The Kurilusa part 4

The Cities of Men and the Idols of Kings

Meanwhile the cities of the elves rose all across their new domains,

and what had once been wetlands, forests, and pastures

now held great fields ploughed by their human subjects.

The rich harvest they brought forth let the human numbers grow in multitudes.

At first the elves rejoiced in this,

for they saw their workers double as generations passed.

And mighty palaces, temples, and walls did men erect in their masters’ honour.

Such was now the multitude of men

that no elf ever again need stoop to labour.

Those who had once lived as farmers or craftsmen, carpenters or masons,

now dwelt as great lords in radiant halls,

with a throng of servants for every whim.

The kings, seeing their splendour,

raised idols of themselves for worship,

claiming their deeds godlike,

themselves worthy of offerings.

The Turning of the Gods

Yet the false gods, envious of the praise of mortals,

took offence at this,

and turned their favour instead to men.

And the number of elven children waned in the new land,

each year fewer than the last.

Priests in the countless temples felt the silence of heaven.

They beheld the gods bestow blessing alike

upon a slave-girl who offered a sparrow,

and upon a mighty king who poured forth hecatombs of bulls

longing for a son.

The Counsel of Zelhuya

So the priests turned to the queen of the king of kings,

Zelhuya, whose name is Crowned by Stars.

For they knew not how to speak this dark truth to their lord.

The wife of the lord of lords was also his sister,

as was the custom of the most royal houses,

lest their blood be diminished with that of others.

She was a good queen unto her king,

a good wife unto her husband,

a good sister unto her brother.

Yet for all her goodness she carried,

only miscarriages had she borne into the world.

At last when she grew with child again,

the king of kings rejoiced, and all his subjects with him,

praying to the gods that an heir might be granted.

But when the fruit of her womb was revealed,

the joy of the king soured—

for the child was a daughter.

And he was greatly dismayed,

for he longed above all for a son to sit upon his throne.

The Lament of the King

No matter how many sacrifices he poured out

upon the great ziggurat in Hurreatea,

the gods granted him no son.

No matter how many lands he conquered in their name,

they granted him no son.

No matter how many enemies he slaughtered in their honour,

still they granted him no son.

When his wife spoke against the gods,

he grew wrathful,

and admonished her before his court.

Yet still she did not relent,

for though bound to him in marriage,

she was his equal in blood.

She said unto him:

“I speak not ill of the gods.

Like us, they would be fools not to drink of what is offered,

for every offering strengthens their will.

Yet you, O lords, sought to be unto mankind as the gods are unto us.

But in teaching men the true names of the gods,

you have fed their hunger.

They care not who feeds them, only how much.

Thus you have brought beasts into the temples,

and soon they shall rise in number and in favour,

until no sword shall be sharp enough to master them.

For they are not the cattle you thought them to be,

but like us they too stretch forth their will upon the world.

And in your folly, you have armed them for it,

in pursuit of comfort.”

The gathered lords were displeased,

for they felt the sting of her words.

So the king of kings, seeing the shift in his court,

banished his queen from his hall—

to his sorrow, and to her sorrow—

but to the delight of the throng seeing one so grand humbled thusly,

for envy and ambition burn fierce in every elven heart.

The Cry to Heaven

Yet in his heart of hearts the king of kings lamented,

and he cried unto the heavens:

“Did I not conquer this land in your name?

Did I not vanquish enemies,

brave untold dangers,

sacrifice oceans of blood?

And yet you repay me with miscarriages!

At last you grant me a child,

and it is a daughter—

who, without a brother to wed,

can only bear discord in her womb!”