The Court Martial – A Prophecy of Botis

The Tale of The Sadu

Botis stood before the village fire, his white fur a stark contrast to the dark night sky. His great Kai-outaim, his coyote companion, scanned the elders with its piercing blue eyes as Botis raised his voice to speak. The elders settled at his feet; murmurs shared as they whispered one to another.

"Hear my words," Botis called out, "for the time will come when the Rephaim will be needed by one who is not their own but whose need must be met to save their own."

"But none care for the Rephaim but the Rephaim alone," the elders claimed. "None cares for us, and we care for no one."

The great Kai-outaim bared his long teeth and shook his plumed tail pulling at the pale Rephaim to leave. "No Friend. They will listen. And when the day comes, the Rephaim will enter the desert and face the dangers as they must."

All voices around the fire grew hushed as his red eyes, sparkling in the firelight, found each and everyone. With all dark eyes upon him, Botis told the Tale of The Sadu, The Wanderer.

Into the desert comes The Sadu, The Wanderer, an Emim from lands foreign to the Rephaim. His feet have taken him across harsh lands traversing the world from one great water to another. Unable to rest, he ventures onto the waters to search the mysteries of lands beyond the reach of the Rephaim. Wonders he sees but none cause him to stop his search. With no rest from his journeys, his need takes him beyond the sky where nothingness stretches beyond his reach. The Sadu is taken from the sky and returns to the lands of his birth, no longer the familiar lands he knew. Unsettled and unfulfilled, The Sadu continues to seek what he cannot find. And so, his feet wander until he comes into the desert.

There he is beset by The Eternal Beast claiming dominion over any who wander within its reach. The Beast strikes The Sadu with a stinger black as the starless night. The stinger impales The Sadu bringing the monsters of the Beast to gnaw mercilessly in his flesh. The Beast rejoices, certain in the death of The Wanderer, although The Sadu refuses to fall and fights back as the monsters attempt to consume him.

The Rephaim hear the clash of the battle, The Sadu crying out as he struggles against The Beast and its monsters.

This The Rephaim know: Once The Eternal Beast defeats The Sadu, his eyes will seek others in the desert in his endless desire to destroy any who draw near.

This The Rephaim know: The death of The Sadu is certain unless they scour the desert to bring him the weapons that will defeat the monsters of The Beast.

This the Rephaim know: To subdue The Beast, they must not let The Sadu fall.

And this the Rephaim know: To aid The Sadu, they must travel into the desert guided by the welcoming smile of the half-moon. Hearing the cries of The Sadu, they know his need is great and his need is now, and they must act, or all will be forfeit.

And so, The Chosen of the Rephaim leave the safety of the village—The Keeper, The Hunter, The Shulmanu, The Innocent—to seek what must be found. Weary, they walk through the heated sand as the chill of night wraps them and they walk until they can walk no more and fall despondent to the hard ground without a sign of where to search for the armaments of The Sadu.

Into the day the Chosen walk, lost and unsure. The Keeper peers all around seeing the touch of the sun at every turn and beseeches the spirits to show The Chosen the way to find the armaments of The Sadu. And as he turns his eyes to the desert once more, he squints into the brightness that bursts as sparkles in the sand. The Keeper follows the trail and rejoices as he discovers the armor of The Sadu, a Shimmering Cloak to ward him, long hidden from The Eternal Beast, a gift from the ever-shining sun.

Hope renewed, they must continue on their quest. Their search has just begun. The Hunter listens to whispers of the winds and the rest follow where the wind leads. The Chosen travel unseen by all except the senses deep within the desert which protects its own. Though they tread lightly, not even the Hunter can hide their passage.

The sands erupt with a hidden attack, The Chosen surrounded, The Hunter must raise the weapons of old to challenge this ancient foe. Though the battle brings pain and woe to the Rephaim, as silence returns to the desert, The Hunter shall shout a cry of victory and raise the shield of The Sadu proclaiming the Black Guard shall protect him. For the desert knows the danger of the Eternal Beast and gladly gives its gift to The Sadu.

The Chosen travel on, though the days in the desert grow heavy around The Shulmanu for his injuries do not heal as the Rephaim heal. When The Chosen come upon a place of rest, the Rephaim shake their heads and raise their voices in grief for the path they have followed stops. They seek the way that leads to the Gathering of the Clans, and they know not where to turn. And though he is not of the desert, but is called to its lands, The Shulmanu sees beyond what the Rephaim see. The Shulmanu walks the path guiding them to the Clans knowing that they hold the sword of The Sadu. The Shulmanu stands before the Queen of the Clans receiving from her hand The Blanched Blade to arm him. The Clans bow in honor of The Sadu who must wield their gift against a great foe gaining strength as his own begins to fail.

As night falls, the Chosen seek rest, but they remain vigilant. The Rephaim despair for The Sadu knowing the monsters of the Eternal Beast grow in number and force while The Sadu falters against the expanding horde. The Innocent cries out; the spirits hear the tears and send one who shall point the way. When the sun rises again, The Chosen must travel farther into the desert, away from their home, for The Watchers call The Innocent to a place of light and dark, wet and dry, life and death, filled with pale blue feathers that do not fly, bright yellow eyes that do not see, dancing on strands of green which tempt the nostrils with sweet scents but close the throat when chewed. Into this place The Innocent must go where no other can go and shall emerge with the subsistence of The Sadu which any other will consume to their doom. The hand of The Innocent alone shall provide The Sustenance of Life to fill him. The gift from the stone that harbors life, The Watchers wait as eternal as The Beast.

The Chosen travel in haste to find the Village of The Sadu created in the sand and gather at the shelter honoring him. The Shulmanu ignites the flame to call The Rephaim who join together and give strength to The Sadu for the battle that rages against the monsters of The Eternal Beast. The Hunter lays the Black Guard in the fires christened by the blood of the stones. The Keeper presents The Shimmering Cloak, The Blanched Blade and the Sustenance of Life blessing each armament as it rests atop the Guard. The Innocent draws from the water risen above the sand that surrounds the shelter until the armaments are coated and combined. Only when The Chosen bind the many into the one will The Sadu find the strength to face the final battle.

A last perilous journey awaits. The Chosen hurry to where The Sadu faces the monsters of The Beast alone. He has grown weak in the battle and the hour of his end approaches. The Rephaim stand beside him. The Keeper wraps him in the Shimmering Cloak. The Hunter buckles the Black Guard about his arms. The Shulmanu thrusts the Blanched Blade into his grip. And The Innocent presses the Sustenance of Life to his lips. And so shall The Chosen give him strength. And with that strength, The Sadu must leave the world he has wandered. The Sadu must turn away from the fight he has fought. When The Sadu accepts the gifts, he shall be The Sadu, The Wanderer, no more. And so shall emerge The Garradu, The Warrior. And so shall The Garradu enter the battle striking against the monsters of The Eternal Beast.

The Battle between The Garradu and the Monsters of The Eternal Beast will wage. The Rephaim can do naught but wait. The Rephaim must be strong as The Garradu must be strong. The Garradu will struggle but shall emerge victorious. When the battle ends, The Sadu, The Wanderer, shall wander no more. He will Walk the Desert a Warrior for he has, at last, found what he had sought—a place of peace among the Rephaim. And so shall the Rephaim know a time of great prosperity. And though his travels have not ended as he must defend the desert lands, The Wanderer has found a home.

Botis lowered his arms and drifted back to the village fire where all eyes were upon him.

"When Botis? When will The Sadu find us?"

"The timing of the Divine is not mine to say but I have seen the Rephaim find The Halqu, He Who Was Lost, and bring him to the village of sand and water built by those who call themselves by different names but together share the prosperity of the village. When The Halqu is found, then will you know the time of peace has dawned.

"But listen, my friends and heed these words. All must continue to strive for this peace for the world is large, far larger than the desert of the Rephaim. And though The Rephaim may be at peace, the greater world may deign to disrupt that peace at any time. The Sadu must remain The Garradu. And the Garradu with the Rephaim must remain vigilant. Always."

And with that, Botis climbed upon the back of his dark-gray Kai-outaim, and they loped into the night leaving the elders with nothing but the crackling of the fire to console them.