text: [Themes: fan fiction, romance]
  
  > make Peace with the Insanlar of Bir Kale
  I say in a confident voice, "I will make peace with the Insanlar of Bir Kale."
  "I will send an envoy at once," says my friend.
  "No, I will ride forth myself to the gate with five of my most noble warriors. You will stay behind so that if I die you may lead my men home to their wives and households." I continue, "First, I must adorn my armor."
  "I will tell your five most honorable men of what you will do and your army so that they may watch," says Achish. "Then, I will assemble six horses for you and your five men, and I will find an olive branch from the fields so that you may carry it as a sign of peace to our enemies."
  
  Achish leaves, and I head to my tent. I adorn my armor. The plates hug me like a mother's embrace. I take my sword, but I put it on my right side to show that I do not desire bloodshed today. I glance in the mirror and see dirt upon my face and beard, so I walk outside and clean my face in the stream by the camp.
  
  My men gaze at me and mutter among themselves for why I wear armor, but others whisper my intention to their brethren. I hear the clopping of horses' hooves, so I turn. Five noble men, all sons of Jehoshua the Kuvvetlite, sit upon horses and Achish stands before me holding the olive branch. I take the olive branch and mount the horse.
  
  My men line both sides of our winding path through the tents. They stand with salutes but in perfect silence. Achish follows behind us until we pass the tents. Then, he stops and salutes us as well. I stop riding and say to the men, "Regardless of what happens to us, do not attack. We will not attack this fortress. Even if my body is strung from a rope from those white walls, leave under Achish and return to our land."
  
  I ride forward. Bir Kale is hundreds of cubits away and not one path running towards it is paved like the stone streets of my country. These are dirt, dust, and sand from a people who live in the unwanted lands. How surprised were they when my great army came forth like a crocodile snapping up a duckling?
  
  Was this entire campaign bound to be without honor from the start? They and their god of the desert could never have stood to us even if I gave them warning. No, their land has routs taken by wealthy caravans. The Great King demanded more wealth. Oh, if only I took a wife or a concubine from these people's lost land!
  
  Trumpets sound from inside the gates. A great clammer becomes louder as we near Bir Kale's gates. I can only hope that they see my olive branch from afar. I raise my hand to stop our advance just as we pass the shadow from the walls. No head is looking over the fortress's walls.
  
  "Hail!" I yell, "In peace I come to you. I am Darius, Surviving Firstborn of the Great King and Commander of my Army. I wish to speak to your commander of Bir Kale."
  
  The wind blows past the dunes. The great clamor from inside the walls has ceased, yet no sound comes forth. Surely, most should speak my tongue.
  
  A rough voice with an Insalanian accent says from behind the gate, "In peace you came so in peace we shall be. Our commander is dead, so we are bringing Gamaliel our priest since he has become our leader after Ramiah fell by the sword to you during the last moon."
  "I hear your voice," I say, "And I will wait for your priest."
  
  I dismount my horse, so the five sons of Jehoshua do the same. I did not know Ramiah had died. His whit rivaled that of any general I had met, and I hope his death was one that caught the favor of the gods. I do not know who this Gamaliel is exactly. I cannot make assumptions, but he is almost certainly a priest of their desert god.
  
  The gates open. Two men walk forward. One wears the robes of a holy man, but the other wears rough clothing. Neither of the two men are armed, so I know they took my word as I said it.
  
  The one wearing priestly clothing says, "I am Gamaliel, a priest of my people's God. The other is Asa. He is a prophet of my people's God."
  "I am honored by your presence. I am here to negotiate," I say. Both men keep a calm look. I cannot read their expressions beyond one emotion.
  The priest replies, "We cannot surrender this land. It is the land of our forefathers. Our God will save us."
  I say, "Perhaps he already has. The Great King himself is going to join the Land of the Gods. He sent a messenger saying, 'Go to the Great King and present a wife before him so that he may inspect her'. I have no wife, and I must leave. My army will leave behind me."
  
  Both men fell on their faces and cried out praise to their god. I stand and watch them.
  
  The prophet, though I forgot his name, stands again. I see a shine in his eye as he speaks, "Blessed be those who call upon the mercy of the Ancient of Days. You, noble Darius, are to take the orphaned Tirzah as a wife and you shall be her husband. Together you shall reign wherever that may be."
  "Is that your opinion," I ask, "Or is this a word from your god?"
  The priest Gamaliel stands and says, "He spoke the word of my people's God when he spoke to you."
  "I am startled by his words, oh priest of your desert god," I say, "I had neither intended for a marriage of peace between our nations nor taking a prize with me even as I heard my father's order to find a wife. Who is this orphan that you spoke, and why would I desire an orphan as a wife?"
  The priest says to me with a tear running down his eye, "I did not wish for this to happen either, noble Darius, but I follow the Word of my God. Tirzah, the daughter of Ramiah, was his only daughter for her mother died in childbirth. She is of our kingly line, and her father was second in line for the throne when he died. Her brother, before he died in battle with Ramiah his father, was third in line. By marrying her, you would be accepted into our royal family."
  "How," I question, "Do I know she is of fortunate blood? Her household is dead from childbirth and from the sword. Now, only she is left. How do I know my fortune will remain in the gods' favor?"
  
  Perhaps she is one of the cursed women. Some are barren while others have husbands die due to the gods' displeasure. I cannot let such things to pass if this is so.
  
  The priest answer me and says, "I do not have knowledge or desire to know of your gods' favor, but you will find favor in our God's sight if you marry her. Do you not need a wife? Would your father be pleased if his son returns with an alliance?"
  "I see wisdom in your words," I say truthfully, "I see it possible that your god has made these events take place. While Savas may be unhappy by the loss of bloodshed, my father should be most pleased over securing what we wanted most. May we tax your caravans in return for protecting your borders from the other nations? Our campaign was to put troops on those borders and to reap wealth from trading caravans."
  The prophet speaks again, "Such is the will of the Ancient of Days. I will bring the town's elders and Tirzah the daughter of Ramiah. We will sign treaties documenting what we spoke, for our documents will be binding to our king and to your king."
  
  > At Bir Kale's Gates
  The prophet left. I turned to the five sons of Jehoshua and say to them, "Go, tell Achish of what we have spoken. I will stay. My host will not attack me." So, the five mount their horses and leave.
  
  I stand with Gamaliel. I hope that my betrothed wife isn't unpleasant to look at. Oh what is her name? Tirzah, that is her name. Her father was a noble man, so that must have passed along to her. My father may not approve of one who does not shine like the sun.
  
  Through the gates, I see the people within. Soldiers stand at attention to honor my presence, but the people stand among the streets as well. I suspect most had never set foot in this still strong fortification before I arrived. Many fled their crops and their fields to find safety. Their grime is upon them like snow on the White Mountain. Some of the people are filled with tears and prostrate themselves on the ground to worship their god of sand. Others eye me with suspicion. I would have done the same, though some of them even dance.
  
  I see the prophet come with seven old men and one veiled woman. They stand before me though they do not bow before me. Now knowing what exactly I should do, I hand the priest my olive branch.
  
  "Peace," I say to all of them.
  One of the elders, who has a long and white beard, replies, "Your servants thank Darius son of Dimnah. We gladly accept your gracious gesture. We apologize for having no seat, but our humble town has no seats worthy for this occasion. Come. Let us draw the contract between our two nations."
  
  One of the elders takes out a scroll and writes in what the priest tells him. I see it is in both their tongue and my tongue, but I understand their tongue well enough to see it is the same words as mine. The document reads what we agreed upon.
  
  "Now that we have drawn our agreement," says the white bearded elder, "Let us sign it so that it may be law across both of our lands." The priest Gamaliel signs the document with his name.
  "Is there wax," I ask, "So that I may sign the paper with my ring?"
  "No," says the prophet, "We do not have wax, thus you must sign it with your hand."
  
  I take a quill from and elders hand and sign my name.
  
  "Now," says Gamaliel the priest, "our nations are at peace. Tirzah, the daughter of Ramiah, is now your wife."
  I turn to Tirzah and say, "Greeting daughter of Ramiah. I am deeply saddened to hear that my army and I had killed your brother and father, for your father was a great man. May we live in peace together as our two nations will live in peace."
  With her veil still down, she says to me in a youthful voice, "Your words are most kind, Darius my husband. Forgive your servant's veil. I am still in morning for my father and brother." I hear sorrow in her voice.
  "I hear your words with an open heart. You may morn however long you wish." Am I being too lenient or formal? I wish Achish were here to help me with these things.
  "Thank you," she says.
  "Do you have items or servants that you wish to take with you?" I ask, "I will most certainly take all that is yours if you so desire."
  "I have three chests full of my items," she replies, "Though I let all of my servants flee to their households before your army came. I wish for them to stay in their homeland that they have known. Also, please let me say farewell to those I know here. I will then meet you at your camp."
  "Yes, say your final greetings," I say. She leaves.
  
  I ride back and meet Achish between our camp and Bir Kale, for he was coming to see me.
  
  "Oh wise Darius!" he says, "You have solved both of your problems with your whit instead of your sword."
  "Yes," I state, "Now, we can return home, and I can present a wife before my father."
  "I heard your wife is the daughter of Ramiah. Do you like her?"
  "I do not know, but she seems to have a heart for her servants. Perhaps I will love her, though now my line will be established."
  "Yes, let us return to camp." My friend rides back to my men.
  
  I turn around. The gate is open and the town is celebrating.
  
  > take the City by Surprise
  I ride up to my men. I say to Achish, "Signal the captains, we will ride forth and take the gate. Then, the army will come into the gate and we will take the city. Spare all of the women so that I may take my wife."
  "Truly, truly," says Achish, "You are not noble Darius. You are cunning Darius! Never have I seen such cunning."
  
  Achish raises his flag which signals the soldiers. My men put on their armor and mount their horses. When all of my men are on horses, I take my sword from my right side and place the sheath on my left side. I raise my sword in the air and we ride forwards.
  
  The town nears, but the gates do not close and arrows do not fall upon us. We storm through the gates. People are running in all directions without knowing what to do. Soldiers are scrambling to their posts much too late to be of use. I swing my sword and paint the ground in crimson.
  
  The battle was not a battle. No defense was mounted to be worthy of my might. My sword cut through flesh, and my man had very few slain. When my soldiers came through, they spread throughout the town and took all who were hiding. Very few fled.
  
  The dirt of the ground had become mud from the blood of the slain. My men on foot moved slowly as they brought all of the women to the center of town. There, I saw my wife. I took her from the women, but I told my men to let the others go with food and drink.
  
  After Achish came to my side, I said, "Tomorrow, we will leave. Their capital will fall, for they have no more men to defend it. Achish, leave tomorrow to present my wife to my father. There, tell him that I defied the wishes of Savas to take the city early and his own wishes to give him a final gift before he joins the gods in glory."
  "I will do as you say," says Achish, "Shall I take your wife to your tent and have women prepare her for your consummation?"
  "Indeed, your word is wide, Achish," I reply, "Do as you have said. It pleases me."
  
  Ashich leaves with my wife. My men pillage the wine of Dir Kale and drink mightily until the sun sets. I return to my tent. There, Tirzah stands before me in a gown.
  
  "Take off your gown so I may gaze upon you," I order. She drops her gown. "Your form is pleasant to my eyes. Lie upon my mat. I desire to know you."
  "First, oh prince," says Tirzah, "Would you want to drink from my wine. I had the finest wine in the land, and I brought it with me to you for you to drink before our consummation." She hands me a gourd of wine. I take and drink ten mighty gulps.
  "Lie your head upon my chest," she says, "so that I may soothe you from the days discomfort." I lay my head upon her chest. She rubs my head. My eyes grow heavy.
  
  > Epilogue: The Wrath of God
  Darius came back to his men and told them to attack the Insalar. Because the Insalar were merry with knowing they had peace, they did not hear the army approaching until they were within the gates. All of the men and children were slaughtered, but the wives were spared. Darius looked at the women and saw his wife, so he took her and sent her to his tent. Darius and his men drank all of the wine which was in Bir Kale.
  
  And so because Darius was full of wine, his mind was clouded when he went to Tirzah. She said to him, "Drink of my wine." And he drank of her wine and became sluggish in thought. Then, she said, "Lie down so I may rub your head." Darius did so as well.
  
  Thus, when his eyes closed, Tirzah took a tent stake and a hammer and drove the sent stake through the head of Darius with one mighty strike. Then, the ground shook like a great thunder and the walls of Dir Kale collapsed on the army within killing all of the army. Only Darius' most trusted servant was spared, for he was still in the camp. He fled and told his king of what happened which troubled the king's heart. He fell back in his chair and broke his head upon the ground. The Insalarites were not attacked again for three generations out of fear of their God.