~~~~Point of View: Caspian Darkwood~~~~
~~~~Date: 57 AC~~~~
Waking up from my long sleep, I was greeted by the sight of the oak floor of my cabin, and looking up slightly, I could see the sunlight streaming through the window; it seemed to be morning already.
Once fully awake, I got up from the floor and stretched my bones, hearing the familiar crunching sound. When I felt ready, I took off the armor I was still wearing from the day before and headed to the small kitchen in the living room.
Something I had forgotten was how I looked in this new body, so I pressed the button that activated the water dispenser and filled a container. Afterward, I washed my face, and once the water calmed, I could see my new appearance.
I shouldn't be much older than thirty; I looked to be about twenty-five or twenty-eight years old at least. My eye color had changed; where there was once blue, it was now occupied by an almost orange amber tone that seemed to glow, and my hair, previously black, was now long and light copper-colored. It was strange, but considering the things that had happened before, the change in appearance didn't seem like a big deal.
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Feeling my stomach rumble, I took out a rabbit stew and prepared to eat breakfast. After a few minutes of eating breakfast in silence and drinking cold watermelon juice, I headed to the shower in my room, where I prepared to take a cold bath.
Half an hour later, I saw that the clock read seven in the morning. It was still early, although I could already hear the hustle and bustle of the Khalasar outside the hut.
Determined to face the consequences of my actions, I put my Netherite armor back on over my military uniform, strapped the sword to my hip, opened the door, and left the cabin.
Outside, I saw that most of the Dothraki were already awake, tending to their horses or sharpening their arakh, while looking at me with a different expression.
Many showed looks of fear, others caution, and even some curiosity. The truth was I didn't know what to do. I never imagined leading a Khalasar, much less one of this magnitude, but it had already happened. Although I had experience leading men, this was different; those men were trained, there was a fixed and organized power structure, and above all, it was managed under the conventions established by the UN.
Now, I could sneak away to any free city to live without worries, but I wouldn't lie by saying that my situation didn't excite me.
Aware that I needed to find out my situation in this world as soon as possible, I set out to look for someone who would be useful, and among them, the woman who was at the front of the main group when I killed the Khal came to mind.
The woman must have been important; otherwise, she would be at the back with the group of slaves and the other women.
But it seemed the woman had anticipated me; she was walking towards me with evident fear, followed by a small group of eight Dothraki. I immediately put my hand on my sword; I was still uneasy among so many men who, just the day before, had been ready to kill me.
But the group didn't seem to have bad intentions. Observing them closely, I noticed they were muscular, with scars on their arms and chest and their characteristic long braids, with bells hanging from their heads. And in their eyes, I noted they had done things only seen in war. They were dangerous, without a doubt.
"My Khal... This is Amanda, and these men wish to be your new Bloodriders," the woman told me, never lifting her gaze, and although she spoke with confidence, I could notice the tremor in her words.
A slave. Although it was clear to me that the Dothraki were the pillar of slavery in Essos, seeing it up close was quite stark, especially coming from someone who had lived in a civilized world, or at least a large part of it. But I knew it wasn't something I could change for the moment.
As for the men claiming they wanted to be my Bloodriders, I observed that almost all seemed to be around twenty or thirty years old, with strong and determined demeanors, and knowing that I lacked weapon training and that my victories the day before were due to the potions I had taken, I decided to accept them. It was better to have bodyguards who could at least serve as cannon fodder.
When in Rome, do as the Romans do.
"Alright, I accept you as my Bloodriders," I told the eight, who smiled.
Once I ensured everything was clear, I focused on the essential: as someone who came from a world where hygiene was paramount, I was not willing to be surrounded by a group of smelly men who could certainly compete with the filthiest people of the Victorian era.
So I told them they would have to bathe, and I had to stop them from bathing in the pond that had been created. Instead, I set out to create a line of bathrooms like the ones I was accustomed to using in the navy.
But this was where I thought about the Dothraki's rejection of anything magical, but knowing that I couldn't hide this, I decided to face it head-on, and without further ado, I proceeded to build the bathrooms. I started with a large pit that would serve as a septic tank, which I connected to the drainage areas on the floor of each shower.
As I did this, I saw how astonished they were, since, in their eyes, the sand and dirt simply disappeared. But seeing that they didn't make a fuss, I could relax a bit. Either they trusted me or they still feared the strength I demonstrated yesterday. Whatever the case, it worked in my favor, because I could build normally.
The idea was to build a public bath, with capacity for at least fifty people simultaneously. To solve the lack of water, I copied the mechanism of my bathroom, using dispensers that filled with water and released it by moving a lever. With a marble floor and illuminated by lanterns, the bathroom would be ready in about ten minutes.
Upon finishing, I saw that a large crowd was already contemplating the new structure, which allowed me to clarify a few things: "What you see behind me are baths! Every member of my Khalasar will use them twice a day, once in the morning and once at night. Anyone who does not comply with this will have to deal with me." This would not only keep them from smelling like I imagined King's Landing would smell, but also prevent some diseases.
I observed everyone's expressions. Some accepted my words, either because they came from me, as their Khal, or because it was their Khal they feared; however, in the end, they had to start obeying me, as many things were going to change, starting with the baths.
After those words, I focused on my Bloodriders, whom I ordered to be the first to try the baths. Although they did so reluctantly, in the end, their "loyalty" to me made them obedient, each entering after shedding their clothes. With the help of female slaves, they were the first to bathe with the new waters and use the soaps created with the compound creator.
After a short time, they emerged from the baths, now clean and with a fresh scent. Their coarse clothes caught my attention, so I took out some garments. They were leather armor. I had thought of giving them iron or even diamond armor, but I knew they were men unaccustomed to wearing such things, however useful they were, so I opted for leather, a material they knew and were used to wearing.
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After that, the definitive moment arrived, and that was giving each of them a Regeneration Potion. The potions would make their ugly scars fade and, at the same time, heal poorly scarred wounds or hidden internal injuries. This would put their bodies in the best possible condition, and even make them more terrible in combat.
It took several attempts to get them to ingest them, but once they noticed their effects, they were more fascinated than with my "magic." I knew that their development as a society worthy of remembrance would take several years, even decades; changing the culture of a society so deeply rooted in its customs would be difficult, but once my Khalasar managed to overcome its indecent and stupid bursts of savagery, and its thirst for death and destruction, they would become one of the most powerful civilizations ever seen.
Seeing that the atmosphere had improved and that I was no longer perceived as a stranger, I decided to use the only available method to integrate: a party, obviously. I told Amanda to make it clear that there would be a party that night, and the only thing I received in return was a cheer when everyone found out.
Yes, apparently alcohol, parties, and women filled the soul. Knowing that there would be plenty of food and drink, I met with Amanda and the cooks, and leaving them a total of twenty cows to slaughter and prepare, I also left them fruits, chickens, fish, pigs, and rabbits, as long as there was no shortage of food.
At this point, although they were surprised every time they saw things appear out of nowhere, they no longer snorted and shouted like frightened animals, which meant they were increasingly getting used to what I possessed, which was good news.
Leaving all that prepared, at the same time I left them several ovens with enough coal and several bonfires to cook the meats, I set off to a place near where I had left the utensils for the cooks, to start building tables, chairs, lanterns, and I even left a turntable to play music, all in anticipation of today.
So far, everything was going well; the cooks had already started sacrificing the animals and preparing the necessary food for the celebration. As for me, I hadn't been idle, since, in addition to organizing the celebration venue well, I was also busy preparing health and regeneration potions in case the Dothraki got so bored that they started killing each other.
Until now, I had only taken out construction materials and some useful utensils, such as ovens, lanterns, or turntables; however, something I hadn't tested was whether I could generate villagers. While it could be easily done in the game, my doubts lay in whether they would have the appearance of the game or would adapt to the real world, as happened with the animals I took from the menu, since they appeared normally. Not as if they were made up of blocks joined one to another.
That's why, once I thought I had everything ready, I decided to head to my cabin, where I knew I would have some privacy and would be a little safer if the Dothraki didn't approve of me summoning people out of thin air.
On the way to the cabin, I was followed by my eight Bloodriders, with whom I had started talking and getting to know. Thanks to those conversations, I knew their names: Essino, Zirqo, Gezro, Kakho, Qrano, Cakoqqo, Mottaekho, and Onno.
According to themselves, I knew they were the best warriors of the Khalasar, besides being Ko of the Khalasar, so at least I felt a little safer walking among the Dothraki knowing I had my guard.
Of course, having a guard with me didn't mean they would fight for me, since I wasn't in Westeros, where the Kingsguard had precisely that function. Here in Essos, something similar was also seen, although in my unfortunate case, if I showed weakness or allowed others to fight for me, I ran the risk of being challenged for the position of Khal and not having the same luck as the previous Khal.
That's why I thought of another solution: wolves. Of course, in the game, it was shown that if you tamed them, they would behave like dogs with their master, not resting until they killed whoever had hurt them; even if their master killed them, they would not defend themselves.
Now, I didn't know how wolves would behave in this world: whether they would have the normal size of Siberian wolves or be larger and fiercer. That's why I hadn't tried summoning any of them yet, as I first needed to build sturdy cages to contain them when I summoned them, in case they were savage.
Another idea that occurred to me was the Golems, which in the game showed overwhelming resistance and power, although I didn't know if they would serve me or act as normal Golems that only protected villages and their villagers from zombies, spiders, and the like.
Thinking about zombies made me smile, and how could it not? If zombies offered infinite opportunities, I could simply release five hundred at night in a city, and they would take care of finishing everyone off. My job would be to make sure none left the city, and the next day, with the sun finishing off the zombies for me, I would only have to collect the rewards.
Of course, that path was very dangerous, since while normal zombies were easy to kill, skeletons and zombies with armor and weapons were not. So, to be able to do it, I would have to practice a lot and thoroughly understand the implications that zombies could have for me. I didn't want to be the creator of a long night that ended up killing me.
Another point to consider was the urgent need to hire someone to teach me how to fight with swords or with the conventional weapons of this world. While I could keep taking potions every time I had to fight, I feared that my secret would be discovered or that their constant use would affect my body.
But all that would have to wait, because I had just arrived at my cabin, but at the same time, an uproar caught my attention. Seeing what it was about, I saw a woman running and crying, with her belly stained with blood and pale, behind a Dothraki who was carrying a baby in his arms.
Not understanding what was happening, I asked Cakoqqo, who had explained everything I didn't understand or ignored: "What is happening?"
"Blood of my Blood, that woman gave birth to a sick and deformed child; her man is going to abandon him to the dogs to be eaten," the man replied without showing grief or any feeling for what happened. It was something they were accustomed to, something that had to start changing right now.
The practice reminded me of how the Spartans treated children who were not born fit to wield a sword. But having the tools to change that, I decided to intervene. I approached the Dothraki carrying the child and demanded he hand him over to me; the man did not hesitate, as if getting rid of a burden instead of his own son.
Once in my arms, I saw that the child had been born with atrophied and black feet, apparently due to poor oxygenation in the uterus, which prevented him from receiving oxygen throughout his body. Without wasting time, I grabbed a splash potion of regeneration and applied it to the baby's chest.
Under the severe gaze of his father and the expression of despair of his mother, I watched as the color of his legs turned healthy and bright, while his legs straightened.
When the baby was as good as new, not even two minutes had passed, during which many people came closer to see his condition.
"You have witnessed a miracle! I have been blessed by the moon and the sun with powers beyond your comprehension, transported by the Horse God to these plains, all to bring an era of life, wealth, and prosperity to my people; have you seen it before?" I began. One of the most powerful weapons was the faith of humanity; because of it, and because of their religions, they were capable of accepting and doing anything; the Crusades were proof of that.
And although I wasn't very fond of religious things, especially in a world like A Song of Ice and Fire, where religion could turn against you, I understood that one of the easiest and simplest ways to integrate with people, to befriend them and even share a meal was through religion, of any kind.
It was a world of "societies" completely alien to mine, where if you belonged to the gods that said society revered or were favored by them, you became a god on earth; although, of course, you could also be a sword without a hilt, as happened to Cersei in the series.
However, I was willing to take the risk, in exchange for having more chances of surviving in this cruel world. "Before you, you have the proof! The Horse God will not allow any Dothraki under my command to die of hunger, starvation, or suffering; no child will die before knowing the glory of blood and victory, and I, as your Khal, am willing to grant it to you."
"Stallion Who Mounts the World!"
"Stallion Who Mounts the World!"
One by one, more and more Dothraki from my Khalasar joined the chanting, to the point where my ears hurt from the shouts and noise, but I knew I had taken another step towards something bigger, something never before seen.