One man had been deeply affected by an act of heroism by the first Korvahn. Noran Selkarr was among the slaves released when Nal J'gar fought with Governor Negrath of Miknor, a small province in Behrahth. Nal J'gar had his life in his hands and could have easily killed him, but Nal J'gar gave him his life in exchange for the freedom of his slaves. Noran was greatly impressed by Nal J'gar's unusual combat technique and prowess.
A Treacherous Homecoming
Noran returned to his home country of Lerrta on the southern shore of the Adronis Sea. His family had believed him to be dead and were quite shocked when he arrived at the palace in Brijhia, the capital of Lerrta, alive and well. The guard at the main gate initially believed him to be an impostor. But, Noran convinced him otherwise by speaking of things which only the Shekran of Lerrta and the guard shared knowledge.
Shekran Noran Selkarr had always been very friendly with the palace servants and treated them more like trusted friends than underlings. He and Malja Devisi had been very close ever since they were both children playing hide and seek in the palace courtyards.
Noran had always been a friendly fellow. However, his parents never approved of him mingling with the palace staff and tried their best to discourage him. They saw it as unbecoming of royalty to be overly familiar with the lower classes. This gulf between him and his parents had always been a constant source of difficulty for him. Unknown to him, his father had arranged for him to be kidnapped and sold into slavery because he had seen his son's good nature as a weakness, a quality unfit for the Maskarr of Lerrta.
Though his parents, the Maskarr and Tellerra, gave a convincing performance of being astonished, yet delighted, to see their long-lost son's return, they were secretly greatly annoyed. Now that Noran had returned, he was rightfully entitled to regain the title of Shekran, displacing his younger brother, Numis. Kaiden and Sinisa, his parents, preferred him over Noran because he was more like them-ruthless, cold-blooded opportunists.
Numis was furious at seeing his chance at becoming the next Maskarr slip out of his hands. However, he was not about to give it up easily. Over the next few years, Noran had many close encounters with death. Only by luck was he able to escape from each attempt.
Sudden Ascension
Noran came close to death regularly. He suspected what his brother was up to, but Numis was too sly to be proven guilty. However, Numis' frustration at his failed schemes finally backfired when his discretion slipped, and he expressed it to his parents in a heated argument. Noran overheard and came up with a plan of his own to expose their plotting.
In those days, the royal family could do many despicable things with impunity. However, conspiracy to assassinate a member of the royal family held the sentence of death. Not even the Maskarr had immunity, and no trial was held for offenders caught red-handed; the execution was carried out immediately. Before the day was over, Noran's parents and brother lost their heads, and Noran was crowned the new Maskarr of Lerrta.
Noran's War On Corruption
He immediately began to reform all areas of government. As a result, he immediately gained a large number of enemies. The nobility was quite unhappy with the changes he introduced because many new laws restricted their illegal and unethical activities. Many of them despised Noran so much that he had to hire mercenaries as bodyguards because of almost daily assassination attempts.
He placed much stricter regulations on law enforcement, as well as stiffer penalties for criminals. They did some good, but not enough. As a result, criminals tended to carry on as usual, except more discreetly. Instead of committing their acts in broad daylight, they turned to the darkness of night and the dark shadows of the city.
Despite his best efforts to rid the nation of corruption, he was fighting a losing battle. For over 140 yahdi, he waged this war against crime, but with disappointing results.
A Turning Point
For many yahdi, Noran tried to turn the tide without success until one day when he was watching his hired bodyguards during their daily practice session. The daily assassination attempts had diminished long ago since the nobility no longer saw him as a threat but as an annoying inconvenience. However, he had grown accustomed to the sense of security they provided. As he watched them, he began to imagine a society where everyone was as adept at combat and self-defense as the GuldÈshik.
He discussed this idea with his bodyguards. They were skeptical at first, but as they discussed it in-depth, they became persuaded that it might be worth a try--at least it would be better than leaving the state of society in its present condition.
After months of discussion, they formulated a long-term plan. Each bodyguard would interview many young couples who were either expecting their first child or had small children. The interviews were conducted to get a feel for the moral beliefs of each couple. Noran wanted only families with strong moral fiber and pure hearts to participate in the experiment.
An Early Start: The Key To The Future
The plan's long-term goal was to raise the children in the ways of the GuldÈshik from an early age. Once the children were old enough to understand the safe handling of a wooden training staff, they began training in the proper use of a sword. The beginning ages for training varied by each child, but each began training at the earliest possible age.
Participants of this program were given special favors such as certain tax exemptions or more significant considerations in civil disputes. As a result, there was no shortage of families willing to participate. However, applicants had to meet very high standards to be accepted.
Not only were the parents held to a high moral standard, but the children were, as well. They tolerated typical adolescent rebellion as a natural phase of growing up. But, any adolescent who showed an inclination toward destructive or criminal behavior was subject to review by a council of GuldÈshik. This council sought to determine the youth's fitness to continue training.
When the first generation of trainees had reached adulthood, the crime rate dropped noticeably. It had fallen so much that other nations had begun to emulate the program.
The Plan Changes
Noran consulted with the primary GuldÈshik council to begin lowering the standards for acceptance into the program. His reasoning behind the request was that the high code of ethics highly valued by the Great Warriors could be taught. And, even if some of the trainees turned to a life of crime, a society full of individuals who could defend themselves would make their violent criminal activities much more challenging.
The request was highly controversial and split the council down the middle. Those opposed to the change argued vehemently against it. However, Noran, being the Maskarr, had the deciding vote.
The council modified its process for accepting new participants into the program. Instead of a time-consuming interview and review process, the commission performed a simple check for a criminal record. This became standard procedure for several generations of trainees.
A Great Success
Meanwhile, the nobility began to follow the program's example by hiring GuldÈshik to train their heirs. And, over the next several hundred years, the practice began to be accepted by the general population.
By the end of Noran Selkarr's reign as Maskarr, the program had evolved into a strong tradition worldwide.
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