//------------------------------// // Chapter 12: Betrayal Betrayed by Texts // Story: The Sandstorm King // by PioneeringAuthor //------------------------------// Meanwhile… “We have searched all over this room! There is nothing!” Amal moaned, tossing aside a pillow with one of his Oryx hooves, “What are we missing? What are we not seeing?” Zahir stared at Heydar’s cedar chest, which was totally empty now. Something about it seemed… odd. Using his magic, he selected the bottom of the chest. He knew it. If it was one solid chest made of one solid piece, he would not be able to select only the bottom. Carefully he picked it up, revealing a hidden compartment. “I found it,” Zahir stated firmly. Walking over, Amal, Kalil and Jaffar inspected what was in the hidden compartment. “...it all makes sense now,” Amal whispered with a quiet flick of his ears. “The propaganda texts of Salaam the Outspoken!” Jaffar gasped as his eyes widened, “And of all of them, The Alicorn Invaders, which declares that the ruling dynasty should be destroyed and some other beasts should rule…. This is what Heydar was thinking. Logical… most logical that he should turn traitor after reading these.” “I warned King Khayri not to let such things exist… but he insisted that the people should be free to think,” Alem sighed as he looked at the ground and shook his head sadly. “That is not all--look at these other texts,” Zahir pointed out, lifting the objects out with his green magic. “We must take these to King Karam at once!” Jaffar declared, “... it is a pity that a traitor should be in our midst.” “I knew it. I knew it!” Zahir snorted as he stamped one of his hooves, “I knew he was up to something! Treason! This IS treason! It IS him! IT IS.” “We still have more searching to do, Zahir,” Jaffar gently reminded him, “We must search Afzal’s room next.” Zahir nodded firmly. In Afzal’s room similar texts were found hidden in a metal container carefully hidden behind some stones in the wall. “SEE? I was right!...I… was right…” Zahir shouted. Kalil's anger spiked. "HOW COULD THEY DO THIS?" He shouted, which alarmed the others and made them take a step back, "How could they?! Malik Al-Aziz was NOT an invader! He and his wife were survivors of a horrific war spoken only of in legend. Their homeland was completely ravaged and their people decimated. When they came here, there was NO united nation. All that greeted them was a mass of warring tribes with no set laws and no order! One of those tribes DID take them in, however, and healed them and nurtured them. In time, the tribe loved Malik and his wife, and the two Alicorns loved the tribe. It was entirely natural for Malik to become the new sheik. After that, he was filled with a passion to secure the wilderness and make it safe, protecting its people from outside harm and potential wars, and THAT is why Al-Aziz went out to unite the tribes, as peacefully as possible, though he was not afraid to fight back against more violent tribes. Was he an invader? NO! He was a hero!" "Indeed he was," Jaffar agreed with a nod after smoothing some of his ruffled fur with one of his cloven hooves, "Thanks to him, Saddle-Arabia exists, under one banner, with one universal set of laws, and thanks to his rule and his son's rule we have prospered and become a powerful nation. Furthermore, the tribes that once lived here still do. The people are free to roam, or settle in cities, without fear of outsiders destroying their culture or values." "EXACTLY!" Kalil exclaimed as he stamped one of his white hooves on the stone floor, "My people were persecuted left and right, but Malik Al-Aziz was happy to take us in, and let us settle wherever we pleased, and I am certain that the Hoof of God was on him and his family!" "It certainly took the worst of famines and war, as well as the worst poison, to kill Al-Aziz and his sons," Zahir muttered bitterly. "Yes... and the worst poison of all: betrayal," Alem noted as he hung his black and tan head forlornly. For a few moments, nobeast spoke, for all of them were thinking of what this truly meant. One of their brethren had betrayed their beloved king. Someone they knew for many years… had betrayed them all. They all remembered the day they met Heydar and Afzal. They all recalled how it felt to be an advisor to the great king, and Heydar and Afzal were among the first faces they met. Out of those four--Kalil the Unicorn, Alem the Oryx, Zahir the Unicorn Pony, and Jaffar the Camel--- Jaffar had arrived first. Khayri had not chosen new advisors for many years after the Court Magician, Tactician, and another advisor had died of old age. When the time was right, he chose a new Tactician from the army--Afzal the Pony Pegasus, and after that Khayri felt it was time to fill the other empty seats, and it was not long before Heydar was chosen from the finest Unicorns in the land--both pony and horse-- to be the Court Magician. When Jaffar arrived, after meeting with King Khayri, he was introduced to the other advisors at the time. Avram was there, along with Afzal, Heydar, and there were others who died of old age within the next years. Jaffar was honored to be chosen for his knowledge and calm attitude. Before being an advisor, he was in charge of a certain division of servants, and indeed he needed to have intense patience and understanding to deal with them all wisely. In time it was said that if there was a troublesome servant or guard that they should be sent to Jaffar for gentle correction. Even Kamal agreed and sent the worst workers to Jaffar. Although he was honored to be chosen as advisor for this, Jaffar felt he did not deserve it. However, Avram’s quiet faith and reassurance helped him, and Heydar’s amiable attitude helped him relax. Through the years, Afzal, Heydar, Avram, and Jaffar got to know each other well… Jaffar thought they were not only his fellow servants but also his friends… but… it seemed he was wrong… very wrong indeed. Within the next decade came Alem the Astronomer. He was the apprentice of the previous astronomer, so it was quite logical for him to take over the position. In fact, it was all very natural for Alem. He had been groomed for this very position, and taking it made him feel as if he truly had come of age. Being herd-minded, he quickly got used to being around the other advisors and working with them all. Afzal and Heydar struck him as very polite and they had an air of genuine camaraderie about them. Unfortunately, he did not always put his best hoof forward those early years. Since he was an astronomer, he often stayed up half the night, then slept half the day. Alem remembered how he felt, being half-asleep when he tried to attend meetings in the mornings. Heydar and Afzal and Avram never once questioned him or made him feel uncomfortable. Jaffar seemed cold and uncaring, but over time Alem realized Jaffar was just as friendly as the others; he simply did not show it outwardly. In the end, Alem felt he was part of a very well-knit herd, and he DID learn how to get sleep at night, which helped his reputation a bit…. Now… after all these years… Alem saw that his herd was NOT well-knit… in fact, it was fraying all over. How had he not forseen this? Was he blind? What would his old master say? Kalil was next. Being treasurer was not a popular position, nor was it glamorous, but he was honored to be serving under Malik Khayri, and took his job with the utmost sincerity and devotion. He naturally wanted to know Heydar better since Heydar was the only other Unicorn Horse. Although they disagreed on many points, they still enjoyed having long discussions on various topics. Now that he espied Heydar's true ambitions, Kalil mentally kicked himself for not seeing this coming. Maybe if he had been more observant like Zahir he could've warned Khayri to get rid of Heydar. Mentally, Kalil cursed himself. A few years after Kalil came Zahir. Heydar heard of his gifts and suggested he be taken up as another advisor, and King Khayri gladly accepted. Like Jaffar, Zahir felt unworthy and honored, and felt very awkward at first. The palace was nothing like he imagined, and he was never entirely sure how to act, but he tried his best to be presentable. Seeing a fellow pony, he tended to follow Afzal and learned much from the tactician. When Jinan came, the three often sat together at lunch, discussing their hometowns and how they found their Special Gifts and earned their Destiny marks. Through this, Zahir found his place and opened up to the other advisors, eventually feeling at home. His keen sense of observation helped him solve problems others could not because they let their emotions blind them, or simply gave up looking. For many years this helped Zahir, and with it he helped others… and now his greatest strength was undoing the camaraderie he spent years building. Nevertheless, he would not let himself be blinded by the feelings of betrayal, shock, and sorrow that tried to creep into his heart. No. He refused to call a traitor “friend” or “ally”. In the name of King Khayri, he would make sure that Heydar and Afzal would pay for their crimes.