A History Through Blood

Cairo - Egypt, 1490

With the sun beginning its recess towards to the horizon, the streets of Cairo began to come to life. Vendors, no longer constrained by the oppressive heat, could trade openly on the now busy streets. Caged livestock openly cried out, competing with every growing cacophony of verbal exchanges within the marketplace. The guards patrolled the streets, keeping an eye out for thieves and scam-artists trying to prey upon the populace.

Modibo and the rest of the caravan had arrived earlier in the day, with many of the pilgrims choosing to relax in their shaded hotels or venture out to sample the local cuisine. Most had already converted a portion of their gold into bags of dirham* at a previous village, spending their savings on souvenirs or street food which far surpassed what they had become accustomed to on the road. A few had opted to buy a sheep leg, a luxury in these parts**, partially endorsed by Baru as they believed that they would quickly find a buyer for their horn and was in a celebratory mood.

The unfortunate matter of his former guard had dampened his mood, however Kabayao and Seyni's report had cleared Modibo's more secretive patron of any wrongdoing. Seyni, in spite of losing a foot, had regained most of the respect he had lost by participating in the deadly wager. His judgement to cut his losses the moment that he had realized the true extent of the danger had redeemed him in some ways. Having someone who was able to reassess the situation reliably under pressure could be valuable. Of course, Seyni was now far more cautious in most regards.

Unlike the rest of the caravan, Modibo had business to attend to with both: Baru and Kahina. Upon their arrival Baru had met with his contacts at the main trading hall. Looking to find a rich buyer, he had offered the merchants a generous gift if they could put him contact with someone who might purchase rare and valuable items. As luck would have it a Governor from the western shore was in town visiting the Sultan's courts, one who enjoyed displaying their vast wealth.

Their entire delegation had donned their best clothes, something which Victoria had procured for Kahina expecting such a situation. From the rumors Metawa was a particularly greedy individual who would often eat or drink to excess, leading many to compare him to overfed livestock. Fortunately for the people underneath him, he was generally deaf to their plights and rarely got involved. Unless it involved anyone interfering with his luxury, either negatively or if they had something he wished to acquire. This was one of the surprisingly better lords of the region, as many would tax and confiscate land to the point where the lower class would lose everything.

What would have normally been a rather grandiose home, was in a state of mild disarray. It may have been due to some of the more meticulously clean merchants at home in Timbuktu, but everything seemed one step below what should be acceptable. Sand filled most of the corners, missed by the cleaning slave's regular rounds. Furniture had only been briefly rearranged after use, with pillows being used to hide any defects, as opposed to resolving the issue.

The cause of such a state was apparent after seeing the vastly fatigued staff of retainers. While they all carried on as if nothing was wrong, many had dark rings under their eyes and would often fall prey to their own clumsiness, usually trying to avoid one of the many cats which had made the house their home. He found himself hurriedly catching a falling slave who tripped trying to sidestep a wandering feline. On lookers quickly helped clean up any mess, yet they made similar mistakes that only increased the time it took to perform a task.

Eventually they arrived at Metawa's private quarters. The heavy fatigue was not just present with-in his house-staff, rather it extended to both the master and his wife. Their skin, which would have once cleanly covered their rather plump figures, now sagged limply off of their body. Dark rings also manifested underneath their eyes, making it appear as if their eyes had sunken into their sockets. Something was very wrong with the family, but gold was gold in Baru's eyes. His boss wanted to at least try and scope out their bid before leaving, hopefully such brief contact would not lead to the condition spreading to them. If it did, then they at least had a competent doctor to cure them.

"I apologize for my current appearance." Metawa said regretfully. "There is a bout of illness going through the house. So, what is it that you have brought me?" Not wishing to remain in the house much longer, Baru and his guards produced the horn from its protective sheath. A few craftsmen had done some initial work to carefully clean the surface and did some minor filing to make it more appealing. Modibo had not seen it since entrusting it with Baru and it was far more presentable now than it had been previously. The fine cloth covering slid to the floor, scaring one of the many cats that sat listlessly around the room.

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While many were initially impressed by the horn, to the unaware it was merely a large piece of ivory that had been cleaned up by the merchant. Due to her desirable appearance, Kahina had been chosen as the one to demonstrate the horn's true nature. Resting the base onto a cushion, the translator held it up like you would a harp. Moving her body rhythmically along its length, blowing into the various holes in a practiced melody. To any experienced musician, it was lacking and overly simplistic. However, the instrument made up for her short comings and entranced the audience.

Shifting sides, Kahina gave a few chilling blows into the other face. This broke the enraptured crowd's focus, reminding them of whatever ailment they were suffering from. She continued, manipulating her audience's emotions by switching from side to side. Even the cats seemed to follow along, their heads weaving along with her movements. Once she had finished her performance, Kahina gave a brief bow before covering the horn with cloth once again.

"As you can see, this is not an ordinary horn from some lesser beast." Baru stated, smoothly entering into his smooth sales pitch. "It is a horn from a legendary Shadhavar. Something which seldom is available on the market. Dare I say this is the first in centuries. While I could sell it to the Sultan, or one of the other members of his council, I was told that you were such a man who could make the most use of such an item." The subtle mention of the competition was enough to stir what little competitive emotions that remained in his declining form. They were looking to quickly sell it, as the risk of carrying such an item for extended period of time was too high and placed a target on their back. Maximizing the sale now, was safer than trying to fan a bidding war in a foreign nation with no backers.

"We are on our way to Mecca, to pay our respects to the almighty Allah." Baru continued, trying to gauge Metawa's reaction through his current impaired condition. "We are but simple merchants and do not wish to enter into the political games with-in Cairo. When we heard about you from our associates and felt that you may be able to meet our expected price. If you are able to offer us a fair offer, then we will not approach the other houses and can go on to Mecca. Are you interested in such an item?" Struggling through the heavy sense of fatigue, Metawa gave his willingness to buy. "Yes, I would like to buy it. I shall turn it into a national treasure as befits such an item. One moment, I will have our servants take you to our treasury. You may have most of it, save for a few crates of coins to cover our ongoing expenditures." Baru approached, shaking his withering hand to accept the deal.

They were quickly brought to the store house where his hoard of treasure was stacked high onto the walls. Well, as quickly as the tired servant could manage. Several cats had followed them, much to the annoyance of the slaves who made halfhearted attempts to shoo them away. "I shall return shortly with several carts, so that you may take them back to your lodgings. With a tarp as to dissuade the lesser rabble with particularly sticky fingers."

"It's less than the Sphinx's hoard, but it is almost as impressive." Commented Kabayao, who had been waiting outside of Metawa's bedroom. Kahina seemed to nod in agreement, although her focus was more on how to organize the wealth for transportation than any notions of greed. Metawa's lust for wealth had not been overstated, having enough on hand to fund a sizeable army if the need arose. Modibo silently wondered how he had amassed such a treasure trove, but such things could be dwelled on once they had claimed their payment.

It was no easy feat gathering the surprisingly diverse collection of coins, jewelry, statues and other such signatures of wealth for transport. Several pieces appeared to be quite old, covered in a language that even Kahina could not comprehend. They did however manage to collate most their payment by the early evening. The servants brought them goblets of water as they worked, something which they had to protect from the ever-present gaze of the cats. Many would try and drink from the unattended vessels, unless stopped or covered.

Only when they finished loading it did it dawn on him that most of it would be his. Victoria and Baru's cut, while significant, still left him with enough to change the local landscape when he returned home. A small amount would be spent on taxes, tariffs and other expenditures, but it finally felt as if his decades of hard work had paid off. It could most certainly buy him a force of Farai to conqueror a part of land, but it did not suit his temperament. He should look to find his son a wife, maybe one of the Greek women he had heard about. It might take his mind away from the unobtainable dream of being the husband of a certain Adze.