KAAF
The news of our defeat of Mussa had reached the territory ruled by
Hassem, the step-brother of Amin. As soon as we moved against them,
several garrisons rebelled against their chiefs, all men of the usurper
Mussa, and sent us messengers declaring their complete submission. Often
they also thanked Amin for coming back to take possession of his land.
Cities and towns warmly welcomed us. More than a conquering expedition,
our coming seemed like a triumphal entry.
Almost ten years had elapsed since Amin had fled, and the majority of
the population still remembered his father with affection and had
remained loyal to his memory, notwithstanding Mussa's oppression, more
in spite of it.
Hassem had shut himself up in the capital, from where the larger part of
the population had fled to join us at the news of our coming. But the
citizens of the capital asked Amin to spare the city. So we decided to
besiege it, hoping Hassem would capitulate.
By this time our army was powerful, well armed and disciplined, and had
been reinforced by soldiers of the garrisons that had embraced Amin's
cause. Every access road to the city was completely barred. During our
siege, several local chieftains came to pay homage to Amin and to
declare their loyal subjection. Now, effectively, all the territory
apart from the capital and a few garrisons was again in Amin's hands.
He began building a Palace outside of the walls, that he called "The
Await House". But, faithful to his vow, he still slept on the bare
ground in one of the gardens of the new palace and used its rooms only
to give audience and to administer his territories and Mussa's
territories.
Not much time did pass before a trickle of people began to flee the
blockade. Whoever tried to come out was immediately arrested and judged.
If there were no charges against him, he was freed. By now, the city had
been blockaded for about two months. They were not lacking in water,
thanks to the springs and the cistern that were inside the walls, but
from those who had escaped the city most recently we knew that the food
stocks were almost to an end. More days passed, then the gates opened
and the people came out in a multitude. The few soldiers still loyal to
Hassem had retreated to the Palace for a last desperate resistance, but
many had deserted.
Then Amin sent a negotiator to propose an unconditional surrender. In
exchange all the men's lives would be safe. They would be put on trial
as had been Mussa's men. Amin promised life even to Hassem, if they
surrendered within two days. Otherwise, he let them know, nobody would
leave the Palace alive...
Hassem was a coward: by the end of the first day he sent a messenger to
try to agree on a surrender that guaranteed his freedom. Amin sent back
his answer: either his conditions were accepted, in which case Hassem
would be judged like all the others, or he would die. He would not
accept any compromise. The only concession granted to Hassem was that
their father's death would not be charged against him, even though he
was sixteen (and therefore an adult) at the time. That death had been
paid for by Mussa with his own death, and would be paid by the deaths of
the other traitors. At the end of the second day, the Palace gates
opened and first the soldiers, then the officials and last Hassem's
family ebbed out. Everybody was disarmed, carefully searched so that
they did not take anything away from the Palace, then they were put in
different prisons to await their trials. For the trial of traitors, Amin
sent ambassadors to the Shaikhs of the bordering territories requesting
that they send him their wisest judges. Almost all answered positively.
Amin wanted the trial to be carried out publicly and judges who were not
involved personally.
When the verdicts were issued, often Amin alleviated the sentences and
only those who had been materially involved in the slaughter of his
father and family and the Imam were sentenced to death. The other
traitors were sold as slaves. Hassem was exiled and his women and
children sent back to their family origins. All the exiles and those
sold as slaves were told that, if they tried to enter again in the
territories ruled by Amin, they would be automatically sentenced to
death.
Amin received much praise for his management of all the issues involved.
Once the trials were over, we started to reorganize the territory. Amin
asked that the Breve of the Sultan proclaiming him Shaikh of all the
conquered or recaptured territories be made public knowledge. Now the
land was more than double what it was at Amin's father death. And then
he officially appointed me Great Visir. We had captured all of Mussa's
and Hassem's treasuries: two conspicuous fortunes, owed to the heavy
taxation both of them had imposed on their people. Amin had greatly
lessened the tax burden, in some cases even halved them, to the great
joy of the population. Using the two treasures, we decided to rebuild
completely his Palace and to erect in the Great Masjid a mausoleum for
Abbas Imam.
Once the news of Amin's complete victory reached Istanbul, a messenger
arrived from the Sultan with his felicitations, a rich gift and the news
that Selim was on road to visit us. He arrived shortly thereafter with a
rich retinue and our meeting was really joyful. Selim, once he heard
Amin's intention to completely rebuild the palace, decided he would
summon from Istanbul the Court architect, at his expense, as his
personal gift. So the demolition of the old palace began and also part
of the walls towards the East, to double the surface. Meanwhile we used
our fancifully named "Await House" as a provisional royal palace.
Our love relationship progressed and was becoming, day by day, more
beautiful. Sometimes it seemed impossible to me that a bond that every
day seemed to have reached the summit of perfection, could yet evolve
and strengthen. And yet it happened. As even Selim had noticed, a slow
transformation was taking place in us, so that we resembled each other
more and more, not only in our attitudes, gestures or the way we speak,
but even physically.
While the workers were completely demolishing the old palace and were
starting the construction of the new one, and we lived in the Await
House immediately outside the city walls, all around our palace started
to rise new houses, then an embryo of a bazaar, so that the area soon
became an elegant appendix of the town. Amin decided to build there a
new beautiful masjid to thank Allah for his victory, and this project
also was given to the Sultan's architect. We also decided to build a new
wall to protect this new borough of the capital. The building of the new
Palace was continuing, so that all the town was a building site.
Merchants caravans lengthened their route to come to the new bazaar and
the town was flourishing and the population happy.
Amin decided it was time to go back to the city that had been Mussa's
capital and to open the walled tower. Of course they were all dead. It
was evident that many had committed suicide, that others had been
killed, probably by friends moved to pity or because they wanted to
surrender, or for what else reason we could not know. We found Mussa's
corpse: he was hanging from a beam in his bed room. Amin had the remains
of these men gathered and put in the common grave of the poor. Then he
gave the order to demolish completely Mussa's fortress, so that no trace
could be seen, and in its place planted a small forest. Then we went
back to our capital.
One day Amin said to me: "Everything proceeds well, everybody is happy:
it seems quite impossible, Nadim. I am almost afraid of this happiness!
How long will it last? The fairy tales exists only in books..."
"Amin, my beloved, we spent years of pain, of struggle, of suffering, of
war. We have already paid our tribute of tears. Now everything proceeds
well. Let us thank Allah. And if tomorrow we have to flee again, to
struggle, to suffer, we will do it, together. For now, let us not worry
over problems we do not have."
"You are right. But above all I have to thank Allah I have you. This is
the most beautiful, the most important thing in my life. All the rest is
a surplus. If one day I would have you no more, I would just let myself
die."
"As long as I have life, I will never leave you!"
"Yes, of course. And me neither. You know, Nadim, you are the light of
my eyes, the music of my heart, my chalice full of happiness. You are
love personified."
"I am just the son of a donkey breeder..."
"Blessed be your father to have conceived a son like you. Do you want to
have your family at court?"
"No, they are happy as they are. I do not want to have privileges for
them only because you chose me as your partner. Everybody has to have
what he deserves, what he built with his life."
"But what about you? You saved my life, you protected me, you made me
happy, you gave me love, you helped me to recover my ancestor's throne.
What can I give you in exchange for all of that?"
"You have already given me the best of all prizes: your precious love."
"I feel I never do enough for you."
"I too feel I never do enough for you. This is the destiny of sincere
lovers: not to be able to do all they want for their beloved one."
This and similar discussions we had when we were alone in intimacy, our
bodies united, intertwined in a sweet and tender embrace, intent on
giving ourselves mutual pleasure.
The Palace building proceeded regularly and we often went to watch it
rising, to see the structure taking shape. It was already possible to
see the general plan, the spaces where gardens and courtyards would be.
It was organized in well defined sections: the most external part for
the guests, then the officials zone, then the section for the Select
Guard, then the harem, the part for the sons, then the part for the Heir
Selected Guard and his apartments, then the section for the body guards
and at last the Shaikhs apartments in the safest position. From here
will commence a net of secret and carefully watched corridors leading
directly to the various parts of the Palace and even outside.
Remembering how the palace had been conquered in the night of the
slaughter, and how we had seized Mussa's palace without giving him an
escape way, all caution went into the design and building, so that the
palace would be an invincible fortress, without risking becoming a trap
in case of attack or siege.
LAAM
Amin decided he would have to start populating his harem with wives and
concubines after the Palace building was completed. He decided to follow
Selim's suggestion and find a double to take his place in bed when he
had to couple with his women. I tried to persuade him that it would have
been much more simple if he accepted to join his women, but my beloved
insisted that he would give his body to me and to no other, be it man or
woman. So we needed to find exactly the right man. Beside having a
strong physical resemblance with him, he must also be an absolutely
reliable person. So we decided to start to look for people more or less
of Amin's age and build, with a similar face and voice. Initially it
seemed to be a desperate enterprise. But as time passed, and we explored
the territory, we began to find candidates. But none was perfect.
Once again Selim came to our rescue. He had returned to Istanbul with a
promise to come back to visit us the following year. When he returned,
he had in his retinue a certain slave. When the three of us were alone,
Selim called him in and showed him to us:
"This is Harkat. I made him grow a beard and shave his hair to make him
look different, but if we shave his face and let his hair grow, he looks
incredibly like you, Amin. And in his build. When I first saw him at the
slave market, I really thought for a moment I was seeing you and
wondered what you had done this time! The resemblance is uncanny. Harkat
seems an excellent person, and above all is trustworthy. I bought with
him his two sons, and they are now my slaves in Istanbul. As long as you
have no complaints about him, his sons will be well treated. I promised
to give them a good position, but if he does not do well, they will be
killed. Even sexually he is strong and enduring. What do you think, my
friends? If you too think he is the right person, Harkat will be my gift
to you."
Harkat was extraordinarily like Amin. We had his face shaved, and
dressed him in Amin's clothes: even in the full light of day he could be
mistaken for Amin. Of course he did not have the black clover. But even
his voice was really close to that of my Lord. Just his accent and his
bearing were different, but that could be remedied easily.
When finally the Palace was built, completely decorated and furnished,
the gardens filled with plants and scented flowers, fountains and small
waterfalls, a great celebration was held. Amin chose the three wives and
the concubines, choosing the daughters of the local shaikhs and
prominent people. Little by little, the harem came to life and Harkat
started his duties. At the beginning we often spied him from the
concealed spy-holes that looked into the alcove where he united with
Amin's women. He carried out his duties with skill and a very refined
manner, but also with a remarkable enthusiasm so that soon Amin had the
reputation of a passionate lover! Amin, after having him unite with all
three wives and the four concubines, told him that he had full freedom
to choose the woman he wanted for the night, but asked him not to
neglect the wives, especially the first wife. Harkat was particularly
fond of one of the concubines, so every night he made love with one of
the other six women, and afterwards made love again with his preferred
concubine. Soon some of the women were pregnant and when the news
spread, all the people rejoiced.
Of course we had organized everything so that nobody knew our stratagem.
Harkat, during the day, lived in a small house downtown, together with
one of our most loyal men as his slave, and our man controlled him. The
neighbors knew them as two weavers. At night, they closed the house from
the inside and Harkat travelled the secret underground passage that
connected the small house with the Palace. Only we could open it from
inside. We received him, made him change his clothes, and introduced him
into the alcove where he carried out his nightly duties. Then he went
back to his little house. In the Palace nobody knew of the substitution.
Some people, downtown, had remarked upon a certain resemblance between
the slave and Amin, but nobody could connect the two, partly because
Harkat was a man of few words, and when he was in the house as a weaver,
he acted and talked as a slave. If anyone told him that he resembled the
Shaikh, he laughed and answered with a joke. During the few hours Harkat
spent at the Palace, Amin did not show himself to anyone but me, and
rested in the room near the alcove where the secret passage ended. If by
chance something happened, any emergency, Harkat had to go to a nearby
room and Amin would substitute for him, taking his place.
Years passed and Harkat fathered for Amin five children, two males and
three females. As was to be expected, the children resembled Amin,
especially the second born, Malik, who seemed also to have the same
nature as Amin. Amin was really growing fond of his children and clearly
had a preference for Malik, but he never neglected his first born, whose
name was Selim as we had promised our friend and protector. When they
were grown up, Amin decided that the succession had to pass on Malik.
There would be no difficulty, as Selim was the son of a concubine, while
Malik was the son of the second wife. All the councillors therefore
agreed with Amin's choice. But for safety, we decided to send Selim away
from the court, so we sent him to his namesake in Istanbul, praying to
the Prince to take care of him.
For five years Amin had ruled his people and he was loved and respected
by everyone and all proceeded in the best of ways. I was happy for his
happiness. I administered justice and the territory according to Amin's
will, trying to be always fair and unbiased with everyone, rich or poor,
powerful or feeble.
Years elapsed, the kingdom flourished, most people became more and more
rich and happy. Our love continued and strengthened and it seemed that
nothing could give us problems. Harkat, year after year continued to
carry out his duty with unchanged diligence without ever trying to
profit from his position, and the secret continued to be carefully kept.
Harkat was an exceptional man and often we gave him gifts to reward his
devotion. Other children were sired. Amin, as they grew older, sent the
sons to other rulers courts as page boys. We were taking away from Malik
any possible competitor to the throne, as there had been with Amin and
his step brother Hassem. The daughters, as soon as they were old enough
to be married, were sent as wives to rich or influential men, sometimes
other shaikhs or their sons, so weaving over all the land a net of
precious alliances.
In Istanbul things were not going so well for the Turkish Empire, which
had lost some important wars against Russians and Europeans. As a
result, the control of the empire on the provincial territories became
more and more mild. We always remained loyal to the Sultanate, never
forgetting how much we owed to it: true friends are seen in difficult
times. But soon the little kingdoms of our part of Arabia began to have
mutual friction and often boundary skirmishes placed them in opposition.
None of our neighbors had ever caused us problems, but to be safe we
decided to reinforce the boundary garrisons and to arm them better,
doing so that this was noticed by the other courts, hoping to discourage
any attack plans by our neighbors.
In 1139 Harkat fell ill. All the treatments they tried were useless and
he died in a few days. Amin was really sad, and not only because now he
would have to entertain the harem women, but also because, after all
these years, he had grown affectionate towards his night-double. With
his women, initially, he pretended to have some kind of illness to keep
them far from the alcove. But we needed to find a solution. Amin
absolutely did not want to unite with his women.
"I have enough children now. I will simply say that, because of the
illness, doctors have said to me that I can not have sexual
intercourse..."
"But so the rumor you have become impotent will spread and this will be
a loss of prestige in front of your people. You know how much much
importance they place on a man's virility, especially an important
person as you are..."
"You really want to share me with others, Nadim?" he asked amused.
"No, it is not that. But I will accept it, because it is a necessity."
"But I would not accept it. I would prefer to be thought impotent, I can
bear it! I do not think it will be possible now to find another Harkat.
And if by a miracle we found one, the women will certainly notice the
difference. On the other hand, they will notice it even if it was me who
unites with them!"
So Amin went to the harem, and spoke to his women. He told them that the
illness had made him impotent and hence he could no more unite with
them. So, he said to them, if they wished to go back to their families,
he would let them go with all the honours. He was astounded when all of
them declared they wanted to remain in the harem, so Amin did not
insist.
When Malik was ten years old, Amin decided to start to recruit the
bodyguards for his son. They had to be all ten- to twelve-year-old boys,
chosen from all the villages of our kingdom among the more intelligent
and fine boys desiring to become the Select Guard of the prince, and
Amin wanted us two personally to make the choice between the candidates.
So we started to do a tour of the territories until we gathered about
three hundred boys that we put in training. Amin wanted the selected
ones to live with his son, play with him, join with him in the training
with the masters of arms, and those who wished to do so were allowed to
study with him. He did not want his heir to grow up in the solitude he
himslef had endured in his adolescence. We two also spent part of our
time with Malik, playing and conversing with him. He was growing well,
healthy, cheerful, beautiful and he was also an intelligent boy and good
hearted. We were very proud of him.
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