The Legend of Azai
Ibn Al-Azai was fully aware of the weight of his claims:
'Yes sir, I am the Son of Azai'
The priest did not look impressed, stonefaced in the halls of the Temple of Azai, right in the heart of Arish, Maha.
'No. You are not, Blessed Azai was born over 800 years ago, there is not a person alive that can claim to have known him, let alone be His son. You are a man of 30, he could not have sired you.'
Al-Azai sighed, and felt his shoulders droop, 'Sir, you do not seem to understand. He did not sire me physically, but spiritually I am his son.'
Again, the priest looked deadpan, unimpressed by what he suspected to be the prankings of a lout, or the ravings of a lunatic.
'We are all the Sons and Daughters of Azai spiritually, he is with us, he guides us to live the best lives we can. There is no need to name oneself after him and announce to be His descendant, such is heresy.'
He saw the priest's fists clench up, and Al-Azai knew he had to find a better way to explain himself in order to get his blessing,
'Sir, it is not that simple, he is more than just my spiritual father, but less than my physical father, it is as far as I can explain it. Call it a ghost if you wish, but it isn't heresy because it's true, I feel it in my soul that I am His son.'
The priest's frustration quickly went to anger, then to rage - his face did not hide it and his arms were waving in the air,
'Ghost?! GHOST?!?! HOW DARE YOU SPEAK SUCH HERESY THAT OUR BLESSED AZAI IS AN UNHOLY GHOST! OUT! OUT WITH YOU WHO IS SO QUICK TO SPEAK INSULTS TO OUR MOST HOLY!'
Al-Azai was at this point being pushed and shoved by the priest out through the grand bronze doors of the Temple.
But he decided to get a few more words in before the doors shut in his face: 'Sir, very well, and thank you for your time. I understand that my claims are hard to believe, and I will be back with proof.'
'OUT!'
As the might metal doors slowly slammed shut, Ibn Al-Azai turned around to return to his cart and collect his proof that he was the son of the mighty Warrior-God Azai.
What he saw when he turned around was a helpful-looking lizard-man that one does not see often in such climates as that of Maha. Al-Azai knew he would need help, and so he had an idea.
'Sir, you there, good friendly lizard, would you be so kind as to help me fetch my artifact from my cart so that I can just get my rightful blessing from this lovely Temple.'
The rather opulently-dressed Lizardfolk gave something resembling a smile, and said:
'Of Course'
The priest did not look impressed, stonefaced in the halls of the Temple of Azai, right in the heart of Arish, Maha.
'No. You are not, Blessed Azai was born over 800 years ago, there is not a person alive that can claim to have known him, let alone be His son. You are a man of 30, he could not have sired you.'
Al-Azai sighed, and felt his shoulders droop, 'Sir, you do not seem to understand. He did not sire me physically, but spiritually I am his son.'
Again, the priest looked deadpan, unimpressed by what he suspected to be the prankings of a lout, or the ravings of a lunatic.
'We are all the Sons and Daughters of Azai spiritually, he is with us, he guides us to live the best lives we can. There is no need to name oneself after him and announce to be His descendant, such is heresy.'
He saw the priest's fists clench up, and Al-Azai knew he had to find a better way to explain himself in order to get his blessing,
'Sir, it is not that simple, he is more than just my spiritual father, but less than my physical father, it is as far as I can explain it. Call it a ghost if you wish, but it isn't heresy because it's true, I feel it in my soul that I am His son.'
The priest's frustration quickly went to anger, then to rage - his face did not hide it and his arms were waving in the air,
'Ghost?! GHOST?!?! HOW DARE YOU SPEAK SUCH HERESY THAT OUR BLESSED AZAI IS AN UNHOLY GHOST! OUT! OUT WITH YOU WHO IS SO QUICK TO SPEAK INSULTS TO OUR MOST HOLY!'
Al-Azai was at this point being pushed and shoved by the priest out through the grand bronze doors of the Temple.
But he decided to get a few more words in before the doors shut in his face: 'Sir, very well, and thank you for your time. I understand that my claims are hard to believe, and I will be back with proof.'
'OUT!'
As the might metal doors slowly slammed shut, Ibn Al-Azai turned around to return to his cart and collect his proof that he was the son of the mighty Warrior-God Azai.
What he saw when he turned around was a helpful-looking lizard-man that one does not see often in such climates as that of Maha. Al-Azai knew he would need help, and so he had an idea.
'Sir, you there, good friendly lizard, would you be so kind as to help me fetch my artifact from my cart so that I can just get my rightful blessing from this lovely Temple.'
The rather opulently-dressed Lizardfolk gave something resembling a smile, and said:
'Of Course'
Summary
It is told in Nuzibadi tales that the warrior Azai who hailed from a now non-existent village a few miles West-and-North of Al Datra (though Mahans contend that he was actually from a village outside Arish, neither has much proof), and that as a young boy his village knew him to be the greatest fighter they had ever seen. From this he supposedly went to Al Datra to make a fortune, and more importantly, be granted honour through service and battle.
On his journey he faced Five Trials for each day of his travel to the city, with each one he survived using his strength, or his wit; and each Trial supposedly displays an honourable trait of Azai that all should strive to follow.
The First Trial was simple: an old man's wagon wheel was broken, and Azai fixed it - teaching compassion for the innocent.
In the Second Trial, some bandits attempted to rob Azai, and he defeated the marauders easily - but he did not kill them - he then let the robbers go, for he understood that they were simply desperate men who took no pleasure in causing misery.
The Third Trial was Azai's first true test: a Wyvern was attacking a young family, he managed to save the boy and the mother, but was unable to slay the beast in time before it had mortally wounded the father of the boy - showing that even though Azai is strong, even he cannot always save everyone.
In the Fourth Trial, Azai truly had to use his wit, as a wizard had appeared to him, demanding a child sacrifice, and Azai had instead given him a baby goat - the wizard could not refuse the sacrifice, as he did not specify that it had to be a humanoid child, and took the goat; this encounter showed how to use logic and wit in one's favour when faced with something too powerful to fight, and that the honour of avoiding battle is equally as strong.
In the Fifth Trial, Azai failed, for an evil trickster Devil deceived him into thinking that there was an evil Dragon just beyond the hill, but when he charged into battle and slew the creature in one fell swoop, it was but a tiny wyrmling of a Dragon, incapable of evil. Despite Azai's great virtues, charging headfirst into battle is often not the answer, one should think first of whether it is the best course of action - and also never trust a Devil.
Once Azai had reached Al Datra, he discovered that a plague had swept the city and already killed thousands, most were trapped in their homes, for fear of catching such a debilitating blight that has not quite been seen by the city since. Azai knew it was his mission to help solve this crisis, and went about to discover that the source of this plague was an artifact hidden beneath the city, used by a wizard to take revenge on a city that spurned him - Azai slew the wizard and destroyed the artifact, saving the city. He took no reward and met with very few people, and disappeared shortly after, though bards and scholars claimed to meet him, and made works of song and literature of the events of the plague, with varying degrees of consistency.
Some time later, the village Azai supposedly hailed from was destroyed by the legendary and ancient Black Dragon Yorunarthax, the Dragon razed the village to the ground with all the elements and magics at their disposal, and did similarly to other villages and towns that were so decimated that nobody survived to rebuild them, there is nothing left there now but lost memories under the sands. Azai went back to the remains of his demolished village and challenged Yorunarthax to battle; Azai faired admirably, but was unable to defeat such an immense adversary. Instead he fled to the Bronze Mountains where he employed the help of the Black Dragon's archnemesis: Qinmarith, the legendary Bronze Dragon. He then rode on the back of Qinmarith to his old village, and together they killed the fearsome Yorunarthax in a battle that could be heard from miles around, but that nobody dared to watch.
In the aftermath of this battle, Yorunarthax lay dead, and his bones were left untouched by all to be buried in the sands - given no respect or honour for such a foul creature. Qinmarith returned to his mountain home, never to be seen again outside it. While Azai once again disappeared, with no trace of him after the battle, according to Nuzibadi sources he ascended to the heavens to live among the Gods as one of them.
On his journey he faced Five Trials for each day of his travel to the city, with each one he survived using his strength, or his wit; and each Trial supposedly displays an honourable trait of Azai that all should strive to follow.
The First Trial was simple: an old man's wagon wheel was broken, and Azai fixed it - teaching compassion for the innocent.
In the Second Trial, some bandits attempted to rob Azai, and he defeated the marauders easily - but he did not kill them - he then let the robbers go, for he understood that they were simply desperate men who took no pleasure in causing misery.
The Third Trial was Azai's first true test: a Wyvern was attacking a young family, he managed to save the boy and the mother, but was unable to slay the beast in time before it had mortally wounded the father of the boy - showing that even though Azai is strong, even he cannot always save everyone.
In the Fourth Trial, Azai truly had to use his wit, as a wizard had appeared to him, demanding a child sacrifice, and Azai had instead given him a baby goat - the wizard could not refuse the sacrifice, as he did not specify that it had to be a humanoid child, and took the goat; this encounter showed how to use logic and wit in one's favour when faced with something too powerful to fight, and that the honour of avoiding battle is equally as strong.
In the Fifth Trial, Azai failed, for an evil trickster Devil deceived him into thinking that there was an evil Dragon just beyond the hill, but when he charged into battle and slew the creature in one fell swoop, it was but a tiny wyrmling of a Dragon, incapable of evil. Despite Azai's great virtues, charging headfirst into battle is often not the answer, one should think first of whether it is the best course of action - and also never trust a Devil.
Once Azai had reached Al Datra, he discovered that a plague had swept the city and already killed thousands, most were trapped in their homes, for fear of catching such a debilitating blight that has not quite been seen by the city since. Azai knew it was his mission to help solve this crisis, and went about to discover that the source of this plague was an artifact hidden beneath the city, used by a wizard to take revenge on a city that spurned him - Azai slew the wizard and destroyed the artifact, saving the city. He took no reward and met with very few people, and disappeared shortly after, though bards and scholars claimed to meet him, and made works of song and literature of the events of the plague, with varying degrees of consistency.
Some time later, the village Azai supposedly hailed from was destroyed by the legendary and ancient Black Dragon Yorunarthax, the Dragon razed the village to the ground with all the elements and magics at their disposal, and did similarly to other villages and towns that were so decimated that nobody survived to rebuild them, there is nothing left there now but lost memories under the sands. Azai went back to the remains of his demolished village and challenged Yorunarthax to battle; Azai faired admirably, but was unable to defeat such an immense adversary. Instead he fled to the Bronze Mountains where he employed the help of the Black Dragon's archnemesis: Qinmarith, the legendary Bronze Dragon. He then rode on the back of Qinmarith to his old village, and together they killed the fearsome Yorunarthax in a battle that could be heard from miles around, but that nobody dared to watch.
In the aftermath of this battle, Yorunarthax lay dead, and his bones were left untouched by all to be buried in the sands - given no respect or honour for such a foul creature. Qinmarith returned to his mountain home, never to be seen again outside it. While Azai once again disappeared, with no trace of him after the battle, according to Nuzibadi sources he ascended to the heavens to live among the Gods as one of them.
Historical Basis
Among scholars, it is widely agreed that a person named Azai who was in the Greater Nuzibad region did exist at this time, that much is almost never contested by respectable historians and philosophers. However, the details of Azai's exploits come from a variety of often contradictory sources, which were written at different times, in different places, with different claims to trustworthiness.
The earliest known source that hasn't (and couldn't have) been exposed as fraud is the fictional book: The Blight Curse, which is an historical fiction story of the 95 SE Plague of Al Datra with some known basis in reality. It was written over ten years and first published in 106 SE, and while the protagonists and narrative is invented, there are certain events mentioned that are believed to have really taken place. With cross-referencing in local archives, it appears that the death toll given in the book is almost correct, and the book does also mention Azai as a hero and the one to end the Plague, even if he is never seen by the protagonists.
One thing that seems to have little to no evidence for it is actually the Five Trials, while there are diary notes of merchants and travellers from the (generally believed to be) right time that Azai was travelling to Al Datra who mention a warrior on this path. The Trials or encounters themselves are not written in any sources not found to be fraudulent, nor is there any evidence for the existence of these bandits (other than that there are always many of them), or the wizard, or the family. But the truth is that the facts of whether they took place matter little, in comparison to the message one can take from them, these particular stories passed on through word of mouth because they are good rather than because they are true.
Finally, the battle with Yorunarthax is difficult to determine, as only Azai and the dead Dragon were supposedly present, and later the Dragon Qinmarith, who few have ever seen, and fewer spoken to. Thus, the only evidence of the battle taking place would be the ruins of the villages, and Yorunarthax's bones - which have never been found. The villages are another matter, as there are many destroyed and abandoned villages all across the continent, and it is difficult to verify which were destroyed by a Dragon, especially if there were no survivors, the village itself was completely destroyed almost without a trace, and it was such a long time ago; all make it truly impossible to determine. But, as with the Trials, the event's truth matters little in comparison to the children that it has inspired, the drinks that it has poured, and the joy that it has brought for the people of Greater Nuzibad and beyond to celebrate a cultural heritage.
The earliest known source that hasn't (and couldn't have) been exposed as fraud is the fictional book: The Blight Curse, which is an historical fiction story of the 95 SE Plague of Al Datra with some known basis in reality. It was written over ten years and first published in 106 SE, and while the protagonists and narrative is invented, there are certain events mentioned that are believed to have really taken place. With cross-referencing in local archives, it appears that the death toll given in the book is almost correct, and the book does also mention Azai as a hero and the one to end the Plague, even if he is never seen by the protagonists.
One thing that seems to have little to no evidence for it is actually the Five Trials, while there are diary notes of merchants and travellers from the (generally believed to be) right time that Azai was travelling to Al Datra who mention a warrior on this path. The Trials or encounters themselves are not written in any sources not found to be fraudulent, nor is there any evidence for the existence of these bandits (other than that there are always many of them), or the wizard, or the family. But the truth is that the facts of whether they took place matter little, in comparison to the message one can take from them, these particular stories passed on through word of mouth because they are good rather than because they are true.
Finally, the battle with Yorunarthax is difficult to determine, as only Azai and the dead Dragon were supposedly present, and later the Dragon Qinmarith, who few have ever seen, and fewer spoken to. Thus, the only evidence of the battle taking place would be the ruins of the villages, and Yorunarthax's bones - which have never been found. The villages are another matter, as there are many destroyed and abandoned villages all across the continent, and it is difficult to verify which were destroyed by a Dragon, especially if there were no survivors, the village itself was completely destroyed almost without a trace, and it was such a long time ago; all make it truly impossible to determine. But, as with the Trials, the event's truth matters little in comparison to the children that it has inspired, the drinks that it has poured, and the joy that it has brought for the people of Greater Nuzibad and beyond to celebrate a cultural heritage.
Spread
The legend is household all across Greater Nuzibad, and somewhat well known in other parts of the continent, and respected to various degrees. The story spread extremely rapidly and within a year almost every person in Nuzibad knew some version of the events that took place: tale-tellers, bards, and scholars all told stories, made songs or poems, and wrote manuscripts of the legends and adventures of Azai, leading to a diverse range of veracity on the tales of the Trials, the Plague, and the Dragons. While the facts are dubious, the spread is undoubtable, to the point that the Etterian Church had to address some demands he be made a Saint in the Church pantheon.
The Church refused, on grounds that there were no Church figures to contest the events, but local churches have given some recognition. Such as Castellar, Pathar, Atikaris, Eigar and the Triarchy - who each give thanks to Azai in some way, whether it be a day of prayer, celebration, or simple acknowledgement. But Draguinôt and Dolindair, though they do not strongly contend his existence, they do not have any such celebration for his achievements on the basis that the events are too far removed and too culturally unrelatable.
The Church refused, on grounds that there were no Church figures to contest the events, but local churches have given some recognition. Such as Castellar, Pathar, Atikaris, Eigar and the Triarchy - who each give thanks to Azai in some way, whether it be a day of prayer, celebration, or simple acknowledgement. But Draguinôt and Dolindair, though they do not strongly contend his existence, they do not have any such celebration for his achievements on the basis that the events are too far removed and too culturally unrelatable.
Variations & Mutation
There is a version of the legend that goes that Azai was actually a wizard or sorcerer rather than a warrior, but such rumours are unpopular amongst both common folk and the aristocracy as Nuzibadi culture much favours the honour of the warrior over that of a wizard - a career which is often seen as cowardly, and spellcasters are often treated as tools rather than people. It is also possible that this version has the same origin as the version in which he reasons with the wizard plaguing the city, or a similar one where there is no wizard at all - and Azai saves the city with magic.
Many Mahan scholars contend that Azai was not from Nuzibad, but from Maha instead - arguing that this alternate origin is propaganda by the Nuzibadi Empire to steal unique Mahan culture and heritage.
Many Mahan scholars contend that Azai was not from Nuzibad, but from Maha instead - arguing that this alternate origin is propaganda by the Nuzibadi Empire to steal unique Mahan culture and heritage.
In Literature
The most famous account of the events of the plague is actually a work of fiction known as The Blight Curse, which was written by the Castellari writer and philosopher Anten Mafrranti, which recounts the lives of four ordinary people during the plague of 95 SE, it was written only ten years after the events of which Anten was supposedly present in the city for. There is reference to Azai but he never directly appears as a character, and the book does correlate with some known historical events, such as the fact that the plague did suddenly end without any immediate explanation for why - which backs up the liklehood of the story of Azai.
In Art
Azai is one of the most popular figures in art and culture because of it's heroic origin. It brings joy and inspires those in Greater Nuzibad as a hero of humble origins.
Most famously there is the 'Songs of Azai' a collection of songs collaboratively made and edited by bards and songwriters over centuries, to the point where the original songwriter simply cannot be credited. Many bards try to add their own small edits and editions in order to have an effect on the culture and the result is that the songs vary even from village to village, and no two people will know the exact same songs. But generally the songs focus on his origin as a villager, his Trials, the Plague, and the Dragons - with varying emphasis on certain events - but some more brave or raucous bards have tried adding verses on his love life, his heritage, or his residence in the heavens.
Most famously there is the 'Songs of Azai' a collection of songs collaboratively made and edited by bards and songwriters over centuries, to the point where the original songwriter simply cannot be credited. Many bards try to add their own small edits and editions in order to have an effect on the culture and the result is that the songs vary even from village to village, and no two people will know the exact same songs. But generally the songs focus on his origin as a villager, his Trials, the Plague, and the Dragons - with varying emphasis on certain events - but some more brave or raucous bards have tried adding verses on his love life, his heritage, or his residence in the heavens.
Date of Setting
95 SE
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