[Note: This is oriented towards adventurous male children, primarily
hazars. Female adventurers would have a much tougher time gaining
acceptance in the house. They would be forced into the Waleesha
pseudo-caste, which resembles a female combination of the Hazar and
Vizir castes. There is no female caste analogous to Karmanos which
allows adventuring.]
Who are you?
I am Fazzik Pyar of House Zemady, Sirdar of Kalim, defender of Kalimseve and the lands about it, a loyal subject of Count [1] Kaufan Destrino of Bindlas, he who shines like the sun upon his friends, and crushes his enemies without warning like a rushing avalanche.
Who are we?
We are the House Zemady of Kalim. Through our veins flows the blood of the noble houses of the old Carmanian Empire, the empire of dragonslayers and conquerors. Zemady the Great founded this house two hundred and eighty three winters ago with a grant from Satrap Artano the Dragonslayer. Zemady was succeeded by Sarmathis the Silent, then Mokopts the Bloody, Angue, Teelimurke the Lamb, Oriniksila, Wily Kuray, Berkultap, Rodjan, and now by me. Remember how great we were once, for one day we shall be as great again.
Are we a great house?
The House Zemady is as hard as the rocky eminence upon which sits Kalimcassir, our ancient home. We are not now accounted among the great houses of Carmania, but we will be if I judge your generation rightly. Vixor is already a Master Trader at only 26 summers. Lienter's students appear to be learning superb martial strategy. Several of the young viziri seem to have a talent for sorcery. With a little luck our trading fleet will be known all along the Sweet Sea and the Poralistor River within ten years, and we will have the wealth to be great.
Where do we live?
We live in the sirdarcie of Kalim, on the western edge of Bindlas Satrapy and the edge of the Sweet Sea. To the north of us is Harandash, and beyond the river Poralistor is the land of Zaronger, to the south, Vanstal, to the east, past the Brass Mountains, is Jhor, and to the west hidden Sasasor. {If you find this section confusing, sorry. Ask and I'll try to clear it up]
How do we live?
We are the great among men, and all society works hard to keep us rich and well fed. We equip our table with the profits from the Zemady caravans and the products of our potato-eating serfs. In the summer we eat lamb, rabbit, salmon, trout, clams, catfish, apples, pears, rye bread, lunar wheat, dara happan rice, and delicacies from Dara Happa and the east, and drink ciders and mare's milk. In the winter we eat mutton, rabbit, oxen, dried fish, rye bread, potatoes, and delicacies from the Sea and west, and drink apple and pear brandy.
These clothes are prescribed by the Good God. [2] The Guide commands that a man must cover his face and wear the Lalem, a white robe, whenever he goes abroad at night. It is best to always wear the Lalem when you leave your quarters, so you might not inadvertently break the Guide's laws. Likewise the Guide commands women to cover their faces and wear the Pahero, a black robe, whenever they walk beneath the sun. Meritorious women such as those in our house wear the Pahero whenever they are outside the haram. In winter we wear trousers and other garments of sheep-skin or heavy wool under the Lalem so we may keep warm. In the summer we wear linen or light woolen garments under the Lalem. On holidays it is permissible to openly adorn yourself with jewelry, brass, gold and silver seized from the heart of the Brass Mountains.
House Zemady owns the fruits and hunting rights of Kalim and in return we proudly provide thirty mounted soldiers to the Count. We maintain two of the Count's elite guards, and yearly send him five wagonloads of rye, two horses trained for racing, one horse trained for war, and a piece of exotic jewelry brought that year from a distant land. Also, each year the Hierophant commands us send to the Magistery of Walehan five hogsheads of pear brandy and three of apple brandy, two-hundred dressed rabbits, fifteen female lambs, and three-hundred cubits of white wool cloth.
Even the weak among us are well taken care of and make themselves useful. My brother, Vizir Fusesh, and his apprentices tend to our wounds. The old women of the village heal us when we fall ill.
What is important in my life?
A Hazar should be a strong and skillful warrior. Practice your martial skills where you may so that you are ready when it is time for you to kill in the service of House Zemady. Do not hesitate when violence is imminent. It is your destiny. Face it proudly, seize glory when you see it. This will make you a good hazar. Uncle Fusesh and the lesser viziri will tell you how to manage religious virtue.
Who rules us?
I do. I am your Fazzik. I am your father, the prince of your mercantile enterprises, and your supreme commander in war. Fusesh, my brother, your Uncle, will advise you as to what is wise and what is foolish. Lienter, your other Uncle, will captain all house troops if we are embroiled in warfare.
I obey the dictates of Count Kaufan Destrino. He is my prince. We are a part of the great Lunar empire, and do our best to follow the regulations of its administrators and bureaucrats.
What makes a man great?
Great actions in balance make a man great. Build wealth and make charitable works. Kill your enemies and sire many children. Create beauty and destroy ugliness wherever you see it. Turn thought into action. By his actions will you know a good man.
What is the difference between men and women?
It is man's essential nature to be an illuminator, a source of light and action, to destroy darkness and in the fullness of time to become one with it. It is woman's essential nature to absorb light and action, to take it in and in the fullness of time to reproduce it. Ask the viziri if you want to hear details.
What is evil?
Evil is everything that comes from Ganesatarus. [3] It is darkness, quarreling, jealousy, strife between kin, and many things which the viziri will gladly describe in great detail. Just as the Good God came after Ganesatarus so must we follow evil and put it aright.
What is my lot in life?
You are a son of the House Zemady of Kalimkassir. Your lot is to be a hazar (a warrior, the house's strong right arm), vizir (an advisor or magic-worker, the house's intellect), or karmanos (a prince and merchant, the house's heart). The Will of the Good God regarding your rightful role was discovered by omens when you were raised to adulthood.
How do we deal with others?
We rule over the people of the land as is our ancestral right and soldier's proof. Those who disobey the Guide are as foreigners, and are fated to be our slaves until they accept the Guide's teachings. They are not animals, yet they are not as worthy as full men either. Do not kill them lightly, but do not condone any offences against Truth or the rightful authority of House Zemady.
We compete with rivals such as Oroviras through trade, and through warfare if it comes to that. We are a small house, but we are hard and strong.
Who are our enemies?
We hate all the rebel gods who follow Ganesatarus instead of the Good God. As a part of the Lunar Empire, we are at war with the barbarous children of the storm-dragon who live in that land which killed many of our ancestors. But the border is far away, and we face more immediate problems at home.
Our neighbors in House Oroviras hate us and have ever since my father's father's father, Kuray, won the Eye of Sultsillo from them in a chess game. Do not let yourself be trapped alone with them. They will kill you if they can do so secretly. If you have an opportunity to hurt one of them in secret, take it.
Also, the Taloned Spolite Yolanela, who is the mother of Alehandro of the Brass Arm, Satrap of Spol, dislikes our Satrap and constantly irritates him with her plotting. Damage her plots if you may do so without bringing her vengeance back upon our house. She is wise in sorcery, vengeful, and as dangerous as ten thousand adders, so do not take her lightly.
Who are my gods?
We follow the Carmanian Orthodox Church. The church tells us that the EthTelsen [4], the one hundred lesser gods, are not as holy as the One God, the Creator, but are more like powerful people. Some are called Emanations, others are Divisions, and these can all be valuable to worship.
Beware of Deceitful and evil rebel gods, such as Gbaji who has tricked many foolish people out of their very souls, and the Evil God of Darkness, Ganesatarus.
The lesser viziri can tell you much about the EthTelsen and proper worship if you have the patience to listen to them.
What is there to do around here?
Wintertime is the time that we defend ourselves against House Oroviras and others who hate us. During winter I will send out hazari upon dangerous, important missions for House Zemady. I will need the viziri to separate rumors and half-truths from the facts about those who plot against us. Finally, our karmanoi and the trading missions they lead need to come home before the winter to provide us with information on threats and opportunities in distant lands.
Thaw and Summer are a happy time. Then there are many celebrations, from the Festival of Masks in Harandash to Hezris in almost every town. The bazaars in Harandash, Storal, and Kitor are in full swing. We try to sell as much as we can during that time, whether booty taken in winter raids, trade goods from the previous year, or the produce of our lands and farms.
ENDNOTES
[1] Count is a foreign term. The native Carmanian term is Satrap,
but for private reasons Destrino has adopted a foreign title.
[2] House Zemady subscribes to the (primarily spolite) Pergia sect
of Carmanian Orthodoxy, in which men are required to wear white and
women to wear black.
[3] Ganesatarus is the Dark God, the Dragon of Darkness, the
Deceiver, the quarrelsome one. He assumes the shape of an insect and
lives beneath the ground where he was banished by the Good God,
Idovanus.
[4] Idovanus created the EthTelsen, the Lesser Gods, from the body
of the Dragon of Darkness, and from their number He selected the
Glorantay, the ten gods of the Celestial Court.
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