Ziddisbar

After passing the always turbulent waters of Marduk's Run, we approached Soblak. However, the harbour pilot came out and told us that we could not land here, as savage battles raged all around. I expressed my surprise as my research has led me to believe that Palamux is a peaceful and stable island, although lacking Saphyna's gaiety. The pilot just huffed at my beliefs and told me that the barbosks always rebel after harvest.

Thus, we turned south, towards Ziddisbar. This penisnula is populated by the very barbosks rebelling at Soblak. They are impossible to rule, to the extent that they can never can accept lords even amongst themselves. Their way of appointing a leader, it is said, used to be three days of intense hammering on shields, foul language and gnashing of teeth without being able to reach agreement. Then they tried through duels, but the most popular candidate was always challenged by a long line of opponents, and no matter how good a warrior always ended up defeated due to sheer fatigue by the end of the day.

Thus, the Trakorians can rule simply because the barbosks keep fighting amongst themselves. While they do rebel even against the Empire, only few warriors actually perish, and the condottiers hired to fight them are told to use blunt and leatherclad weapons to minimize casualties. Thus, the barbosks can get a fitting bruise and returns home to show it off, drink mead and boast to their children.

At the tip of the peninsula, our caravel passed by the glass cliff that the Shamashi followers consider holy. It is a pillar jutting out of the sea just off the vertical coastal cliffs. Pilgrims are lowered by ropes to small alcoves excavated into the cliff face. There, they sit for weeks to watch the light play through the glass pillar. Every once in a while, someone disappears without a trace, which makes the other pilgrims sing in praise, as they hold it a sign that Shamash has taken up the seeker to the enlightened ones. For the less enlightened, it seems more probable that the meditating pilgrim fell into the sea at night. The faithful call the glass pillar 'Shamashi finger', but the heretics calls it something else entirely.

We did not stay in Ziddisbar, but continued towards Bhannavil...