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~~~~(Point of view: Azrael Sanchez)~~~~
~~~~(Date: 275 AC)~~~~
The next morning, the alarm clock woke me up at five o'clock, half an hour before sunrise. I got up from my bed of cotton sheets and feather pillows, then left my room and headed to the small kitchen of the carriage. There, I saw Valka already awake, standing in a corner, watching me.
I still hadn't gotten used to her presence or that of the other nineteen witches I had summoned after her, but I knew it was necessary to keep them close, so it was a fair sacrifice.
"I see you've already fixed your bed," I told her, noticing that the sheets on the bed I had summoned for her were already folded.
Valka just smiled at me in that peculiar witchy way, as if a lion saw a helpless gazelle. It was disturbing, especially since, so far, I had never seen any witches spurred.
"I do not enjoy the ability to sleep, my Khal; it was a price I paid when that lightning struck me, I would either die; or immerse myself in the arcane arts, but you see, my mortal life is over," Valka commented, and for a small fragment of time, I swore I saw longing in her empty eyes.
Going to the kitchen sink, I washed my face and teeth with a rustic brush and herbal cream. "So you were a villager before?"
Valka nodded, as she stuck out her abnormally long tongue and caught a fly flying next to her, then swallowed it. "Yes, my Khal, but it was a long time ago; I don't miss that life anymore," she answered me once she licked her lips.
"Well, first, don't do that again; it's disgusting, and second, I thought the lightning thing just made the effect of the villager turning into a witch show, not that that was true."
"That rumor was spread so that so the relatives would not seek to meet the newborn who was in search of their relative; it was believed that if the rumor spread that the villager had died and a witch had appeared in his place, it would imply that the lightning had called her, more not that the villager was the witch," Valka explained to me, leaving me amazed at her knowledge.
"Wow."
Valka went and brought me my sword while looking at me with those enigmatic black eyes. "Yes, it's kind of hard, but it was better that way, to have people know that their friend, brother, father, or son became an evil being; it eased some of the pain for both parties."
Holding my back sheath on my hip, I thanked him. "So that's why witches aren't hostile to villagers."
"Yes, for the most part, it's because of the memories of our old lives that show up and make it almost impossible to assault them."
Nodding, I headed for the door and stepped out of the carriage, noticing that Valka was already in the stable where I kept my horse, 'how did she get there in the first place?'
Deciding better not to ask, I saddled up my horse and was about to get on it, but remembered that Valka didn't have one. "Do you know how to ride a horse?" I asked her, receiving a small smile from her.
"I don't need one; I will be with my sisters beside you, protecting you," Valka commented to me, and looking up from her, I noticed how I was surrounded by the other witches, who approached me without my noticing them.
"..... Okay," I spoke to Valka, and when I wanted to see her, she was no longer present, not even the other witches from before. 'I love magic' I thought.
"Did you see where they went?" I asked my wolves, who just stared at me with their tongues hanging out.
Shaking my head, I preferred to start riding. "Forget it."
My plan now was to meet the Lhazareen of this village and determine whether they wanted to follow me as free people or stay in their village, being their decision.
I had no plans to obtain any more slaves; in fact, I would 'free' the ones I still had under my command once I created my city, however; for the time being before that happened, I would at least see to it that their stay in the caravan was the.... Best.
After a few minutes, I arrived at a large hut, a place where all the members of the village were gathered. Upon arriving there, my blood riders greeted me, who were already waiting for me.
"Blood of my blood," we greeted each other, and entering the hut, I was greeted by the sight of several people, there could easily be about three thousand people, among them being mostly women and children, apparently the previous Khalasar had taken it upon himself to kill the men.
"I am Khal Sanchez! "I addressed everyone, catching their attention, "As you know, your village was destroyed, not by my Khalasar, but by the one I defeated in battle, so I give you two options: you can follow me as free people, and I promise you that no Dothraki of my Khalasar will touch you.... or, you can choose to stay here, and I will give you a certain amount of food to last you until the next harvest; just be aware that you have no men to protect you, and I have no doubt that more Khalasars will meet you, and they will not fail to take you."
After a few seconds, many decided to follow me, while others chose to stay, so, nodding, I made it clear to my blood riders to lead those who decided to follow me, to their rightful carriages. While I stayed to give enough food to the group of women who stayed, I knew they would not last long, but that was no longer my problem.
After two hours, with the Dothraki connecting the devastators to the carriages and the women saddling their camels, the caravan was able to continue on its way, leaving behind a village to be forgotten.
Standing in front of the Khalasar, I remembered something important I wanted to discuss with Valka, and as if it were a sign from heaven, I saw her walking beside my horse without warning.
"Do you need me, my Khal?" She asked in her soft voice, Hell, at this rate, I would have a heart attack from her appearance.
"Em... Yes," I said, "Do you know of any method of bringing someone back to life? Even if that person has been dead for some time."
Nodding, Valka answered me, "Do you wish to resurrect Amanda?"
'Ok, I won't even ask how she knew' I thought; indeed, the power and intrigue of these witches were superior to that shown in the game.
"You are correct," I confirmed, causing Valka to let out a long sigh.
"Many methods were known to bring the dead back to life; some involved equivalent exchanges; in others, the use of enchanted golden apples was made, though the latter was to create zombies obedient to their creator, I would think the method used by the Evokers to summon the Vexes would be the best."
'Vexes?" I thought, not understanding anything.
"I don't understand; what do evocators have to do with this?"
Letting out a small laugh, Valka answered me as if explaining to a child: "The evocators use a simple, but very intricate ritual to summon demonic beings called Vexes. You see, the Vexes are just souls that have been left wandering on the earthly plane, and what the evocators do is create a physical body for those souls to enter the vessels, and by doing so, the evocators manage to control them."
Knowing where the topic was going, I got excited, remembering that I still kept Amanda's body. Don't get me wrong, I had no fetish for dead women's bodies, but with the help of regeneration potions, I was able to keep Amanda's body in good shape, giving the sensation that she was asleep, only it was just her inert body.
Approving Valka's idea, I turned to her and said, "In Amanda's case, and since I have her body in good condition, it would be simpler in the ritual, wouldn't it?"
"We would only have to take advice that the soul entering her body is hers and not that of another being but don't worry, it's something simple, and having the body intact helps us quite a lot," Valka answered me with a calm smile.
Okay, so I could bring Amanda back, filling me with peace of mind that I could give her the chance of life she deserved.
So, the Khalasar continued to advance without encountering more villages or settlements; sometimes it was necessary to stop because the carriages could not move forward, but with me here, it was no problem to create a path for them.
It was not until after six days of movement that the red walls of Astapor could be seen in the distance, with the pyramids being the most prominent sight, looking right at the place where my name would spread to the known world and beyond.