Into the Heart of Evil (43 page)

A collective ‘ah’ echoed in the chamber.  Durik
was amazed by the beauty and generosity of the gift.  Resheathing the sword,
Lord Krall turned back to Durik and handed it to him, patting him on the
shoulder yet again.

Lord Krall then moved in front of Khazak Mail Fist
and waited for a steward to step forward who was holding a pair of items
wrapped in a cloth.  Taking the bundle from the steward, Lord Krall turned
again to the assembled audience.

“Standing before you now is the Chamberlain of the
Kale Gen, Khazak Mail Fist.  As second in power only to the Lord of the Kale
Gen, he should be off shuffling parchments and running the affairs of the Kale
Gen for his lord.”  The assembly laughed at the good-natured prodding.  “But I,
however,” Lord Krall continued as he turned toward Khazak, “will be forever
grateful that he was here last night.” 

Turning back to the audience he elaborated.  “This
warrior of warriors single-handedly stopped Mynar and his conspirators’ first
deadly assault, then held them off until Durik and his company could come and
drive them off.  I think he killed literally half of the conspirators by
himself.  Truly, Khazak Mail Fist’s skill is without equal.”  The assembled
leaders of the Krall Gen pounded on the table, with the warrior leaders voicing
their approval loudly.  Holding up his hand for silence, Lord Krall continued.

“That honor name you have… Mail Fist,” he began. 
“As the story goes, it was given you because you were the mailed fist of Lord Karthan. 
At one time, as I remember it, you actually had gloves made with chain mail on
them.”

Khazak Mail Fist nodded.  “Aye, and I lost them at
the resting place between our two gens just a pair of nights ago now.”

“How fortuitous,” Lord Krall said, “as our most
master crafters made the following for you last night.  These are given to you
this day in recognition and appreciation of the fact that you have saved the
Lord of the Gen and his family.”  Lord Krall uncovered the bundle that the
steward was holding, revealing a pair of sturdy leather gloves, the backs of
which were plated with iron etched with designs of silver leaves and had a
solid bar of iron across the knuckles gilded with gold and etched with the
design of the tree that Lord Krall used as his symbol.

Taking them out of the bundle, Khazak fit first
one then the other to his hands.  After flexing his fingers a couple of times,
he pounded a fist into an open palm.  “Ay!  Jawbreakers are these, no doubt!”
he exclaimed.  Looking up from the new gauntlets, Khazak smiled broadly and
grasped hands with his benefactor.  “I’m certain these will see much use
shortly.  Thank you, sire.”

“You have earned these honors, Khazak,” Lord Krall
replied, then turned to Durik, “as have you.”

Kiria pulled the saddle tight around Firepaw’s
belly.  She was elated that she had drawn the duty of exercising the wolves and
packdogs, and had begun the task with enthusiasm, despite the myriad of aches
and pains she had accumulated over the past few days.  Quickly she mounted. 
Being gentle with the reins, she guided Durik’s wolf out of the kennel and into
the open area in front of the caravan drivers’ quarters.

Durik, Manebrow, and Gorgon were just arriving in
the company of Lord Krall and a small handful of his house guard.  Though the
present conspiracy had been dealt with, Lord Krall was never one to be
reckless, and leaving his guards at home so soon after an assassination
attempt, though it failed, would have been foolhardy at best.  Seeing them
coming, Kiria reined Firepaw in and dismounted.  Hearing the arrival of their
leaders, the rest of the company who was gathered on the porch repairing
equipment stood and waited for their arrival.

“Ah, my young niece!”  Lord Krall said.  “You’re
quite the hero today, I would say.  Being my life-mate’s brother’s child, I had
a hard time deciding whether to honor you at the ceremony for your Kale Gen
warriors, or at the ceremony this afternoon for our own house guard.”

With the firm look of a newly-minted veteran, but
still a gentle smile for her uncle, Kiria rubbed the deep black fur on
Firepaw’s lower jaw.  “My place is here with my warrior group, Uncle.”

“Well.” Lord Krall looked a bit surprised.  “So be
it then,” he said as he smiled approvingly.  “Probably for the best, since your
companions seem to be more than capable of handling the challenges the orc
raiders and ant hordes of this world have presented to them of late.”

“She handled herself well enough with that orc
champion we encountered, I would say,” Manebrow said gruffly.  “We’re one team
here, sire.  We all pull our weight.”

“Aye, sire,” Durik nodded.  “That we are.”

“You Kale Gen warriors seem to be a hardy lot,”
Lord Krall said.  “Though you have ended the threat that Mynar posed to our
gens, your discovery of the sudden strength of the great ants will likely pose
quite a challenge shortly, as will, perhaps, whatever task your Lord Karthan
has sent you on.”

“We’re up to the tasks,” Durik said confidently.

“Well, I would imagine that a few days from now,
once the ants make a new queen, that we’ll all see exactly what we’re made of,”
Lord Krall stated.  “And then we’ll see if we’re up to the tasks or not.”

“Aye, Lord,” Manebrow nodded as he looked to the
west.  “That we will.”

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Castes
– The male kobolds of the Kale and
Krall Gens are usually divided into castes.  A kobold is casteless until the
ceremony or competition that marks the transition to adulthood.  Female kobolds
remain casteless until they are joined to a lifemate, at which time they assume
the caste of their mate.  The three castes are:  servant (or worker) caste,
warrior caste (includes elite warriors), and leader caste (includes adventurer
class).

·
      
Servant caste kobolds do most of the mundane chores of the gen
and are not responsible for the defense of the gen.  There is no movement out
of the servant caste.

·
      
Warrior caste kobolds generally perform most of the skilled labor
of the gen and also carry the responsibility of protecting the gen.  A warrior
may become an elite warrior through hard work or other proof of merit.  Elite
warriors are the middle managers of the gen.  In many gens they subside on the
efforts of their warriors, in some gens they must work to sustain themselves in
addition to coordinating the efforts of their warriors. 

·
      
Leader caste kobolds are the social elite of the gens.  They generally
spend all of their efforts in leadership tasks and political positioning, and
are the real power-players of any gen.  They are usually supported by taxes,
tribute, and plunder.  The number of leader caste in a gen are usually
determined by the number of seats on the gen’s council (twenty-four if a gen
follows the Scrolls of Heritage), and are often the eldest sons of previous
leader castes, though others have been made leader caste in times of need or,
as in this story, some have achieved it by merit.

Chop
– Also called the Wall.  It is the
mountain range to the north of the Kale and Krall Gens.  It is shaped like a
pair of praying hands, pulled slightly apart.  It runs the entire length of the
southern valley where the two gens live.  The great rift that runs through the
ridge of the Chop is spanned by a bridge called Demon’s Bridge, or Fiend’s
Bridge.

Day of Beginnings
– A holiday when kobold
gens celebrate the day that, according to legend, the first kobold came into
existence.  It is in the early spring and is generally the same day that the
Trials of Caste are conducted by the Kale Gen.

First Meal
– Breakfast; usually the
simplest meal of the day.

First Watch
– The night is divided into
three time periods.  These three time periods are called ‘watches’, because the
warriors who stand watch at night generally divide their shift into three. 
First watch is from the going down of the sun in the world above until the end
of the burning of one torch.  On a certain day each year in the winter, the torch
is wrapped with an extra layer of pitch, to compensate for the longer period of
darkness outside.

Gen
– A kobold tribe, generally consisting
of genetically related kobolds, though gens have been formed from remnants of
other gens.

Hall of the Mountain King
– An ancient
dwarven hall whose entrance is built into a small, hollowed out, flat mountain,
the chambers of which extend far into the mountain that the flat mountain leans
against.

Kobolds
– Small humanoids that stand
between three and four feet tall.  Their bodies are covered with rust red
scales, with larger scales on flat surfaces of their bodies and smaller scales
near and at the joints.  Kobolds have long, whip-like tails that start somewhat
thick and taper toward the end.  Their tails are almost long enough to touch
the ground.  Male kobolds begin growing straight, ivory horns at puberty.  As a
kobold grows older, his horns will generally bend forward, eventually curling
on the oldest of kobolds.  Female kobolds do not grow horns and are generally
shorter than their male counterparts.  Kobolds have a sharper sense of smell
than humans.  Many kobolds have trained their sense of smell to the point where
they can track using their noses.  Kobolds also have heat vision.  Using heat
vision, they see black and white only, with cold things appearing black or dark
gray, and warmer things appearing lighter gray.  Hot things appear bright
white.  Kobolds’ heat vision is spoiled by normal light (torches, daylight, etc.)
as well as excessive heat.  Though initially thought to be of reptilian
descent, kobolds have several strange features that belie a completely
reptilian heritage; they are warm-blooded, having the ability to sweat. 
Additionally, their children are gestated internally, not adhering to the reptilian
trait of laying hard-shelled eggs.

Krall Gen Castes
– Unlike the Kale Gen,
which conducts one large, centralized trials of caste event for the entire gen,
the Krall Gen lets each warrior contingent leader conduct his own trials for
any male kobolds who want to join his contingent.  A kobold may only try once
to join a warrior contingent, and it must be during the kobold’s fifteenth year
of life.  If the kobold chooses not to try or fails, then they become worker
caste from that point forward (also called common or servant caste) and belong
to their father’s warriors contingent.  Kobolds who are accepted become warrior
caste and can eventually become elite warrior caste by merit.  Leader caste in
the Krall Gen is by appointment and is usually reserved for male relatives of
the Lord of the Gen (denoted by names which end in –ar). 

Minotaurs
– Minotaurs appear to be rather
large humans with bulls’ heads, and hooves instead of feet.  They are usually
covered with thick, course hair from head to hoof and are usually rather
muscular.

Orcs
– A race of brutish, warrior-like
humanoids with greenish-black skin, sloping foreheads, sharp teeth, and red
eyes.  They are organized into tribes, with the strongest orc dominating the
warriors of the tribe and securing the loyalty of the warriors by dividing some
of the females among them.  As they breed and mature at a rapid pace, a war
party of young orcs from a growing orc tribe out to prove themselves is a
common thing to encounter.

Palacid
– The legendary citadel of The
Sorcerer.  It disappeared from its location in the heart of the human lands at
the end of the Great War, almost a thousand years before the time period
covered in this book.  It then appeared in the southern lands; shortly after
which the kobold race came into being.

Second Meal
– Lunch; usually a more
substantial meal than breakfast.

Second Watch
– The night is divided into
three time periods.  These three time periods are called ‘watches’, because the
warriors who stand watch at night generally divide their shift into three. 
Second watch is from the end of the burning of the first torch to the end of
the burning of a second torch.

Sorcerer
– The Sorcerer was a person of
great power that lived a thousand years before the time period depicted in this
book.  He unified the human, elf, and dwarf races.  He possessed phenomenal
magical powers and used them to better the state of the races.  While he is not
the Creator, he is the one who made the kobold race, gave them their laws, and
taught them their language.

Sweet Bark Cider
– A non-alcoholic, but
calming and focusing drink distilled from the under-bark of the massive trees
that surround the heart of the Krall Gen.

Third Meal
– Dinner; usually the most
elaborate and substantial meal of the day.

Third Watch
– The night is divided into
three time periods.  These three time periods are called ‘watches’, because the
warriors who stand watch at night generally divide their shift into three. 
Third watch starts at the end of the burning of the second torch until the
pre-dawn light fills the sky in the world above before the sun actually rises.

Trials of Caste
– The Kale Gen conducts a
singular event each year where all male kobolds in their fifteenth year
participate.  These same kobolds spend an entire year before the event
arduously preparing for the event.  Those who are not able to complete each
aspect of the training become servant caste.  Those who make it all the way to
the trials of caste and score in the trials or gain at least one kill become
warrior caste, no matter where they place in the rankings.  Usually the top
kobold from each year-group is made an elite warrior. 

Wallaya Root
– The Wallaya plant has a
large, tuberous root which, when boiled, gives off a pleasant, relaxing scent.

Warrior Contingent
– The Krall Gen
maintains three warrior contingents; Archer Guard, Border Guard, and Heavy
Guard.  Every warrior is allowed to own property in the Krall Gen, and the
Krall Gen also encourages free trade (though it is taxed).  As such, the warrior
contingents do not control economics, though the leader of each warrior
contingent does get a cut of the taxes.  Each warrior contingent is responsible
for fielding a number of warriors which is dictated by the lord of the gen.

Warrior Group
– The Kale Gen is divided
into six warrior groups; Patrol Guard, Trade, Metalsmithies, Deep Guard, Wolf
Riders, and Honor Guard Warrior Groups, with only the functional leader caste
of the gen and their staff not belonging to any warrior group.  Each warrior group
has a primary mission, such as to run the trade caravans, or produce craft
goods, or guard the outer perimeter of the gen.  A male kobold often grows up
in, becomes a warrior in, grows old and dies in his warrior group.  Female
kobolds may or may not stay in the same warrior group once they reach the age
of adulthood and are mated.

Whelp
– Child or adolescent; a kobold who
has not yet reached the age of adulthood.

Year-group
– A peer group of kobolds in
their fifteenth year of life.  In the Kale Gen, all the male kobolds in the
entire gen that are in their fifteenth year are put together into one
year-group to pass through the Trials of Caste.