Here are some letters and notes from the now out of print Children of the Desert series that might be of interest to some readers, as they provide background and context for events in the Kingdom of Salt series.
After the first two books of Children of the Desert, I largely dropped this concept. The books were already getting too complicated and long to support asides like this. I have more written than are listed here, but these are the most useful ones from the aspect of helping readers understand background for the two series.
A one-sided summary of the events in Secrets of the Sands:
To Lord Oruen, greetings from Lord Cafad Scratha, Regent-Head of Scratha Fortress:
As by now you must know that I disregarded your instruction to travel north as your Researcher, some explanation is in order. First let me assure you that the assignment has not been abandoned completely; my former servant, Idisio, has agreed to continue the work. While he is, of course, not yet the scholar or possessed of the level of learning you may have desired in a Researcher, still he learns quickly and has a sharp eye. I hold every confidence that he will perform sufficiently for your needs.
His companions, one Deiq of Stass and one Lord Alyea Peysimun, are traveling with him due to an unusual combination of circumstances, and only part of that tale is rightfully mine to tell. They may or may not share their own influences on the situation with you, and thus my account of how I come to be resident of Scratha Fortress and a former street-thief has taken on your assignment of chronicling the northlands must necessarily remain incomplete.
As briefly as possible, then: during my initial travel eastward with Idisio along the Coast Road, I passed through each village along that main road and made certain notes, as follows: Kybeach, the closest village upon Bright Bay borders, is a small and unpleasant town which is breeding a remarkable amount of resentment and squalor. The residents are sullen and hostile, and the heavy stamp of Northern Church abuse lies clear on every face. Their main industry seems to have been that of gerho breeding, headed by one Asti Lashnar; Ninnic and Mezarak were apparently far fonder of gerho than you, Lord Oruen, have proven to be. Your dismissal of gerho from your kitchen has put a catastrophic strain on Kybeach as a whole and the merchant Lashnar in particular. I strongly recommend extending a hand to this village; as close as it stands against Bright Bay, I feel you can ill afford the villager’s resentment to grow any further or even to remain at its current, dangerous level.
Moving on from Kybeach, we traveled to Obein. The difference between the two is distinct: Obein is tidy and cheerful, resilient and even prosperous in the wake of recent events. Their residents are merchants and craftspeople, farmers and innkeepers; altogether a higher class of folk, with much less fear or harm in their souls than even the happiest person in Kybeach. I am at a loss to explain this distinction, except to note that the swamp stench of Kybeach and the distance of Obein, along with the clear preference of merchants to pause at the further station to arrange themselves preparatory to arriving in Bright Bay, has given the two villages a very different spirit.
From Kybeach we moved on to Sandsplit and there encountered the surprises that turned me to the northlands. Your missive, for one, caught up with me there; and I will pause in my narrative for a moment to note that if you aimed to enrage me with that note, you certainly succeeded. With the passage of time since that day, my temper has cooled somewhat and I now believe your attempt to inform me of proceeding matters had no intention of malice; rather an astounding level of ignorance you can ill afford if you expect to deal with the desert Families and win their respect to any degree. Sending a young northern woman with no ties to, no understanding of, the southlands along with one of your so-called “Hidden” — who are known, every one, to all those involved in southland politics, as spies and assassins — and your preferred advisor, a man as well known to be hask, traitor to his chosen faith and banned from the southlands; in short, choosing this combination of advisors to hold Scratha Fortress in my absence was a catastrophically poor one. It may take you years to recover from the consequences of this one decision, although I recognize that you had no way to know the intricacies of the situation.
I will thank you, however, for your warning that Pieas Sessin had left to hunt me, and for the information that he was disowned and disgraced. Although you clearly expected him to follow our false trail west to the Stone Islands, still your very timely information quite possibly saved my life and that of my then-servant Idisio. Pieas Sessin caught up with me in Sandsplit Village. Your warning gave me a chance to prepare, and he fled rather than face me.
A troubling piece of information also came to light during my stay in Sandsplit; a northern man has taken over one of the local inns. He claims a southerner came to his home city of Stecatr and offered a trade of one inn for another; offered, in fact, a high enough price for the northerner’s inn that the man leapt at the chance and promptly moved south to claim his new business. While this may seem a trivial matter, I see a worrisome possibility inherent in the mattter; given Stecatr’s position, both geographically and politically, I suggest you look into this to see if other southerners are pursuing such trades. An influx of northerners into the Coastal Road area could severely unbalance matters ranging from trade to local culture, as would a similar flood of southerners, whether kingdom or Family, into the conservative northlands.
Returning to my narrative: I chose, after reading your missive, to abandon the task of King’s Researcher in favor of returning to Scratha Fortress, considering the dangerous game you had set into motion more important to rectify than was completing your assignment. The horses you had loaned me I left in the care of a local merchant named Yuer; he may return them or not, as he pleases. That matter you must take up directly with Yuer himself.
My notes on Sandlaen Port, from whence we departed by ship, must wait for another time, as they are largely irrelevant to this section of the tale. I will admit that in order to speed our travels and avoid inconvenient arguments with you, Idisio and I stayed below while the ship restocked its supplies in Bright Bay, and I instructed captain and crew to keep mute as to our presence.
Our arrival at Agyaer Port and our climb up the long Wall Stair are similarly irrelevant to your concerns, save to note that I sent out multiple missives of my own during that time, calling for a Conclave to he held at Scratha Fortress. As noted above, I knew your choice of ambassador would spark deep problems and decided it most appropriate to summon an official, recorded gathering to address that issue and one other: that of Pieas Sessin’s disgraceful behavior, long overdue for formal recognition.
Our travels to Scratha Fortress are also irrelevant to you at this time. Upon arrival at the Fortress, then: among the arrived Family representatives were Alyea and Pieas himself; the former accompanied by Deiq of Stass and the latter under the protection of another Family. Sorting out both matters ended with Lord Alyea’s investment as a full desert lord and the death of Pieas Sessin, ironically as part of Lord Alyea’s investment. That part of the story, as I intimated above, is not properly mine to address. I suggest you speak with Lord Alyea herself regarding the matter, and if possible with Deiq of Stass.
I have chosen to remain at Scratha Fortress for the foreseeable future. I have come to see your advice to rebuild my Family, rather than continue a wandering search for vengeance to be, after all, wise words. I am sending Idisio, as mentioned previously, to complete your initial errand; he will take on the name of Gerau Sa’adenit in his writing, so as to provide a seamless transition in the annals of history. Please render him the same assistance and courtesies you would have shown to me. He has proven himself, in our travels, to be exceptionally bright and, once removed from his initial immoral life, quite reasonable in his ethics as well. He holds the full support of Scratha Family and is to be treated as a noble of our line at the very least.
Rest assured that Scratha Family considers you an ally and will provide what it may to assist you during your time of leadership. A formal ambassador shall be appointed to your court as soon as I have trained one to my satisfaction; that ambassador will speak further with you, at that time, on matters of trade and other agreements.
Meanwhile, I enclose the first of several missives to come, providing an account of southland politics and history which you may find useful in avoiding egregious errors in the future. As a matter of policy, the desert Families have not provided this information to northern kings; you yourself must admit that the majority of the last few kings have not been particularly safe to entrust with any real knowledge. As examples, I present Ninnic, who almost destroyed your kingdom in his madness; Mezarak, similarly if less strongly affected; and Dusty Rose, the king who not only brought a street whore into his court circle, but following her death took on her moniker as a way to honor her memory, shortly thereafter dying himself of the same fould rot that had taken his beloved streetwalker. This last king is still commemorated in bawdy songs sung by rough sailors. I would in passing suggest you lift the ban on such songs, as execution seems a harsh punishment for a bit of satirical commentary on what was, unarguably, an asinine moment in the history of your kingdom.
As you, however, seem relatively sane and reasonably intelligent, I entrust you with this knowledge — not lightly, as the other Families are sure to be annoyed with me for defying their collective decision to dole out only what they feel you need to know — but with the certainty that if you are left in ignorance you will once again stick your foot in a pie of the type which is baked in no oven.
I close this letter with gratitude for your assistance and with hopes for a future in which we will both speak honestly and plainly to one another, and use our alliance for the mutual benefit of our respective realms.
May the gods watch over you and smooth your path with their breath, and lead you into the brightest of possible futures.
Lord Cafad Scratha
Regent-Head of Scratha Family
Scratha Fortress
Notes about that letter:
As the southlands does not consider itself part of the Northern Kingdom, sitting kings are addressed as “Lord” and past kings are given no title.
The major desert Families are, in no particular order: Sessin, Scratha, Toscin, Tereph, F’Heing, Darden, and Aerthraim. All but Aerthraim Family sent representatives to that Conclave.
“The Lay of Dusty Rose” was banned by the previous kings, not by Oruen.
Yes, Oruen is something of an idiot who’s floundering badly, but in fairness, he did inherit a kingdom in which anyone the king or his supporters didn’t like could be hauled in and eviscerated on the floor of the throne room. Literally. So a compassionate person might forgive Oruen for getting overwhelmed and being stupid on occasion.
And yes, Scratha has zero tact.
Desert Pride, Honor, and Death
(excerpt from the collection Letters to a Northern King of Merit, penned by Lord Cafad Scratha during the reign of King Oruen)
Another area in which the southlands differ dangerously from the kingdom is in the matter of death. Take, for example, Pieas Sessin’s death. One accustomed to northern ways might think that his uncle, Lord Eredion Sessin, would be furious; that Lord Eredion might set out to exact vengeance upon Lord Alyea. This is absolutely not the case. In fact, if you were so crass as to ask him directly — which I strongly, most strongly, Lord Oruen, advise against doing — more on that advice shortly — but should you speak with Lord Eredion regarding the matter, I am quite sure he would express honest relief.
Pieas Sessin acted the wastrel and fool for some time, shaming his Family despite all attempts to recall him or redirect his overfull energies. Therefore, his life, at the time of his final encounter with Lord Alyea, was of far less value than his death. Pieas understood this and knelt as sacrifice, offering no resistance whatsoever. I can speak to this: I witnessed it myself. Pieas chose to end his life in the service of a ritual which cleared his name and any prior shame to his Family immediately and irreversibly; so now, the only public words you will hear regarding Pieas Sessin will be positive ones, and any who publicly challenge that memory may find themselves, in turn, challenged to a blood-right duel.
Few northerners can grasp this concept. You will probably not grasp the treason I commit merely by explaining this on a durable medium which, no doubt, you will save and store in your library. Others than you may one day read it, which doubles and even quadruples my offense, as I have no control over what these potential readers may do upon understanding that the official history of Pieas Sessin, as it is even now being penned by Sessin Family loremasters, to be so highly glossed as to perpetuate a fiction upon the ignorant. This is why speaking directly to Eredion regarding the crimes of Pieas would be, now, highly inappropriate and display only your terrible ignorance.
I am not myself afraid of the wrath of the other Families; but for your own sake, I would advise against aggravating the southern loremasters if you can possibly avoid it. They are a stronger force than you can possibly understand at this point, and you can ill afford their collective ire. So hide these letters well, and let not a hint regarding the source of your new knowledge slip from your lips until you are thoroughly and unmistakably secure not only in your own recollection of the words in these letters, but in your position as leader of the northern kingdom as well.
Notes about that letter:
Southern loremasters actually have the authority to alter genealogy books to remove all mention of anyone disowned or convicted of gross offenses, and do so regularly. There are a set of official books, and then there’s the secret record of the actual genealogy, without gloss. The two are very different…
Excerpted Notes from Loremaster Council Records
Transcribed two months after the destruction of Sessin Family
Cafad of Scratha Family has renounced all claim to the title and real properties from the area formerly known as Scratha Fortress. He has additionally renounced all claim on his rights as a desert lord, an unprecedented step we are still investigating the ramifications of.
Cafad has married Lord Nissa Sessin, who currently holds the title of head of Sessin Family despite those lands being almost completely destroyed. They live at the southwestern edge of Bright Bay. Lord Nissa Sessin is a frequent visitor to court and represents the interests of the remnants of her Family, most of whom have relocated to the southeastern edge of Bright Bay. Cafad is seen infrequently, and is still no pleasant company when he does appear at court functions….
Sessin Family continues to attempt to rebuild its glass-crafting empire, but is quickly being overtaken in that endeavor by the work being produced by their former sub-family, Tereph. Tereph claimed independence from Sessin Family in the wake of the catastrophe, a surprising move that is having far-ranging impact throughout the southlands. Hard feelings between Tereph and Sessin are a constant source of tension within Bright Bay in particular. We have advised Lord Oruen that Tereph appears to be attempting to influence the nobility to turn against all things Sessin, which would unbalance an already precarious situation….
The former Scratha lands are now officially known as Peysimun, accepted by a Conclave held in Water’s End within the last tenday. Lord Alyea of Peysimun is, perhaps ironically, given the overall history, already showing a great talent for repairing deeply strained diplomatic relationships. We suspect she is being guided by Deiq of Stass, but have not been able to confirm his current location with absolute certainty. Lord Peysimun has not responded to our queries on the matter and her household staff are uniquely unwilling to speak to outsiders….
The majority of the eastern coast of the southlands are broken apart and flooded. The Wall Stair is entirely demolished. Much of it cascaded into the sea, prompting enormous surges along lower-lying areas and the formation of several tenuous new “islands” from the rubble. Coastal survivors are still being located and rehabilitated, in large part thanks to the efforts of Lord Nissa Sessin and her husband….
The Horn is largely in ruins. The once steep climb and drop has been reduced to a cratered plateau of significantly lower elevation. The teyanain have relocated to a currently undisclosed location. We have confirmation that the former head of the teyanain, Lord Evkit, has ceded his claim to his daughter, Cuna. Lord Evkit’s location is likewise unknown at this time. Given the volatility of the teyanain and the historically hostile relationship between Evkit and his daughter, we are deeply concerned by the potential for further disruption. Our agents are searching diligently throughout the southlands for any sign as to where the various factions have settled….
Our sources report that there is a growing sense, in the south, that resources are dwindling without chance of restoration. Each Family is handling that concern differently.
Darden Family and F’Heing Family are engaged in an increasingly vicious battle for control over the northern market via Bright Bay and Kismo, farther to the north. We believe they intend to relocate their bases north once a sphere of influence is solidly establishes, which would entirely disrupt the northern kingdom and cause internal war in short order. Our responsibility on this front is still under consideration.
Toscin Family appears to be turning southward, investigating the still-burning Forbidden Jungles and Haunted Lands. Some as yet unsubstantiated reports have Toscin collaborating with Aerthraim Family….
Peysimun Family lands are reportedly lush with new growth, no doubt from the heavy bands of rain that have passed over the area in recent weeks. We foresee this area becoming a new center for southern resources. Again, we would dearly like to ascertain whether Deiq of Stass is involved in this situation, and to what extent; his presence or absence is a critical factor in our decisions regarding Peysimun Family…..
Lord Oruen remains stable but unattached. He still shows no interest in an official match, and the Council is currently considering whether to press the issue. Given the current upheaval, arguments are being made in both directions….
Azaniari Aerthraim-Darden and her twin brother Allonin have effectively disappeared, a significantly worrisome development given rumors of newly forged ties to the current teyanain leadership. Aerthraim Family loremasters are refusing to answer inquiries of any sort from the Council. We are considering the dire step of sanctions to procure cooperation….
Weather patterns continue to shift dramatically from the disruption. We expect to see a number of erratic storms hit the Horn and coastal areas over the coming months. It is becoming advisable to establish observers north of the Hackerwood, but are numbers are decidedly not up to the task of studying such a large area. This Council is considering a proposal to accept recruits with lower qualifications, as students of the north would not necessarily need to know the abundance of southern history currently required of incoming loremasters….
Comments about the above Council Notes:
Anywhere the words “unprecedented” or “deeply concerned” or similar phrases are used, you could insert oh shit oh shit oh shit this is a fucking disaster and be accurate as to the subtext. This Council is panicking.