Fate of Pharaoh Sin-Lidish

The history of the Ahstubai serves as a cautionary tale for those who seek power with no thought to its price. Those that tell their tale do so with sorrow in their heart, for they were once a wise, just, and fair race, but fell to the corruption of their own ambitions.

It was no secret to the Astubai that their ruler, Pharaoh Sin-Lidish, sought power. He had a reputation of ambition without caution. It is said that he was approached by an Emissary from a dark world and that this Emissary struck a deal with Pharaoh Sin-Lidish, promising to help the king gain powers unlike any he has ever known. In return, Sin-Lidish would complete just three tasks. Believing his power sufficiently more than that of the Emissary, the Pharaoh agreed.

The First Task

His first task was, to him, quite simple. He must construct a small, domed dwelling made of sandstone and granite, the walls of which would be etched with intricate, swirling designs. The Pharoah did just that, putting a generous number of builders to the task, and overseeing every aspect of the work himself. It only took three weeks to build. The envoy, being pleased with such expediency and obedience, did as was agreed to, teaching Sin-Lidish methods of using Nathr such as none had never seen. The Envoy provided knowledge of the Binding, and from that knowledge, the King bound creatures of the desert to his will. Great serpents and massive Fire Scorpions were bound to the Pharaoh's will. He quickly incorporated these beasts into his armies, training them for war. Yet for all the power this gave him, it was not long before he thirsted for more.

The Second Task

Then came the envoy again, tempting the Pharaoh with the knowledge of life itself, in exchange, he must build below the structure he had previously built a labyrinth of hallways, only one path of which lead to a final chamber upon which a granite archway was to be constructed. At first, Pharaoh Sin-Lidish despaired, knowing that such an effort would take considerably longer than the first, but the envoy assured the Sin-Lidish that the knowledge he offered would be worth the effort.

It took Pharaoh Sin-Lidish three years and the effort of thousands of his people to create this structure that burrowed deep within the desert. When he finished, the Envoy returned to inspect his work, and being satisfied with it, taught Sin-Lidish the value of being able to draw the life force from another creature, of being able to use that life force to heal himself, and even to animate the dead. Pharaoh Sin-Lidish was pleased, and once he understood the foundational concepts, quickly grew in power for a time until eventually, he thirsted for more power and knowledge.

The Final Task

Sensing the Pharaoh's insatiable hunger for power, the envoy returned. The Envoy promised the secrets of the divine, but only if he achieved this final and most monumental of tasks. He must retrieve for him the very words of Shaddai so carefully and lovingly sheltered by The People of the Sands. Pharaoh Sin-Lidish, now driven by his own lust for power and corrupted by years of wielding necromantic magic, agreed without hesitation. Gathering his armies of animated dead, war beasts of Fire Scorpions and Sand Serpents, along with the soldiers yet living, Pharaoh Sin-Lidish moved against The People of the Sands, who were not at all prepared for the coming onslaught.

The numbers of the dead, the stench of mass funeral pyres, and the mournful cries of grieving all mingled together in the aftermath of the first attacks. The People moved quickly, many of their number committed to their defense fighting to delay the inexorable advance of the Ashtubai horde while the rest moved to the shelter of their hidden city where clerics, paladins, and the very Words of Shaddai were kept safe. It is there they resolved to stand.

Divine Intervention

Over the next several months, The People gathered at their hidden city. They went to work building hasty fortifications while conspiring for some way for the women and children to escape. In the end, there was nothing they could do against Sin-Lidish' teeming horde. The dead lead the way, slamming into the defensive lines of the people, followed by the rest as Ashtubai warriors roared in, some mounted on great Sand Serpents and Fire Scorpion. Cornered and desperate, The People fought, and their own dead mounted. It looked hopeless, and all were on the verge of despair until one of The People, an officer named Miqveh cried out, and pointed to the sky. There, held aloft by angelic wings hovered a single Kadoshim with a radiant sword in one hand and a golden trumpet in the other. Bringing the trumpet to her lips, she blew a single, pure note that cut through the din of battle and filled the heavens. On the ground, tears in the fabric of reality opened through which men and woman, members of The People previously taken by the Kadoshim, charged, most armed with nothing but hands and feet, but their blows were imbued with the power of the sun itself, searing any foe, living or dead, in their path. They pushed them back, step by step until their will broke, and they fled. The Kadoshim who had brought the Bachar, as they came to be known, lead them as they chased down the remnants of the Ashtubai forces. Those they did not kill, the desert claimed.

The Fate of Sin-Lidish

Broken, defeated, and without an army, the Pharaoh returned home. He sought the help of the Emissary to rebuild and to finish the task it had set for him, but the emissary merely smiled, for that was when it knew that the Pharaoh was unable to fulfill his part of the deal he had made with Emissary. Instead, he cursed the Ashtubai. No food that passed their lips would sustain them, nor would water quench their thirst. They would instead waste away until death took them, and the desert bleached their bones. Their cities would be lost to the sands of time. As for the Pharaoh, he was mystically bound and thrust into the labyrinth he had built, and once there, the passages changed, keeping the Pharaoh from knowing how to escape. It is said that he is there still, deep below the cursed city of Ammon, buried by time and desert sands. He is now an undead thing cursed to live for all eternity, doomed to forever seek escape from a labyrinth that changes once his dead eyes see the archway that leads to escape.