Kings and Pawns of Flesh and Bone

Chapter 5 - Fire and Rubble

Silence hung over the confederates for a moment as they processed the sight before them. Looks of shock, disbelief, humiliation, and despair was splashed across their frozen faces. The silence was punctured by the sudden shwish of swords - hundreds of swords - parting with their sheathes.

"You'll die for this, Khaled!"

Khaled sauntered towards the dinner guests, towering over them, and utilizing the strategic value of his elevated seating position.

"Your chiefs are dead." Khaled stated, unnecessarily. "Here are the new terms of your truce. You desert dwellers will submit your complete and unconditional surrender, and for this you will be spared. Or you can be foolhardy and die where you stand."

A man from the Banu Narr stepped out from the crowd toward Khaled. "We do not fear death, Khaled. Meet us in open battle fields, and by God, know that the youngest among us will wreak havoc on your troops, tyrant." The man spat towards Khaled, pointing the edge of his sword in the king's direction, as Khaled stroked his beard. "From us, you will see nothing but the fire that burns inside of us."

"What a fine choice of words." Khaled stopped stroking his beard, and his lips curled in a smirk. Never for a moment did he seem nervous. Never did he seem rushed. Ghazi saw that he was confident in whatever he had planned. "Then you leave me no choice but to fight fire with fire." Khaled extended his arms from his torso outward in a quick, sweeping manner. With that, dozens of Marwanid men tipped over the lanterns holding up the festive tent. It collapsed, smothering the men beneath it. Muffled screams could be heard from beneath the tarp, while squirming bodies scrambled for an exit. A barrage of flaming arrows whistled towards the blanketed mound of men. The arrows came from everywhere, whizzing over Ghazi's head as he curled up and huddled in a ball. He gazed, expressionless at the carnage unfolding before him. Within seconds, the sight of the feast was set ablaze. The hundreds of men incinerated where they stood.

A few charred bodies managed to escape from beneath the tarp, only to be cut down by surrounding Marwanid fighters. Khaled motioned for the Marwanid loyalists, and within moments they assembled in ranks.

"Men, within a few hours the sun will rise and we will lose the cover of darkness." Khaled stood with his back to the blazing mound, his voice nearly drowned out by the moans of dying men. Tonight, we sweep these mountains of any memory of the confederacy. We remove this splinter from our iron hand, once and for all. Do not leave one stone atop of another" He said, pounding his fist into his hand. "When these bedouins awake, I want them to see nothing but fire and rubble."

Despite his young age, Ghazi knew that what he saw that day would sear into his memory for the rest of his life. Everywhere they went, death and destruction followed. Villages set ablaze, charred black beyond any recognition. Homes were reduced to rubble. Sand blackened with the drying blood of the men of Banu Narr. Each scene different, yet the same. The proudest were slayed first, and pride was in abundance among these desert warriors. Ghazi hated what we saw, but found himself unable to turn away. Even when he could, the sounds could not be stopped. The cries of children weeping over the corpses of their fathers. The whaling of the newly widowed. Their prayers summoning God's wrath among the oppressors. That is us. We are the oppressors.

The sun slowly rose over the horizon, shining a light over king Khaled's perfectly executed plan for Amman's rolling hills. Truly, nothing remained but fire and rubble. Ghazi cast his eyes over the delegation and marveled at how truly foolish he was to not have seen this coming. The solemnity, the battle-hardened faces. It was abundantly clear now. These were no diplomats, no traders of goods and spices. These were merchants of death.