephew, I have sailed up and down the western sea. I have seen a lot in my day since marrying Alalamapa and taking up their way. We have seen the normal, sirens, giant squids, a pirate or several…hundred. But four months ago we saw something I..I dont think we should have seen.”

“ What was it uncle?”

“ We hadn’t seen a fiend nor pirate in weeks. Uncommon but not impossible. But as we turned back up north to head back toward Ikaqwima. The water under us grew black, the air heavy. The sea became unusually turbulent. Then the sea became vicious, waves through us around, worse sailors would have been done for. Out of the water something emerged, must have been more than 90 meters long. Gray scales from head to tail. “ Ah-cwuti’s eyes bulged as his uncle spoke, recounting the tale. His eyes glazing over as his uncle recounted losing multiple of the best sailors in one of the strongest sailing fleets Qwima had to offer.

“ You.. are you sure. Those don’t exist any more, they haven’t been seen since before the warlord days. Before your parents' parents reigned.” Another long sigh let out from his uncle’s lips. His chest heaving out then in.

“ Acky, listen to me and listen well. If there is one thing i am not, its a liar… What we saw out there was real.. I have men to corroborate my story, but I am afraid the dragons have returned. “