Chapter 38 - Spiralling
Chapter 38 - Spiralling
November 27, 887 AD
A stiff wind was blowing through the steppes of Yegorlyk. From the northwest, a dozen riders approached the Khazarian army camp. When scouts were sent out, they found it to be a Bulanid envoy from the besieged camp in Sarpa – including the Khan himself, who predictably had objections against their order to stay put.
General Hezekiah and the Khazarian army had stayed on the Caucasus to back up the troops cleansing and razing the villages against unruly residents. They had arrived here about a week ago, after reports had come in of a peasant uprising stirred by some Orthodox zealot in the area. A few weeks earlier, something similar had already been tried in Muslim Durdzukia by a certain Imam Soslan - with predictable results.
Unlike Soslan's unenviable men, the Christian revolters in Yegorlyk had taken their chance to clear the area once they learned of the Khazarian horde approaching – and proceeded into Sarpa, the current location of the Bulanid courtal camp. Zachariah took notice upon hearing this (although usually he didn't listen all too eagerly when presented with information), mostly because it amused him that rebels from his lands were now causing trouble for the petulant Kibar, and he ordered his commanders to stay put and contain the rebels in Bulanid lands, but not attack them until further notice.
Kibar of Bulanid stormed into General Hezekiah's tent. Without salute or other pleasantries, he shouted "Would you care to explain what this is supposed to mean, General? Do we now openly disregard a Khagan's responsibilities?"
Hezekiah looked at him unimpressedly. In his eyes, the young Bulanid Khan had until now produced a lot of noise without showing any effort to back it up with actions. "Good to see you too, Khan Kibar. Welcome to the humble accomodations of the Khazarian horde. Have a seat." He pointed to a chair in front of his makeshift desk, full of maps and documents.
Kibar was visibly unsettled by the reaction, but sat down with as much snootiness as he could muster. "You know that these are rebels from lands Zachariah of Ashina, and no one else, is ravaging. They're out there for his actions. It's your job to get rid of them."
Hezekiah smiled wearily. "Because the Alanians have absolutely no reason at all to be mad at the Bulanid.
Don't make a fool of yourself, Kibar. It were your troops who raided and pillaged those lands for years and paved the way for their eventual destruction. All this while they've been under the rule of your own subject. They're out there because they haven't seen peace in a decade, and now stand with nothing to lose. So if you want to get rid of them, go send your own men in – I heard they're pillaging in Georgia by now. I wonder who you'll whine to when the people there decide they've had enough."
"All you have to say is to deal with it myself? So you're in favor of this petty play by the Khagan?"
"I'm following orders. And Khagan Zachariah's orders were unambiguous. Mind, I'm the Court Rabbi in the first place - who also happens to command divisions into battle and organize some military logistics in between. A more sophisticated pawn, if you want. I have no say in strategical matters of this dimension. The advice to deal with it on your own is from Khan to Khan." That was a blatant lie in almost all aspects, but apparently Kibar had little enough experience with the internal power strife in the Khaganate to swallow it.
"Well, if Zachariah keeps on refusing to defend his subjects, he'll soon lose support." Kibar said defiantly. "His constant switching of council positions certainly doesn't help."
Hezekiah was almost amused by Kibar's naiveté. "You mean the latest change of seats? That was planned and according to the explicit wish of the new spymaster Khan Bulçan, who is absolutely content with his new assignment in Tunisia. The new chancellor is a reliable top diplomat. The one who got the boot altogether is the former steward Kundaç, and he's landless and terminally ill. No, I'm afraid you're wrong on that again."
Kibar was steaming with anger about Hezekiah's condescence. "I don't mind. Once I'm Khagan, there is going to be retribution for everything."
"Sure, sure. I just wouldn't count on it happening by itself. For now, you have a hostile force, as meager as it may be, surrounding your capital." And in a suddenly much more frosty tone, Hezekiah added "And now excuse me, I have an army to manage."
February 21, 888 AD
Zachariah's old companion Ezra, who had always encouraged him to moderate himself, was feeling his age more than ever in recent times, and thus he was less often present at the court. With him missing, the Khagan kept losing control. Like today. One moment ago, he had felt a little tipsy at most. He had been shambling out of the council meeting, but suddenly his feet refused to act as his head started to spin. He lost balance and felt a thud. Everything went black for a few seconds.
Zachariah Ashina, Khagan of Khazaria, lay on the floor, only steps away from the gathering hall. His vision was blurry, and he could taste blood in his mouth. It had been only a stumble, as it happens to everyone, but drunk as Zachariah was his face had hit the floor before he could even react.
Oh God....where am I? Have I....hit my head? I'm feeling drowsy. What happened....didn't we have some kind of meeting? Did I agree to anyth...aaargh!
Fractions of a second later, the initial shock subsided and the pain set in. Zachariah groaned and shouted for help.
Earlier...
In spite of all his success expanding his lands, Zachariah could just not find solace. His troubled mind, the perils of power and the rough life in the steppes would not let him. In Summer, Virág and Irge had each born him another son, number six and seven in total.
While Khatir, named after the war hero fallen in the meaningless slaughter of Or, was as healthy as Virág's other children, Irge's offspring Çat'n was sickly and fragile from his birth on, and the faithful court physician Azariah, by now a renowned expert for the treatment of venereal diseases in courts all over the Steppes and Eastern Europe, couldn't prep him up with all his efforts. Zachariah spent many nights worrying, often accompanied only by expensive wines from Western Europe. He could sacrifice thousands of innocent lives without a second thought, but seeing his own kind wither away in front of him triggered fears he thought he had surmounted.
When Çat'n could not recover from a fever and silently slept away in the arms of his weeping mother, it dealt a severe blow to Zachariah's composure. He spent the following days grieving with Irge, and the nights drinking. Orders were inconclusive or Zachariah refused to be bothered with government affairs altogether.
Zachariah's general staff viewed the situation with worried eyes. The Caucasus was quiet for now (save for the rebels in the Bulanid lands, which as per clear orders were Kibar's problem), but the growing power vacuum that a Khagan as impulsive as Zachariah created called for action. The last time such a breakdown of the supreme authority in Khazaria had happened, it had cost 1000 men their lives. Itakh of Jabdertim and Hezekiah of Hekel thought of proposing a consistent and officially acknowledged order of command for cases of spontaneous indisposition. They were were expecting a troublesome affair - but to their surprise, Zachariah's response was surprisingly cooperative and the council meeting that would deal with the matter was scheduled soon after.
***
During the meeting, Zachariah made a collected impression and the motion to impose a triumvirate that was entitled to take important strategic decisions in emergency situations was put through without much ado. The new circle of command would consist of Marshal Itakh, General Hezekiah and Khan Bulçan as the Khazarian Regent (and heir to the Khaganate until Muhan and Tarkhan came of age). Kibar was discontent as usual and demanded to be included, but was ignored and told he'd better get his troops to defend his lands.
It was only when Zachariah proposed a toast at the end of the meeting that the charade broke. Where everyone else took a reluctant sip (Kibar) or a refreshing gulp, Zachariah emptied his chalice of fine crystal in one drag and greedily refilled it, just to immediately down another load of wine. The rest of the "inofficial" after-meeting mostly consisted of Zachariah rapidly getting drunk and soon going on and on in pointless stories about past anecdotes. His councillors either disappeared quickly or discreetly retreated to converse among each other, and soon no one was listening anymore. Zachariah didn't even notice. What did he need these smelly louts for? He kept talking to the friendly creatures that had joined him, gentle knights from a land far away in glistening armor that fit each of their muscle like a second skin. They were listening with an eagerness he only remembered from his twin boys when they'd been much younger. And Zachariah felt warm inside.
"...Excuse me now, my greatly valued guests... I have to see after my sleep schedule. There's all kinds of responsibilities...."
The newly imposed military triumvirate had been deep into their assertion of the larger picture around the realm when they noticed the Khagan, who had been chugging wine and babbling to himself for the past two hours, abruptly get up. Hezekiah watched him shamble towards the tent flap while Itakh went on about the coming plans. Thirty seconds later, they heard a groan and a slurring voice calling for help.
Hezekiah, as an experienced soldier, bolted instinctively, but knew well what he was going to come upon. When he found the Khagan, Zachariah was a despicable drunken picture of misery, bleeding from nose and mouth and unable to get up. Hezekiah had got quite used to Zachariah's quirks (and how to take advantage of them), but this was different. This was unworthy of a Khagan. All the strength Zachariah had exerted through the years – and now he was lying here in his own blood and all his weakness, fully dependent on his help.
Hezekiah sighed, then he shouted over to the gathering hall. "Get over here. Come see how the Khagan fares against himself."
Zachariah would recover from the cut he sustained falling on the floor, but not from the habit of losing control over his wine intake nor from the blow his reputation had taken.
September 8, 888 AD
After its imposition in February, the triumvirate of Marshal Itakh, General Hezekiah and Khan Bulçan quickly organized itself and created communication channels other than the ones bypassing the Khagan or the rest of the council, all while maintaining their work for their Khanates and their respective job for Khazaria. Especially Bulçan, who was assigned to Tunis as spymaster, had his eyes and ears in many different places now – but the meetings with his closest colleagues were something he'd never delegate.
Tonight the three men had met up in a little encampment to the eastern coast of Crimea. There was much to discuss. Over the past months, Zachariah had further descended into delirium and paranoia, and the occasions where he was of sound mind had become rare. The course of things around Khazaria was left to other hands.
Itakh, the young Khan of Jabdertim who by far spent the most time in Oleshye as he was mainly responsible for coordinating the recruitment efforts, had arranged the venue. "Good that you're here – and welcome to the newest makeshift outpost of the Khazarian army." He grinned at Hezekiah.
"Thanks, Marshal." Hezekiah smiled into his beard. Itakh was promising. He took his job dead serious when it came to practical matters, but his judgement wasn't blinded by ranks and command chains. "How's the Khagan doing? I take it he's having enough luck to not fall over all too frequently?" Since the incident after the last court meeting, Hezekiah had avoided to run across the Khagan, but didn't make secret of his disdain of him.
Itakh replied "He's still stumbling occasionally. It's not a very dignified sight, can't argue with you on that. But it's got a bit better since he's somewhat handling the grief about his deceased infant son. Especially when the funds were finally sufficient to declare a Crimean Khanate, he seemed to be really content. Now he has a legal claim on the Crimean Pensinsula and in Etelköz. Kibar wasn't too happy about it."
"I can imagine." That was Khan Bulçan. "Zachariah declaring himself Khan of Crimea after Kibar's demands about lands in that region, that's clearly directed towards him. And Kibar takes nearly everything as a provocation. But he either learns to take matter into his own hands really soon – or he perishes. Right now, I'm not even sure he is realizing that absolutely no one but himself wants him to be Khagan."
Hezekiah pointed out "Well, it's not as if he isn't trying to. Kibar is apparently trying to get a grip on exerting influence on the Caucasus over his subject, the Hashimid Duchy. Probably a better idea in the long run than just perpetually ravaging their lands. Had he gone on like that, Zachariah would have them attacked sooner or later."
Itakh added "Yes, the alliance to the Justanids and especially the peace with Georgia might become very important. I've heard rumours that Zachariah now wants to go for Georgia himself and make them a stronghold versus the Byzantines and the Arabs. He's not trusting them to leave us alone in the long run. That would be exactly what Kibar intended, I guess – keep the fire away from the Hashimid, so he can keep pressing them for tributes and loot. But that's mere speculation."
"Speculation. Yeah." Bulçan grinned at the others. "You know very well that Kibar is determined to not let an attack on the Hashimid happen. He's indebted himself to half of Khazaria – including you two – to make sure the council votes with him on such an occasion. I don't exactly understand what on earth you are hoping to achieve with that, by the way."
Hezekiah shrugged. "I wasn't going to vote for Zachariah anyway. And who knows what it's good for in the future. The guy is still the leader of one of the three large Khazarian clans and commands close to 4000 men. Also, he's less likely to disrupt our own plans this way."
"Oh, you weren't anyway. But you still expect Zachariah to go through with giving up Burtas and expanding your lands? Ezra finds it hard to walk by himself by now, let alone looking after Zachariah. And that is not good. He's stark raving mad, drunk half of the time and by now has little control left over his impulses. Oh, and he hates you since last time. How do you expect to reason with him if you're now siding with the guy who wants him deposed?"
"Well, it's not as if we supported that", Itakh intervened. "Until now, Zachariah doesn't even have a clou of the whole thing. As long as he doesn't get the idea to attack Duke Ishkhan, I doubt it will even come to him realizing what Kibar is doing."
"Maybe true, maybe not. I'd not just go and hope for the best if I were you. That rarely goes well in Khazaria...but that's really your business."
Itakh and Hezekiah had little to reply to that. Bulçan was referring to their intentions to distribute land again – they were planning to use their new responsibilities on the strategic development of the realm to talk Zachariah into giving Ushytsia, his last border with Kiev, to Itakh and expand Hezekiah's territory into Khagan Burtas' lands. Burtas was small and hardly able to protect itself or contribute much to its suzerain's coffers, so the plan was to make Zachariah to renounce them as tributary and attack in the same course of action. Bulçan himself, who had less population pressure for the moment, could then pick up the rests as soon as the truce ran out.
As Zachariah was unable to properly fill out his responsibility ever more frequently, the freedoms of the triumvirate grew, but they still needed the Khagan's backing to pull through with their decisions. Hezekiah and Itakh trying to do business behind his back with his adversary wouldn't likely make things easier for them in the long run. And if they were that undisciplined from the beginning, what would happen once their interests diverged? Bulçir was annoyed, but chose to keep quiet. They had given their word now anyway, and it wouldn't be his problem if Zachariah found out.
In another place, it had shown that Bulçan himself was doubtlessly one of the people taking the matters into their own hands. After his acquiring of Vinnytsia on the border to Kiev in the land redistribution of 884, raiding had always been a sensitive matter due to Zachariah's fear of stirring up something in Kiev – but now that the Khagan had lost much will to exert authority, that was reevaluated. Bulçan decided in spring that with Vyshata's army busy in Bolghar, the time was finally right to march to Kiev and loot its valuables. He had apparently paid attention to the tactics Zachariah had employed in the past, and shortly after their arrival the Bulçir troops managed to capture the king's children.
The same conflict in Bolghar that distracted King Vyshata's armies also were a major drag on his coffers, thus he had no immediate way to free his family or pacify the horde ravaging his capital county. Bulçan's troops lingered in the area and in August sacked the sacred Temple of Zhytomyr, which was of great importance for the Slavic Pagans of the Eastern European and Russian tribal realms, but the warriors from Khazaria didn't care in the slightest. Once its fortifications had fell, they massacred the remaining clerics and hauled off everything of value in the temple.
Elsewhere, raiding troops from Latvia, Poland and the northern chiefdoms appeared and caused mischief along the Kievan borders, often with sparse to no resistance as the local troops were bled out fighting in the East. King Vyshata's war in Bolghar, although for a minor piece of land, was stalled - three attackers were vying for territory, but none was strong enough to press his claims on his own. Should he not find an exit soon, there would be more trouble brewing.
November 27, 887 AD
A stiff wind was blowing through the steppes of Yegorlyk. From the northwest, a dozen riders approached the Khazarian army camp. When scouts were sent out, they found it to be a Bulanid envoy from the besieged camp in Sarpa – including the Khan himself, who predictably had objections against their order to stay put.
General Hezekiah and the Khazarian army had stayed on the Caucasus to back up the troops cleansing and razing the villages against unruly residents. They had arrived here about a week ago, after reports had come in of a peasant uprising stirred by some Orthodox zealot in the area. A few weeks earlier, something similar had already been tried in Muslim Durdzukia by a certain Imam Soslan - with predictable results.
Unlike Soslan's unenviable men, the Christian revolters in Yegorlyk had taken their chance to clear the area once they learned of the Khazarian horde approaching – and proceeded into Sarpa, the current location of the Bulanid courtal camp. Zachariah took notice upon hearing this (although usually he didn't listen all too eagerly when presented with information), mostly because it amused him that rebels from his lands were now causing trouble for the petulant Kibar, and he ordered his commanders to stay put and contain the rebels in Bulanid lands, but not attack them until further notice.
Kibar of Bulanid stormed into General Hezekiah's tent. Without salute or other pleasantries, he shouted "Would you care to explain what this is supposed to mean, General? Do we now openly disregard a Khagan's responsibilities?"
Hezekiah looked at him unimpressedly. In his eyes, the young Bulanid Khan had until now produced a lot of noise without showing any effort to back it up with actions. "Good to see you too, Khan Kibar. Welcome to the humble accomodations of the Khazarian horde. Have a seat." He pointed to a chair in front of his makeshift desk, full of maps and documents.
Kibar was visibly unsettled by the reaction, but sat down with as much snootiness as he could muster. "You know that these are rebels from lands Zachariah of Ashina, and no one else, is ravaging. They're out there for his actions. It's your job to get rid of them."
Hezekiah smiled wearily. "Because the Alanians have absolutely no reason at all to be mad at the Bulanid.
Don't make a fool of yourself, Kibar. It were your troops who raided and pillaged those lands for years and paved the way for their eventual destruction. All this while they've been under the rule of your own subject. They're out there because they haven't seen peace in a decade, and now stand with nothing to lose. So if you want to get rid of them, go send your own men in – I heard they're pillaging in Georgia by now. I wonder who you'll whine to when the people there decide they've had enough."
"All you have to say is to deal with it myself? So you're in favor of this petty play by the Khagan?"
"I'm following orders. And Khagan Zachariah's orders were unambiguous. Mind, I'm the Court Rabbi in the first place - who also happens to command divisions into battle and organize some military logistics in between. A more sophisticated pawn, if you want. I have no say in strategical matters of this dimension. The advice to deal with it on your own is from Khan to Khan." That was a blatant lie in almost all aspects, but apparently Kibar had little enough experience with the internal power strife in the Khaganate to swallow it.
"Well, if Zachariah keeps on refusing to defend his subjects, he'll soon lose support." Kibar said defiantly. "His constant switching of council positions certainly doesn't help."
Hezekiah was almost amused by Kibar's naiveté. "You mean the latest change of seats? That was planned and according to the explicit wish of the new spymaster Khan Bulçan, who is absolutely content with his new assignment in Tunisia. The new chancellor is a reliable top diplomat. The one who got the boot altogether is the former steward Kundaç, and he's landless and terminally ill. No, I'm afraid you're wrong on that again."
Kibar was steaming with anger about Hezekiah's condescence. "I don't mind. Once I'm Khagan, there is going to be retribution for everything."
"Sure, sure. I just wouldn't count on it happening by itself. For now, you have a hostile force, as meager as it may be, surrounding your capital." And in a suddenly much more frosty tone, Hezekiah added "And now excuse me, I have an army to manage."
February 21, 888 AD
Zachariah's old companion Ezra, who had always encouraged him to moderate himself, was feeling his age more than ever in recent times, and thus he was less often present at the court. With him missing, the Khagan kept losing control. Like today. One moment ago, he had felt a little tipsy at most. He had been shambling out of the council meeting, but suddenly his feet refused to act as his head started to spin. He lost balance and felt a thud. Everything went black for a few seconds.
Zachariah Ashina, Khagan of Khazaria, lay on the floor, only steps away from the gathering hall. His vision was blurry, and he could taste blood in his mouth. It had been only a stumble, as it happens to everyone, but drunk as Zachariah was his face had hit the floor before he could even react.
Oh God....where am I? Have I....hit my head? I'm feeling drowsy. What happened....didn't we have some kind of meeting? Did I agree to anyth...aaargh!
Fractions of a second later, the initial shock subsided and the pain set in. Zachariah groaned and shouted for help.
Earlier...
In spite of all his success expanding his lands, Zachariah could just not find solace. His troubled mind, the perils of power and the rough life in the steppes would not let him. In Summer, Virág and Irge had each born him another son, number six and seven in total.
While Khatir, named after the war hero fallen in the meaningless slaughter of Or, was as healthy as Virág's other children, Irge's offspring Çat'n was sickly and fragile from his birth on, and the faithful court physician Azariah, by now a renowned expert for the treatment of venereal diseases in courts all over the Steppes and Eastern Europe, couldn't prep him up with all his efforts. Zachariah spent many nights worrying, often accompanied only by expensive wines from Western Europe. He could sacrifice thousands of innocent lives without a second thought, but seeing his own kind wither away in front of him triggered fears he thought he had surmounted.
When Çat'n could not recover from a fever and silently slept away in the arms of his weeping mother, it dealt a severe blow to Zachariah's composure. He spent the following days grieving with Irge, and the nights drinking. Orders were inconclusive or Zachariah refused to be bothered with government affairs altogether.
Zachariah's general staff viewed the situation with worried eyes. The Caucasus was quiet for now (save for the rebels in the Bulanid lands, which as per clear orders were Kibar's problem), but the growing power vacuum that a Khagan as impulsive as Zachariah created called for action. The last time such a breakdown of the supreme authority in Khazaria had happened, it had cost 1000 men their lives. Itakh of Jabdertim and Hezekiah of Hekel thought of proposing a consistent and officially acknowledged order of command for cases of spontaneous indisposition. They were were expecting a troublesome affair - but to their surprise, Zachariah's response was surprisingly cooperative and the council meeting that would deal with the matter was scheduled soon after.
***
During the meeting, Zachariah made a collected impression and the motion to impose a triumvirate that was entitled to take important strategic decisions in emergency situations was put through without much ado. The new circle of command would consist of Marshal Itakh, General Hezekiah and Khan Bulçan as the Khazarian Regent (and heir to the Khaganate until Muhan and Tarkhan came of age). Kibar was discontent as usual and demanded to be included, but was ignored and told he'd better get his troops to defend his lands.
It was only when Zachariah proposed a toast at the end of the meeting that the charade broke. Where everyone else took a reluctant sip (Kibar) or a refreshing gulp, Zachariah emptied his chalice of fine crystal in one drag and greedily refilled it, just to immediately down another load of wine. The rest of the "inofficial" after-meeting mostly consisted of Zachariah rapidly getting drunk and soon going on and on in pointless stories about past anecdotes. His councillors either disappeared quickly or discreetly retreated to converse among each other, and soon no one was listening anymore. Zachariah didn't even notice. What did he need these smelly louts for? He kept talking to the friendly creatures that had joined him, gentle knights from a land far away in glistening armor that fit each of their muscle like a second skin. They were listening with an eagerness he only remembered from his twin boys when they'd been much younger. And Zachariah felt warm inside.
"...Excuse me now, my greatly valued guests... I have to see after my sleep schedule. There's all kinds of responsibilities...."
The newly imposed military triumvirate had been deep into their assertion of the larger picture around the realm when they noticed the Khagan, who had been chugging wine and babbling to himself for the past two hours, abruptly get up. Hezekiah watched him shamble towards the tent flap while Itakh went on about the coming plans. Thirty seconds later, they heard a groan and a slurring voice calling for help.
Hezekiah, as an experienced soldier, bolted instinctively, but knew well what he was going to come upon. When he found the Khagan, Zachariah was a despicable drunken picture of misery, bleeding from nose and mouth and unable to get up. Hezekiah had got quite used to Zachariah's quirks (and how to take advantage of them), but this was different. This was unworthy of a Khagan. All the strength Zachariah had exerted through the years – and now he was lying here in his own blood and all his weakness, fully dependent on his help.
Hezekiah sighed, then he shouted over to the gathering hall. "Get over here. Come see how the Khagan fares against himself."
Zachariah would recover from the cut he sustained falling on the floor, but not from the habit of losing control over his wine intake nor from the blow his reputation had taken.
September 8, 888 AD
After its imposition in February, the triumvirate of Marshal Itakh, General Hezekiah and Khan Bulçan quickly organized itself and created communication channels other than the ones bypassing the Khagan or the rest of the council, all while maintaining their work for their Khanates and their respective job for Khazaria. Especially Bulçan, who was assigned to Tunis as spymaster, had his eyes and ears in many different places now – but the meetings with his closest colleagues were something he'd never delegate.
Tonight the three men had met up in a little encampment to the eastern coast of Crimea. There was much to discuss. Over the past months, Zachariah had further descended into delirium and paranoia, and the occasions where he was of sound mind had become rare. The course of things around Khazaria was left to other hands.
Itakh, the young Khan of Jabdertim who by far spent the most time in Oleshye as he was mainly responsible for coordinating the recruitment efforts, had arranged the venue. "Good that you're here – and welcome to the newest makeshift outpost of the Khazarian army." He grinned at Hezekiah.
"Thanks, Marshal." Hezekiah smiled into his beard. Itakh was promising. He took his job dead serious when it came to practical matters, but his judgement wasn't blinded by ranks and command chains. "How's the Khagan doing? I take it he's having enough luck to not fall over all too frequently?" Since the incident after the last court meeting, Hezekiah had avoided to run across the Khagan, but didn't make secret of his disdain of him.
Itakh replied "He's still stumbling occasionally. It's not a very dignified sight, can't argue with you on that. But it's got a bit better since he's somewhat handling the grief about his deceased infant son. Especially when the funds were finally sufficient to declare a Crimean Khanate, he seemed to be really content. Now he has a legal claim on the Crimean Pensinsula and in Etelköz. Kibar wasn't too happy about it."
"I can imagine." That was Khan Bulçan. "Zachariah declaring himself Khan of Crimea after Kibar's demands about lands in that region, that's clearly directed towards him. And Kibar takes nearly everything as a provocation. But he either learns to take matter into his own hands really soon – or he perishes. Right now, I'm not even sure he is realizing that absolutely no one but himself wants him to be Khagan."
Hezekiah pointed out "Well, it's not as if he isn't trying to. Kibar is apparently trying to get a grip on exerting influence on the Caucasus over his subject, the Hashimid Duchy. Probably a better idea in the long run than just perpetually ravaging their lands. Had he gone on like that, Zachariah would have them attacked sooner or later."
Itakh added "Yes, the alliance to the Justanids and especially the peace with Georgia might become very important. I've heard rumours that Zachariah now wants to go for Georgia himself and make them a stronghold versus the Byzantines and the Arabs. He's not trusting them to leave us alone in the long run. That would be exactly what Kibar intended, I guess – keep the fire away from the Hashimid, so he can keep pressing them for tributes and loot. But that's mere speculation."
"Speculation. Yeah." Bulçan grinned at the others. "You know very well that Kibar is determined to not let an attack on the Hashimid happen. He's indebted himself to half of Khazaria – including you two – to make sure the council votes with him on such an occasion. I don't exactly understand what on earth you are hoping to achieve with that, by the way."
Hezekiah shrugged. "I wasn't going to vote for Zachariah anyway. And who knows what it's good for in the future. The guy is still the leader of one of the three large Khazarian clans and commands close to 4000 men. Also, he's less likely to disrupt our own plans this way."
"Oh, you weren't anyway. But you still expect Zachariah to go through with giving up Burtas and expanding your lands? Ezra finds it hard to walk by himself by now, let alone looking after Zachariah. And that is not good. He's stark raving mad, drunk half of the time and by now has little control left over his impulses. Oh, and he hates you since last time. How do you expect to reason with him if you're now siding with the guy who wants him deposed?"
"Well, it's not as if we supported that", Itakh intervened. "Until now, Zachariah doesn't even have a clou of the whole thing. As long as he doesn't get the idea to attack Duke Ishkhan, I doubt it will even come to him realizing what Kibar is doing."
"Maybe true, maybe not. I'd not just go and hope for the best if I were you. That rarely goes well in Khazaria...but that's really your business."
Itakh and Hezekiah had little to reply to that. Bulçan was referring to their intentions to distribute land again – they were planning to use their new responsibilities on the strategic development of the realm to talk Zachariah into giving Ushytsia, his last border with Kiev, to Itakh and expand Hezekiah's territory into Khagan Burtas' lands. Burtas was small and hardly able to protect itself or contribute much to its suzerain's coffers, so the plan was to make Zachariah to renounce them as tributary and attack in the same course of action. Bulçan himself, who had less population pressure for the moment, could then pick up the rests as soon as the truce ran out.
As Zachariah was unable to properly fill out his responsibility ever more frequently, the freedoms of the triumvirate grew, but they still needed the Khagan's backing to pull through with their decisions. Hezekiah and Itakh trying to do business behind his back with his adversary wouldn't likely make things easier for them in the long run. And if they were that undisciplined from the beginning, what would happen once their interests diverged? Bulçir was annoyed, but chose to keep quiet. They had given their word now anyway, and it wouldn't be his problem if Zachariah found out.
In another place, it had shown that Bulçan himself was doubtlessly one of the people taking the matters into their own hands. After his acquiring of Vinnytsia on the border to Kiev in the land redistribution of 884, raiding had always been a sensitive matter due to Zachariah's fear of stirring up something in Kiev – but now that the Khagan had lost much will to exert authority, that was reevaluated. Bulçan decided in spring that with Vyshata's army busy in Bolghar, the time was finally right to march to Kiev and loot its valuables. He had apparently paid attention to the tactics Zachariah had employed in the past, and shortly after their arrival the Bulçir troops managed to capture the king's children.
The same conflict in Bolghar that distracted King Vyshata's armies also were a major drag on his coffers, thus he had no immediate way to free his family or pacify the horde ravaging his capital county. Bulçan's troops lingered in the area and in August sacked the sacred Temple of Zhytomyr, which was of great importance for the Slavic Pagans of the Eastern European and Russian tribal realms, but the warriors from Khazaria didn't care in the slightest. Once its fortifications had fell, they massacred the remaining clerics and hauled off everything of value in the temple.
Elsewhere, raiding troops from Latvia, Poland and the northern chiefdoms appeared and caused mischief along the Kievan borders, often with sparse to no resistance as the local troops were bled out fighting in the East. King Vyshata's war in Bolghar, although for a minor piece of land, was stalled - three attackers were vying for territory, but none was strong enough to press his claims on his own. Should he not find an exit soon, there would be more trouble brewing.
Last edited:
