A Gentleman’s Guide to Fantastic Beasts Chp 4

A Gentleman’s Guide to Fantastic Beasts Chp 4

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Commissioned by Citino

Wordcount: 2500

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Of the multitude of times I’d been called to the As’Kari halls, I do not recall a time when Kan’Is was clad in armor. Armor for beings such as he was reserved for only two occasions In times of peace, the chieftains of tribes fought one another in a series of matches to resolve disputes. When two titans composed of flesh that can turn aside sharpened steel, with limbs that can crush lesser men into pulp, and agility that permits them to escape the vision of the untrained eye… every advantage was required in order for one chieftain to slay the other. 

In war, even if chieftain died, their armor would be recovered at even the most grievous cost. As even though its wearer would be turned into a pulp, the armor would stay rigid, could be further improved, and granted to another more worthy. They were akin to battleships of the navy, veritable fortresses of protective measures that granted men obscene amounts of power, though only crewed by one man.

The As’Kari had such armors for each of the individuals in their council, while Kan’Is wore armor that never in history had ever been breached… and had slain those unworthy of wearing it, as well as foes of its hive. Cultivated over centuries, older than many tribes, and costing the Kan’Is more treasure than most others of the desert have ever owned, it was a tool for war and conquest.

Even in peace, it was a weapon, as it deterred all those who would invite the wrath of the As’Kari in fear of what would befall them, their champions, and treasures. 

He wore it now as he looked upon the woman who held her own within the wreck of the airship

Perhaps, to be more exact, the woman who tore apart monsters, intended to kill a group of survivors, and who had not needed aid while dozens upon dozens of other died in the wreckage of a ship that fell from the sky and was beset from both within and without. It mattered not that she had ethereal beauty, that she radiated poise and grace whilst standing before men and women who’ve warred for all their lives, and that she seemed to be an artist’s rendition of Aphrodite given life.

I approved of Kan’Is’s choice to be fully protected before her. It was more precaution than he’d ever shown before. My hope was that he’d keep being cautious, as I gave her a wide berth, knelt before the leader of the people I served, and heeded his summons. 

“Remove your hood and your mask.” There was no greeting, but I knew Kan’Is well. His voice may have straightened the spines of the others gathered beneath the crimson roof of the tent. However, beneath that same, pitched room, I’d sewn together many of his wounds and tended to his needs. I knew him. He spoke tersely due to irritation and impatience at others. What he wanted was not blood and violence, but to be finished with a matter he found boring. So, I complied. “Now, Guardian of Lineage, look and tell me what wrongs my people have done to yours.”

Guardian of Lineage was a phrase to which I was unfamiliar. The As’Kari traveled the length and breadth of the Great Desert, trading with Empires and Kingdoms who could man and defend places where the tribe must stop, whether for food, water, or luxuries found nowhere else in the world, despite the constant threat of the Great Desert and its inhabitants. Multitudes of races existed in this world, as many as there were places to be, as humanity changed according to the whims of magic as did the other creatures of the world.

I gave them, their cultures, and their polities no heed.

I wanted nothing to do with anyone or anything beyond the As’Kari, to ever leave my home for another foreign land with foreign peoples, and be intertwined in war with people with familiar faces with different minds.

I contemplated all of this while the woman bore down upon me with eyes so bright that her lashes cast a shadow faint shadow upon her face. 

“You are impossible.” The words were that of the As’Kari, but obviously guided by a foreign, more elegant tongue. Brutish words were nearly made elegant by the being looming before me. Were I man grown, as I had died, I would have been distracted. The gift of a child’s body allowed me to see the bristling thorns upon the flower’s stem. “A wrong existence.”

Briefly, I wondered if within this world that eyes could truly be a window to the soul, but the woman spoke and explained herself, as Kan’Is stood quietly, carefully, and lacking entirely in feeling. Kan’Is would not allow such words to befall someone who has saved his life a multitude of times. No matter how little I cared for such words, he cared far too strongly for them.

Had her next words and actions not what they were, she would’ve died to his fury and anger, which had been unnoticed by all. 

“You are a king. Not for the sand, but for the skies, and meant to rule.” She knelt. The being for which all of the council garbed their armor and head their weapons readied, a foreigner whose demands of a chieftain of the As’Kari was kept, and a being whose beauty hid a beast beyond comprehension… knelt before me for reasons I did not understand. Nor did I wish to understand. “I beg of you. Come with me to end a war which is tearing my people apart.”

What did she speak of? Where was her kingdom. Why was there a war that could be ended by my existence? Multitudes upon multitudes of questions arose within me, yet no answer was provided by circumstance nor knowledge. I knew not what she was, who she was, and her intentions were as clear as a bank of fog. 

Therefore was only one reasonable answer to such words.

I refused, donned what I was asked to remove, and left.

Let the affairs of othersuch places be their own and for mine to be mine.

…

Kan’Is laughed deeply and loudly within my tent. His armor was left in the hands of his guards, just outside my domicile, while I once more undid my protections against the winds and sands. He’d taken a cloak from one of his guards, then used it to cover himself. The titan of a man was so large the cloak that the airy affair preserved his modesty, but not the rest of his form.

It was difficult to concentrate, as a massive mountain of muscle laughed and laughed within my home, so I turned to attend to him.

If he would not explain why he’d followed me back to my home, chuckling in good humor to himself, I could only hope that he’d explain himself now. And, if he did not show me that courtesy after I received him in my home and made not inquiries while he brazenly attracted attention the whole walk back, I would remove him from the premises. 

My patience and composure both had their limits. Whereupon the day come when I gain the saintly qualities of being able to accept Kan’Is’s childish whims I shall settle down and strive to enlighten the rest of mankind with teachings of patience and understanding. Until that day comes, I shall endeavour to simply and concisely tell him how I feel.

“I am busy, as you should be. Time should not be wasted.” Those were my father’s words from another life. They heralded my escape from the cruelties of business and the machinations of prestige, as well as my disownment. The words were bitter to my lips, but such advice, when properly applied and not self-serving, was true. “Tell me what you want and why you called me, especially when you know who I am.”

A titan of battle, prone to battling beasts and getting himself harmed, was what most of the As’Kari thought of Kan’Is. His figure was that of man who ate well, lived well, and fought well. The champion of the common people against monsters and men who would see their lives broken. However, the truth of the matter hardly stopped at the surface. No simple man can rule over the As’Kari, over the tribes that composed it, and keep the will of others from superseding him by strength alone. 

In both mind and body, Kan’Is was a man who would carve his name into history for he was nearly almighty. 

He knew from the start I would refuse the woman for which he’d donned his armor and that all the others he kept in his throneroom and confidence eared.

“Hah, you should learn to laugh and celebrate, boy! There’s more to life than work and achievement.” The red-haired, bearded giant seemingly composed of bronze chortled. He thumbed his beard, before sweeping back his long, scarlet locks.His smile was a beaming, pearly white. He leant upon his knees and his size made a mockery of sturdy storage box he’d chosen to sit upon. “And, you’ve done in a day what I and the council could not all our lives: refuse the rulers of the sky without harming our people.”

“I was ignorant, therefore you used me.” I accused.

“If you knew the truth, you’d have killed her instead of saved her life.” Kan’Is responded. “Because she and her kind are monsters wearing the faces of men.”

Monsters in the shape of men. Those words reminded me of German soldiery as despoilers, tyrants, and pillagers. I was told that they were aggressors, that they lusted for land and power, and the righteous were those that fought against them. However, in the battlefield, as I pulled men from the trenches the faces of one, blood-covered, mud-caked boy barely differed from one another. 

I did not dislike those words, I abhorred them, and so I stilled and matched the gaze of the most dangerous being I’d ever met.

“Explain yourself, before I leave you and the people you lead.” The smile on Kan’Is’s face faded. I was no longer with the warrior, the tactician, and ruler of the As’Kari, nor the one who supported me and cared for me when I was tossed aside by my parents, but a man from whom I desired answers. “There are no such things as monsters. Merely those who do who do not wish to understand.”

He had no answer to my words. I did not fault him for that, especially as his brow furrowed and frustration gripped him. He knew I made no petty threats. Therefore, his answer must be a truth that explained his hate.

As I waited, the entrance to my tent opened to admit the group in chains that had fought valiantly to merely live, who the woman who had entreated me had done nothing to protect. 

They were four in number, they were varying in phenotype, and all bearing scars and wounds. Their eyes were sunken, cheeks hollow, and they stood upon their bones. They stood while exhausted and fatigued, due to long experience in their current state. I’d seen pictures of slaves and indentured workers in history books in my past life. Those who were worked to the bone, until they learned to cope with exhaustion, and stood even when many others would simply die. Though they came from different sects of humanity in this ever-changing world, I knew they all walked the same path.

I let my anger and frustration at Kan’Is fade away, as I sought to help those who needed me.

“I want boiling water filled with bones.” I addressed the guard who led them in. The warrior hesitated and turned to look towards the leader of his people, but I seized him. His instinct was to protect himself from my grasp, but my other hand trapped his sword in his scabbard as I pulled him down to look into my eyes. “Bones in boiling water. Now. Comply or have blood on your hands.”

I let him go, before turning to the other who led the emaciated husks into my tent.

“Have they been fed? Have they been given the right of guests?” The As’Kari treated guests well. Those who were found wandering the desert, destitute and delirious, were cared for. It was kindness bereft of ulterior motive inherent to the culture of the As’Kari and all the other tribes of the desert. That kindness can kill. “Answer. Me.”

The man did not answer, perhaps frightened or something else, so I moved to deal with his ineptitude.

I found my wrist grabbed by a large, bony, and scarred hand the lead to wrists composed more of thick bands of scars than skin. 

“They tried to feed us much, but we refused knowing our bellies would burst, physician.” Again, the As’Kari language was spoken by a foregin tongue. This time it was more natural, merely deepened instead of utterly debased by alien grace and prose. It was also better spoken, as though effort was spared to grant it sincerity. “I can speak for me and mine. The broth will be appreciated, but we can speak  while we wait for it.”

“Then, you’re a fool for standing. Lay yourselves down. I don’t want another word out of you until you have water and broth in your stomach.” I approached them. They stood taller than me, due to the age of my body. However, they were all undoubtedly lighter than myself. I reached out for the shortest and examined his hair. Rugged wisps that would fall from his head at a mere tug. “Do as I say or I will force you to do as I say.”

The one who spoke As’Kari tongue hesitated as his companions looked to him, but Kan’Is strode forward and barked their own, foreign tongue at them. No. He did more than that. He exerted his presence, standing at the fullest of his height, and loomed over them with the might of a man who can tear apart beasts with his bare hands. The desert titan forced them to comply with my orders.

And, he spoke to me as they did as they were told.

“These men and women are judged unworthy by the people beyond the sands. One and all, those who are lesser are made to serve, until their lives are lost.” My suspicions were confirmed. They were slaves. But, of what sort? What slave can fight against beasts even while exhausted? How were beings in this world, with their ability to gain strength and through glorious feats, enslaved? “You ask me why I think the Hegemon are monsters? This is your answer.”

Though I received an answer, I gained a hundred questions.

However, for now, they mattered not.

I had patients to care for.