Scorpions are of great importance to all Nikkad. In Shdustu, the City of Scorpions stands at the center of this fascination. In the distorted theology of the Nikkad, scorpions are believed to be blessed spiritual beings that served to guide the dead down through the depths of the earth, Tippipaku, to await the assay of Ukit and confinement in the realm of death until the time comes to live again. Though this is a completely extraneous belief, as humans are perfectly capable of making this journey without assistance and presumably by the present date all of us have made it many times, it represents only a mild deviation from the proper doctrine of the Enlightened Revelation with minimal consequences for their faith. The Princess Romou explained it thus: 'the Nikkad have invented a role for the scorpion in the eternal cycle of human existence, but though this is in error, it does not breach the responsibilities of the Divines in any way and thereby manages to be wrong but not heretical.' She found this, similar to the Kharal ennobling of falcons as divine messengers, to be rather miraculous. Such accommodating modifications of the faith are rare, with far more dangerous heresy quite common.
It seems the Divines guided those who carried the message of the revelation to Shdustu with considerable delicacy. Ideally these modest deviations would have gradually eroded away as the faith took hold among the populace and proper orthodoxy became the rule, but it seems that something, most likely the manipulation of ancient wizards, intervened through creation of mystically altered versions of the relevant animals in a manner that supported these splinters of the faith. Such animals acquired an active role in their societies after that, reorienting understanding to accommodate their presence. Among the Nikkad these altered animals, bearing only a minimal level of essence distortion, were accepted, honored, and bred in great numbers as sacred beasts.
Those familiar with scorpions will know that most reach no greater size than finger-length from pincers to tail. Truly impressive forms might fill a hand from fingertips to wrist, but no further. Lady Indili, ever a fountain of knowledge regarding strange creatures, claims that a stone-embedded image of an ancient scorpion was once discovered that stretched the length of her forearm, but that seems to be the absolute limit the Divines developed for the size of these animals. Wizardry, in its dark distortions of the divine essence left in the world, can do much more. Shdustu possesses scorpions the size of bears. Slender, lighter, and flatter than such ursine bodies to be sure, but nonetheless terrifyingly large. Such oversized beasts possess pincers that bite as maces and spear-strength stingers, with deadly poisons potent as any serpent venom.
Three main lineages of giant scorpions exist, with forms ranging from fox-sized to bear-sized. They differ in various particulars, mostly in how they tolerate heat and moisture, which is also detected by color. Emerald scorpions are most tolerant of heat and bask on the open sand in the summer sun. Crimson scorpions prefer cooler days and are mostly found active at night. Purple scorpions are creatures attached to dawn and dusk, accepting of moisture, but loving neither extreme heat nor cold. These are all bred by the elite, but there are yellow-brown crossbreeds that have escaped into the wild or been cultivated by lower class Nikkad.
These terrifying creatures primarily eat meat, but they do not eat large quantities. Truthfully, they spend the greater part of their time motionless, and keen-eyed observers have seen some sit perfectly still for days on end. Despite this trait, they can move with startling speed in short bursts and strike with deadly swiftness from ambush, killing swiftly and easily. This tendency matches up closely with the combat methods of the Nikkad and there are indeed those among them who train to fight alongside these beasts in battle. Deranged as this seems on the surface, these giant creatures are intelligent enough to be trained to recognize their handlers and never attack them.
In Nikkad settlements scorpions are allowed to roam freely among the monuments of the departed. Usually this is limited to the funerary monument sections attached to temples, which can be carefully fenced off, but in Shnududishgu this includes the entirety of many abandoned temples at the heart of the city. Deaths as a consequence of scorpion attack are rare, but do occur, and only a fool wanders these places without care and protective clothing. During the cold months the scorpions grow torpid and spend their time in cellars and tunnels, often barely moving for weeks on end save to consume offerings. This is surely one of the many reasons the Kharal prefer to lead attacks on Nikkad settlements during the coldest months of the year.
While the Kharal utilize sky burials that fit perfectly with the mandate that the flesh of the departed shall be given to the creatures of the Lady of the Earth, a practice also found among the mountain-dwelling Bahab though they prefer vultures to eagles for unspoken reasons, the Nikkad have replaced the contribution of raptors with that of their many-legged allies. I confess that witnessing this practice exposed my personal prejudices. There is nothing in the revelation that speaks against such a method, and given the role ascribed to scorpions by the Nikkad the choice is eminently logical. It is an obvious choice to assign to those who guide those who have passed to meet with the Lord of Death and face judgment. The scorpions are at least clean and effective in this role, leaving nothing behind.
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Beyond their duties as guardians and devourers of discarded remains, these animals provide additional resources to the Nikkad. Most obvious is the poison they produce in their stingers. Each of the lineages produces a significantly different killing agent, and the combination of these serves as the core of the various killing cocktails used by their alchemists. Venom taken from smaller, natural versions untouched by wizardry are also widely utilized. The pincers and stingers taken from dead scorpions possess incredible sharpness and though they are far too brittle to be used in battle, they can be deployed by healers. Compared to implements of steel or bronze, these produce significantly less bleeding when used in surgery, and wounds treated or sewn in this way are far less likely to become inflamed. The Rose Opal Society is well aware of this and all their healers carry such implements and treat them as a holy gift. Why this should be so they do not know, but it seems this effect fails over time, for the best such tools are those harvested fresh. I carried such a scorpion-sourced blade myself for many months as a quill knife and have never had better.
Scorpions are, to the surprise of many, edible, and a useful food supplement to those crossing the desert, but the consumption of any scorpion is taboo among the Nikkad. When their mystic scorpions die, a rather regular occurrence for they live only four or five years at most, they are instead ground up and used to fertilize the fields. Apparently this is very effective, superior to manure by a significant margin, though it seems the calculation is less favorable than that of simple consumption. The scorpions themselves ignore the prohibition of their masters, for when they die roaming free amid abandoned temples or dwelling alone in the wild they are often consumed by their own kin. I have been told by alchemists who utilize these animals extensively that this is a common trait of scorpions, and if they are placed close together, such as in a box, they will kill and eat each other.
Finally, and perhaps most significantly, are the dyes. Scorpions, much the same as spiders and certain insects, molt as they grow. This leaves behind a cast skin, dry and thin. The Nikkad harvest these very carefully and grind them into fine powder. When mixed with water and oil, this forms unique dyes that produce brightly colored stains. Dye masters use these colors to tint fabric almost any shade of green, red, or violet. With proper technique this can be done to hemp, cotton, linen, and silk. Woolen fabric, however, does not take these dyes properly, which is one reason why the Nikkad rarely wear such garments despite the abundance of materials provided by the herds of the Kharal.
It is possible to create especially exotic dyes by mixing special stones into the food of the scorpions, which can also increase the overall output. This is done using strange ores that resist the smelters art and normally require the assistance of sorcerer-spawned fire or lightning to process. However, it seems the stomachs of mystic beasts can also be used to break down these metallic compounds and turn them to an aesthetic purpose, something I had previously heard of only in regard to cinnabar.
The Nikkad, as a people, are obsessed with the color purple, the darker the better. Formal clothing and the uniforms of warriors are always dyed this shade, and armor incapable of taking dye is often coated in a thin layer of fabric to support the color. Low-ranking individuals sport pale pinks, lavender, lilac, or periwinkle shades, while the elite adorn themselves in layers of deep violet. The robes of the prince are stained so heavy as to defy conventional description and appear to drink in all light. I had never before seen this shade, which appears at first glance to be black, but in bright lighting reveals its truth. No one who does not hold the rank of prince is permitted this dye, though curtains, blankets, and other ritual fabrics used in major temples are allowed to utilize this spectacular product, often receiving the clothes of fallen princes as a donation for this purpose.
Incredible as these dyes are, and in addition to their brightness they are remarkably resistant to fading beneath the bright sunlight of the steppe, the Nikkad refuse to sell them in pure form. They do not wish these pigments, which can also be mixed into paint and pottery glaze, to fall into the hands of outsiders, considering their origin a sacred blessing passed to their people. Instead, they trade products already dyed: bolts of cloth, fine pottery, glazed tiles, and more. Others have tried to duplicate the Nikkad methods, even going so far as to capture the brown-shaded wild scorpions of the desert and feed them colored ore, but this has never been successful.
Purple linen, cotton, and silk bolts sell in the Core Provinces of the Sanid Empire for extraordinary prices. I have seen bolts of bright emerald shades valued in the markets of Crisremon at a level more than one hundred times what they can be purchased for in the bazaars of Shnududishgu. This immense variance in price does much to explain how merchants can still earn fortunes after guiding caravans across immense distances and paying continually for mercenary protection.
Training and keeping of the giant scorpions is part of the duties of the priests of each settlement. Specific scorpion-keepers, who are considered a lay official, exist in the larger towns and cities, with this craft generally hereditary. These families are usually closely related to those who control the dye works, with strong bonds of blood and marriage. This serves to secure the secret processing techniques from outside eyes. The workshops where the molts of the scorpions are processed are secured and guarded at all times. Many have attempted to sneak in to watch, or to bribe one of the processors into their service, but this has always been discovered, and the Nikkad are quite willing to deal death on the mere suspicion of attempting to discern their method. Though Shnududishgu is by far the largest producer of both scorpions and dye, all settlements take such precautions, a rare case of unity among the Nikkad.