I sat there playing for my solitary two listeners and began a story I had lived long ago, in a distant land.

There is a place called far to the south and a little to the west. It is a place of hot sand, burning sun, and countless stories. The nine men who rule the land are called the Khalifs, there they are the only ones allowed to wed. They take a dozen wives to themselves and as many who would join a harem of women. Those that do are taken care with great luxury for their obedience and to hear children. The other women of these lands do not marry but instead find lovers. Many of them have to earn their own coin through sewing, cooking, the studies of magics, and through the arts. This story is about one such woman.

Many of the Khalifs tried to summon and woo her with gifts and treasures. She was an unparalleled teller of tales, her dance was said to be mesmerizing, and her playing of their stringed harps divine. She was not seen as a beautiful woman for her face was marred with a great scar. No one knew where it had come from. Her hair was long and nearly to her ankles and black as an empty sky. She wore the finest of silks that billowed and hid her true shape. A veil of thin red silk cloaked her face to hide her scars. The finest of establishments would host her and reward her handsomely.

One Khalif known as the Warmonger grew jealous of the peasants and sent her a message. The head of her patron with a note stuffed in his mouth. ‘Come to my palace or I will gift you a head a day.’

She showed neither anger nor despair at the summons and hired men to carry her things to move into the Warmonger’s palace. It was tall with domed ceilings, great open pavilions where his women lounged and relaxed. Servants bustled around tending to their whims and desires. This left a vile taste in the entertainer’s mouth.

‘Sir Dolan, what is this woman’s name?’ asked Duke Ursal.

‘Her name is lost to time but let us call her Razide.’

Razide met with the Warmonger. He demanded to bed her. As he tore off Razide’s veil and saw her scarred face he recoiled in disgust. He threw the veil violently at Razide and demanded she never show her face again. She was forbidden from revealing herself again in his presence.

Humiliated and ashamed she clutched the veil to her face and refused to weep at the treatment. She was soon bid to play for him all day as he attended his court. She heard him planning to destroy another Khalif and claim all his lands and water. Her fingers ached and hands grew sore. He adjourned and ordered her to entertain his harem as he chose his nightly companions.

What no one knew was that Razide was a powerful sorceress that could alter the minds of others. Now she had an entire group of people ripe for the taking. Often she lay close to the other women and would sing soft lullabies to them. Each time weaving a deep seeded magic that would bring forth a primordial rage. Razide sowed the feelings of dissatisfaction, anger, boredom, and a trust of Razide herself.

The ladies of the harem started to treat her kinder, braiding her hair. Rubbing and kissing her sore fingers from the constant playing, and bringing her soothing teas for her singing voice. A deep love and desire to protect one another grew. Soon Razide grew bold and in the days sowed ambition into the songs she would play for the court. She watched as people grew apart and the dealings of the court slowed. One man made a brazen attempt on Warmonger’s life and was executed horrifically by being buried to the neck deep in the desert for his head to cook to death.

Razide worked tirelessly and found a deep resistance in the mind of the Warmonger. He had an innate resistance to the magic as she tried to sow peace and calmness inside him. Hoping to make him relax his guard but it was too deeply ingrained into him. Razide tried to erode that will and was met like wind against stone.

Soon she was horrified to learn some of the men had grown interested in her despite the hideous scarring on her face. They approached the Warmonger and begged to bed Razide. They bribed and warred with one another for the right to defile the untouched woman. Warmonger was too jealous of a man though and denied all requests but his eyes started to grow heated.

As the war was delayed more and more the women that returned from his bed were beginning to show bruises and wept at the abusive treatment. Razide would be the first to comfort them for the rest were gripped by fear that they would be next.

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There was no more time to delay and Razide targeted Warmonger with something that was already in him. His lust and desires for women. Soon he took more than one woman to his chambers. Razide bided her time and started to fuel his desire for herself. It was draining to feed two desires in one person and it taught Razide a better understanding of magic. She stopped one day when he brought her along with him. He desired not to touch her but instead for her to sing to them all as he enjoyed himself.

The brutality of his treatments horrified Razide and she decided to act. One night the Warmonger was so Lustful he brought four women along with Razide and she had to act.

As soon as everyone was engaged with one another Razide triggered the seeds she had grown in the women. They viciously fought back and overpowered the man with great effort. Razide ripped a string from her instrument and straddled the man she could feel his frantic heartbeat upon her thighs. She unveiled her face and made him look upon her as she wrapped the wire around his throat and choked him to death. He flailed and fought with all his strength before he grew limp. Still she held the string tighter until she could feel his heartbeat no more.

She smiled in the candlelight and held each of the women and sung songs of soothing and satisfaction. Gripping each other's hands she led the women out of the room.

A guard approached, “The song was short tonight.”

Razide bowed deeply blushing, “His desire for me outweighed what he thought of my face. She tiptoed and whispered to the guards, “you know, the women are not yet… satisfied. Come and we will keep your secrets, feel what it is like to be Khalif.” She laced her words with desire and the men joined. Every guard came to the harem and as they went to take the women Razide triggered them all. The harem brutally murdered the men with their own weapons. The room was bathed in blood and bodies as the women looked to Razide.

“Now we need a new Khalif, with women as the leaders. We will take the court in the morning, let us be beautiful and terrifying!”

The women let out a roar of anger and worked tirelessly to clean themselves and prepare. The morning came and the court was full when Razide entered. She stood in front of them all with the veil gone and the men eyed everyone. “The Khalif is dead, the guards are dead. The women of his palace need protection so we have decided to offer ourselves to the court. The harem entered each with a concealed weapon and ran pretending to be helpless to the different men.

The men began to argue and shout about who the next Khalif would be. As it grew to a fever pitch Razide boldly sat upon the throne and everyone was shocked to silence.

“I will be Khalif!” The women pounced and slaughtered the men in the room. So sudden and swift was their strike that it was over in moments. Razide stood before them all. She felt pride in the women and took the time to hug and celebrate with each one.

“The work has just begun! I’ve been taught ancient magics that I must teach you all. We will be the Khalifdom of sorceresses! Are you all willing to lead this new realm?” Not a heartbeat had passed as they pledged themselves to Razide.

Razide kept the secret that the court was dead as the women learned. It was difficult to keep it quiet for long. She enchanted the families of the court and promised to keep them in their ways of life for their silence. Soon though they began to want more so they were kidnapped and taken. Word began to spread but the women knew just enough to start to be dangerous.

Razide summoned those that watched over the land and spoke to them with a grand speech as the harem whispered their magics in the mind of the people. Some would see it as tyrannical to use magic to change the minds of the people but Razide cared not.

Soon the biggest challenge came, the meeting of the Khalifs. She wore the finest of her silks and discarded the veil to show the scars she earned. The men grew angry at Razide for being so bold as to come, they demanded the Warmonger come and not send someone in his place. What they didn’t know is that their wine was poisoned with something that would weaken their minds.

Razide began to sing, the song was about her own rise to power as she forced the images of their slaughter into the men. They began to shake at the implied threat. A Khalifdom of sorceresses had risen and they would be respected.

For three generations it stayed this way. The daughters of Razide being trained to rule. However disaster struck as the sorceresses grew ambitious and desired the land of the other Khalifs. War began but no one stood with the sorceresses, they destroyed the lands slaying every woman for they feared the sorceresses returning.

I had tried to begin changing the world to a more peaceful place by posing as such a grand entertainer and Khalif but a dragon slaying cult had grown suspicious of me. Someone so powerful rising from a destroyed Khalifdom was too public to be a disguise. I had adopted the children of the harem. I did not think the peace would be over so soon. Peace through fear did not last.

I put away my lute and looked upon my audience as they sat at the edge of their seats. ‘That ends our tale.”

‘Was there really a kingdom led by women?’ Duke Ursal asked.

I nodded, ‘that is the story I learned. I know not which ones are true unless I go to those lands and find out.’

The widowed Duchess stood and took her sons hand. ‘Thank you Dolan. However I don’t know if that was appropriate for such a young boy to hear.’ She looked down at him and smiled, ‘However, he might as well know that bloodshed might come if he is not careful.’

I spent the night in a servants quarters and decided to leave the manor in the morning.