Mission: Shuddh Butg Par
| Mission: Shuddh Butg Par | |
| |
| Original title | Mission: Shuddh Butg Par |
| Language | Common Tongue |
| Author(s) | Gustaaf Vermeylen |
| Genre | Historical narratives |
| Location(s) | Çakaristan |
| (main) characters | Hasan Çakar |
| Timeframe | 1689 AN and onwards |
Mission: Shuddh Butg Par is a discovery expedition led by Hasan Çakar on behalf of the Sultan of Çakaristan.
Beyond the Green border
Somehow Hasan regretted that he had not been elected sultan. Not least because he thinks Jodha is very handsome. He saw that the match between Abu and Jodha was a divine match. Nevertheless, he had some difficulty with his position as the elder brother of the sultan. When his brother sent him on a mission he was more than happy that he had a goal, but also got a share in the government of the sultanate in the form of building his own rajya (kingdom).
The father-in-law of the Sultan and Grand Vizier, Rajesh Avchat, had asked Hasan to first turn his attention to Poorajangal, which previously was called 'Phedodah'. Since the entire region was made up of dense forests, Hasan turned his attention to the strategic part: the coastal plain. This area was previously largely part of the Kingdom of Krasnocoria. To secure the Antican Sea, Hasan moved to Micobad, previously Micograd. He found very little life in the city. The city and its immediate surroundings belonged to the historic Antican region, called Platea. And at the request of the Sultan, the city and the surrounding area will again not belong to Poorajangal. The Micobad Sarkar (Aryasht: माइकोबाद सर्कार) is being set up.
Hasan had advised the Grand Vizier not to send the Arboric fleet. He would leave a small company of soldiers in the city, to resist a possible foreign invasion. The remaining population was provided with first aid and food. When he oversaw the operation from the gold building, he saw people going in and out of the house of prayer. They looked around skittishly before going in, and when they came out, they looked around first. What was going on? Hasan became curious. He called a few men together and had the house of prayer surrounded. Then Hasan himself went inside with some soldiers. The various rooms were skilfully searched, eventually he found some agitated people in the crypt. "Don't shoot!", they shouted in the Common Language. The people came out with their hands up. Behind the first people, Hasan saw an apparent family. Frightened, they stood together. Hasan recognized the man of the family, that was King Jovan I of Krasnocoria. Hasan said: "Do not be afraid, no harm will be done to you". It seemed to bring little relaxation, but Hasan organised transport for the former king and his family to Agra. The expedition unit departed south again to join the expedition unit that went west from Merku to the town of Keruliya, formerly called "Caerulea". Inland the country lived up to its name: a complete jungle, "Poora jangal" in Aryasht. The expedition unit struggled to make progress, due to the long period of unclaimed status the roads were overgrown. The local tribes made little use of motorised means of transport, but the centuries-old paths were their road network. Too narrow for Hasan's all-terrain vehicles, not to mention the bridges over rivers and streams.
Nevertheless, the expedition unit reached after their assembly point, where the other expedition unit had already set up camp. Together they left as one unit for Keruliya, the birthplace of the sultana. Hasan actually had quite high expectations of the city, but he was disappointed. There was a palace, but it needed to be refurbished. The city was vast and mostly spread out along the lake. The mystical lake that once had the name 'Lake Leve'. That name was derived from the then city of Levaprasth, which was also called Devaprasth. In Keruliya the lake was called "blue lake", because of the bright blue colour of the water and the name of the town. In short, there was no unambiguous name. Hasan got fed up with the bickering of the representatives of the communities around the lake and said: " We call the lake 'Lake Jodha', then no one has their name!" The representatives were silent about this eruption, but started to clear up after a few moments. They liked the name 'Lake Jodha'. "That's settled," Hasan concluded.
Terre d’Riches
Hasan was still fascinated by the beautiful blue lake, Lake Jodha. In fact, until his father sent him to the Green, Hasan had always thought that the lake did not really exist. He would like to go fishing to see what kind of fish were found here. But there was no time for that now. Instead he sailed across the lake to the city of Devaprasth. A small unit of soldiers went with him, while the rest of the expedition unit headed southeast towards the coast of Herrin Bay. Part of that route was already known when the remains of the Krasnocorian troops were hunted in the opposite direction. Hasan enjoyed the crossing, the majestic views, the wild nature and the cool breeze over the water. He was just disappointed when they reached the other side.
On the quay of Devaprasth dignitaries were already waiting for Hasan. The dignitaries had come together from very former Aryasht. There were also many other people, to catch a glimpse of the 'wanderer of the green'. The crowd was huge, and Hasan wondered how many people actually lived in the Green. On the harbour square there was a small elevation, from where Hasan could address the crowd. He stood up on that elevation and said: "Thank you for welcoming me so enthusiastically. It touches me." He stopped for a moment and after a moment he continued: "My brother the Sultan has the vision to bring you all under his sceptre. United under one flag and emblem, we can face a bright future. My mission is to make that vision of the Sultan a reality. But the Sultan's vision goes beyond just territorial expansion or just making you his loyal subjects, he wants to bring prosperity. A start has already been made on democratisation, which will be followed by a clear system of statehood, infrastructure and so on. May Craitgod assist the Sultan! The crowd began to applaud, cheer and sing!
Further east, the expedition unit was working its way through the rugged landscape. The landscape was less densely forested than in Poorajangal. Yet there were no paved roads and what had something of paving was so dilapidated that it made almost no difference to an unpaved road. From Svatantratadurg a convoy of ships came to supply ships in Praant Shahar. By seaplane Hasan flew from Devaprasth to Praant Shahar. Fascinated, he looked at the landscape shifting beneath him. The green hills, the alternation of forest and open grassland. He suddenly realised that this land had been entrusted to him by the Sultan. This beautiful country. He was simply moved by it. When he arrived, he had his men lined up and spoke to them: "My men, the Sultan, in his great wisdom, has decided to officially call this expedition unit the Expeditionary Corps. The First Expeditionary Corps of the Çakari Armed Forces". The men cheered: "Hurray, hurray!"
Island hopping
With haste Hasan boarded the seaplane. He said to the pilot: "To the eastern island!". The pilot nodded and let the plane take off. Hasan dozed off to sleep under the even sound of the engines. What he did not know, the pilot did not fly to the island of Aydin, where Hasan wanted to go, but flew to the island of Tuife. The sultan wanted to leave that island to The Bassarids, about which there had been diplomatic contact. Hasan was woken up just before landing. It took some time before Hasan knew that they had arrived on the wrong island. He immediately contacted Agra. The sultan was not amused.
Hasan was very nervous, because it took some time before there was a reaction from Agra. He became even more nervous when he received a phone call from the sultan's office and his brother's voice sounded. "We have been in contact with The Bassarids. It is of strategic importance that they or we claim the island. We don't want a foreign power on that island. The Bassarids agree that we claim the island. I will therefore classify the island as a separate subah, so that if The Bassarids want the island, then that is easy to transfer. So Hasan, plant that flag of ours there! Hasan was there relieved and had the Green Flag hoisted above the most important building of the city of Tuife.
The next day, after a good night's sleep, Hasan flew west. He finally arrived in the city of Aydin, where he thought he had arrived a day earlier. Like the island of Tuife, this island had been under Krasnocorian rule, previously under the Imperial Sun flag. Despite the good outcome, Hasan felt that he was back on the pure path of his mission in Aydin. This island became part of his domain. He liked the surroundings so much that he thought of building a palace there. He realised that he had not chosen a capital for his princely state. But he did not want to surrender this paradisiacal environment to the hustle and bustle of a capital city.
Then he flew on to the island formerly known as Rulak. The island of the bull. There he studied a map. His mission was not limited to the acquisition of his own state within the sultanate, but also the annexation of the former Aryasht. A part of that area is under the flag of Floria. But most of it has fallen into disrepair of the Green. He noticed a peninsula, not claimed by Floria. There once lay the city of Aryapur. He did not hesitate for a moment and ordered to fly to that peninsula. There he found a large city, but completely rudderless. He gave a speech in front of the crowd: "This city is the namesake of ancient Aryasht. Today the revival of Aryasht begins. There will be a new name, but the sultan will respect your culture and welcome you! Let this city be the beginning of victory!” When Hasan was carried around by the enthusiastic crowd, he thought: ‘Let's call this city Fatehpur, city of victory’.
Startup nation
His expeditionary corps had arrived in the former city of Aurelius. There they had found ruins of that former city, traces of human habitation. Hasan was still looking for a capital of his domain. A place where he could reside and rule. But he could not yet make a choice. His first priority was to consolidate the coastline between Floria and the sultanate. He boarded the seaplane and flew eastwards. At the same time, the first expeditionary corps went west.
Hasan arrived just off the coast of a small bay. There he found a refugee camp. There he found the people he did not find in other parts of Korhalistan. There he found stateless people, just like in Fatehpur. He thought, if we counted these people, how many loyal subjects my brother would get. In a short space of time, the demography of the sultanate will change. Hasan proclaimed in the refugee city the peaceful and hopeful message that they would come under the authority of the Sultan. There was a great deal of enthusiasm, which manifested itself in a heroic reception from the expeditionary corps. They were received as liberators.
To a seemingly dignitary of the city Hasan asked: "What is the name of this city? The man didn't really know, and finally answered: "We live on a good bay". "Manbai," Hasan said. The next few days Hasan worked on setting up a city administration, plans for infrastructure in the direction of Agra. "The sultanate needs a large port city to be supplied with goods. That is why Manbai must become the largest port city in the country", said Hasan in one of the meetings. "Will Manbai be your capital," asked one of those present. "No, we are building a new city, on the site of the former city of Aurelius. We call that city Çakarabad," replied Hasan.
Just outside the city Hasan had a tent camp set up. He and his men stayed there and held a meeting. "This place would be a good place for a palace," said his secretary. It was there that dignitaries came to discuss their ideas about the future of Korhalistan. One of them had taken his daughter with him. Hasan was impressed by her beauty. He had seen many women, including here in Green. But he noticed her appearance. For an afternoon he had been staring over the good bay. He had the background of her and her family picked out. He seemed like a heavenly gift, she would be the perfect match for him. But did she want to marry him? His brother, the sultan, had spoken of a character test. He had said: 'Even the handsomest woman gets older, grey and wrinkles. But character remains'.
Hasan decided to invite the dignitary with his family. The man was honoured and came with his wife and daughter. The spell turned out to be heavier than he thought and wanted to admit. The woman saw that Hasan did not really listen to her husband, because he was distracted by her daughter. She had to smile. Her husband tried so hard to get on a good footing with the Raja. Hasan had not listened to the man at all, so he said: "Excuse me, from what I have learned about you, I have decided to appoint you as mayor of Manbai". The man was surprised, because he had not dared to ask. "Thank you", he replied. After the meal, Hasan had the opportunity to walk with the daughter around the tent camp. She turned out to be named 'Manikarnika', she is pretty, intelligent and playful. While Hasan did not consider himself very handsome, not as intelligent as his youngest brother and serious.
A noble invitation
Hasan had almost forgotten his mission, that is how enchanted he is by Manikarnika. While he and his retinue in Çakarabad set up the principles of a government for Korhalistan, the expeditionary corps continued the mission to bring the last parts of Korhalistan under control. The island of Tuife was handed over to a subahdar appointed by the sultan. Plans for a railway line from Manbai via Çakarabad and Praant Shahar to Agra were prepared. Hasan realised the race for which city would become the port for the sultanate. Manbai or Tiegang. Despite the fact that Tiegang was not part of the sultanate, that city already has a harbour. The old railway line between Tiren and Tiegang only needs to be refurbished, while the port of Manbai and the railway line across the green border still have to be planned.
The expeditionary corps approached the town of Pyrrhion, which Hasan had renamed in Padaudah. The renaming was part of the Çakar revolution. Just as Devaprasth was renamed after Khodapatnam. There the expeditionary corps was received by a delegation from Haritdesh, green land, formerly known as Aryasht of Aryadesh. These names have their origins in the idea that the people see themselves as 'noble'. But now these people have all fallen into the disorder of Green for a long time. In the city the expeditionary corps was received as heroes, as liberators. A feast was held, with dance and music:
The dignitaries had a letter for the sultan, sealed with a wax seal. The commander took the letter with him, first to Hasan. In Çakarabad the commander was received by Hasan, who heard the whole story about the arrival in Padaudah. Together with Manikarnika, Hasan went to Agra. The news that Hasan had found a woman and was in love was earlier in Agra than the plane could take Hasan and Manikarnika. In the Red Fortress, the couple in love was also received in a courtyard garden. The sultan and sultana were expecting the visit, they had finished their tea. Hasan became very nervous when he saw his brother and sister-in-law welcoming them like this. But Manikarnika's spontaneity broke the tension. "Your Majesty, what an honour to meet you," said Manikarnika. "The honour is all mine," replied the sultan. "Welcome to Agra, how was your journey?", the sultana asked, gesturing, that the couple in love should sit down. Manikarnika replied: "Very well, thank you". "That we may experience the day when Hasan arrives with a woman," said Abu. Immediately Abu received a corrective tap from his wife. Manikarnika had to laugh, a typical tease between brothers. She knew, there is a strong family bond.
Hasan suddenly remembered the letter and said: “Oh, my sultan, I have received a letter addressed to you”. He took out the sealed letter and gave it to the sultan. The sultan took the letter and broke the seal. After the sultan had read the letter, he gave it to the sultana. "This is good news," said the sultana. Hasan looked questioningly. The sultan said: "We are invited to embark Haritdesh, the former Aryasht. I will read the letter to the Grand Assembly." After that, the discussion went on light-hearted matters and further acquaintance. As the brothers passed through one of the colonnades along the courtyard garden together, Hasan said to Akbar: "My brother, it may be time for you to leave the palace more often and show yourself around the country. You are very loved by the people and wherever you will go, you will be warmly welcomed". "The palace guard is already nervous when a foreign dignitary visits the palace. Let alone that I leave the palace," Akbar replied and went on to say: "They haven't forgotten the attempted assassination, for which the perpetrator still hasn't been punished". Akbar sighed. Hasan stayed still, so Akbar stopped walking as well. "Don't become a palace prince, stay true to yourself," Hasan concluded. Akbar nodded approvingly.
Back on track
Just before leaving Agra, Hasan had received a strange request from the sultan. Instead of returning to Korhalistan, he had to make a trip to Poora jangal. Hasan was sulking, but Manikarnika could see the humour in it. The couple in love travelled north. In Liburnia they were received by the Pradhan, who ran the Rajya on behalf of the Raja. In the palace of the Raja accommodations were prepared. Separated from each other, of course, because they were not yet married. As is customary, the meal was lavishly provided with all kinds of exotic fruits, such as those from The Hexarchy. The Pradhan entertained its guests with music and dance:
The next day Manikarnika was rather nervous. It is her first public appearance at Hasan's side. She did not have to speak or perform any other act, yet she was nervous about the reaction of the public. Hasan reassured her, she looked beautiful and will therefore distract attention from his still unprepared speech. He had found no inspiration, no words for a speech. Nevertheless, the open car drove ahead and the couple got in. Next to the driver the Pradhan took a seat. Accompanied by motorbike agents, the convoy left in a northerly direction. Along the road people were gathering to catch a glimpse of royalty. Outside the city, people were also gathered in various places, cheering as the convoy passed by.
The convoy slowed down as they left the main road and drove along an apparently temporary road towards a large tent. That big green tent was decorated with flags, waving merrily in the light breeze from the sea. A large group of people had gathered around the tent, waiting for Hasan to arrive. The people were surprised when Hasan not only appeared, but had Manikarnika at his side. The large green tent was set up about ten metres from a new railway line. It is the rebuilt railway line between Micobad and Merku, via Liburnia. The double track was built in Çakari wide gauge, equipped with new signals and electrified catenary. A little further on a new railway bridge was built over a narrow gorge, with a stream at the bottom. The place where the large green tent was set up was the same place Hasan had been a few years earlier. The place where he and his men had stopped a train and blown up the track. That was during the Battle of Merku, which prevented Krasnocorian reinforcements from Grandbay from arriving in Merku.
After the company was received, Hasan was given the stage to deliver his speech. But he had not prepared, so he just started saying: "Dear compatriots, my brother the sultan, may the sultan reign forever! The Sultan sent me here to open this railway line. He said to me: 'You have demolished this railway, now you may open the rebuilt railway'. The people present laughed. "Our country needs a good infrastructure. This railway line is the example that our country can recover in a short period of time from the damage caused by the National Awakening. In addition, the topography of our country is so much different from the earlier Krasnarus, so new railways and roads are needed to connect the entire sultanate. This railway line and this place are of special value. For it is here that the ultimate sacrifice has been made for the freedom of our nation. My friend Jawahar gave his life here. That is why we call this new bridge 'Jawahar Bridge'.”
After these words, Hasan unveiled a monument next to the new railway bridge. It says here: "Jawahar bridge - named after the man who gave his life to give freedom to the inhabitants of the sultanate". This is written in Arboric and Adarani. For a moment Hasan stood solemnly, in memory of his friend. Saluted and greeted with a Namaste. Afterwards Hasan left Manikarnika to board a ready train. He gestured to leave, under continuous honking, the train slowly drove over the Jawahar bridge. That was the end of the ceremony. The train accelerated and drove to Micobad. In the train, Hasan and Manikarnika were treated to tea and Petha. The couple stayed in Micobad for a few more days, before they left for Çakarabad.
