Mondru IV and Alhurmus
by Brother Belturak

There was many years ago a great chieftain who was the son of a godling. His story is great. It is a story of honor and victory that was right. It reminds us that we are the orcs and we can and are destined to rule all.

Mondru III was Mondru IV's earthly father, but he was not the true father and Mondru IV never met him. Mondru III was a petty, small-minded chieftain of a single tribe within the marshes. He plotted and struggled against the other orcish tribes and chieftains, but all of his work was spent trying to stay in power over a weak little piece of orcdom. When he was young he had honor, but with age came compromise and retreat. His tribe would have died in twenty years.

On the wedding night to his ninth wife he was slain. In his marriage bed the woman strangled him with his belt. He was slain before he had the sex. One of Mondru III's sons rose to power and continued the lack of respect for honor. The tribe was shamed in the Eye of He-Who-Watches.

Eight months later a child was born to the woman who killed Mondru III. Since her marriage night she was shunned by the men of the tribe. She was only a widow, not a wife. No man would let that woman in his house. So the baby had been born of the union of the woman and a god. The shaman cast his bones and saw that the baby's father was a god.

She named the baby Mondru IV and all could see that he would be a great warrior of the tribe. He was a year old when the shamans of the orcish tribes in the marshes came together to discuss the boy. When they knew what had to be done, they went and killed the woman and took the boy. They took him to the coven of Luthic where he was raised rightly and with honor and respect for his heritage and people. When he was old enough, the priests of Ilneval took him and trained his body to fight with all manner of weapons. He became a great warrior and he met many foes on the field of battle. Victory was always his. His faith and belief in his gods and his people coursed through him like an unstoppable power that minute by minute brought him closer to his destiny.

Then the priests of He-Who-Watches took him and showed him the mysteries of their greatest deity and benefactor. He studied the stories and read the Scrolls of Honor and he began to understand all of the lessons he had been taught since a child with the priestesses of Luthic and the war-priests of Ilneval. It all struck him at once and Mondru IV could see that all of these lessons and ways of life were connected by founding principles of honor set down before time by He-Who-Watches. This understanding was the first gift of He-Who-Watches and he gave thanks through prayer and offerings. He was a great listener and he could recite stories and prayers easily after he heard them. Pride for orcish wisdom and heritage grew in him. He learned of the First Insult and why orcs were at war with all other peoples of the world and he accepted that animosity in his heart, especially for the elves. Like every young orc who knows his history, he wanted to be the one who led the orcs to revenge that First Insult. He was confident he would.

The council of shamans gathered together to read the Ancient Bones of Hurtiss in the fall. The reading indicated there was one in the lands who was truly in the sight of He-Who-Watches. Further readings said this one would lead the orcish people in victorious battle against their foes.

Wisdom teaches that earthly sight is false. Only He-Who-Watches sees deeply and truly. To speak what one sees is pure foolishness. It is vain and dishonorable. It is best to let the world come as it does and act upon it. Discussion is all wasted time. Or ask He-Who-Watches and he will speak the truth. So, many of the shamans had their thoughts of who this one was, but they kept these observations inside. Instead, they prayed for the revelation of this new great leader.

They prayed for three days waiting for a sign or a vision. On the third evening a great fire streaked across the heavens and fell earthward in the midst of the marsh. There was no doubt. This was the sign that they prayed for. They gathered their items and headed to the place where the fire had fallen.

Mondru IV was hunting in the night when there was a flash and a roar in the sky and a fire fell from the sky near him. He decided to go see what it was and trekked off to find it. As he approached there was a hissing sound and much mist floated in the air. At the heart of the misty marsh was a great iron spear, glowing red as coals, planted in the mud. He could feel the power of it calling to him. He took the spear and held it aloft feeling its power surge through him. He heard the voice of He-Who-Watches tell him this gift was Alkarg (Elf-Destroyer). He must take the spear and kill all elves with it and then conquer the world. Mondru IV noticed that despite the red-hot nature of the spear, it did not burn him. He went back to the temple, spear in hand. This was the second gift of He-Who-Watches and Mondru IV gave thanks through prayer and offerings.

The priests at the temple were mightily impressed with his find and they knew it was a favor from He-Who-Watches. They bathed him and said prayers over him. They gave him charms and protections, but it was all worthless for when Mondru IV held the great spear, Alkarg, he was invulnerable to all earthly forces. The priests of the temple did not know what to do with this god-chosen one. They figured their prayers and questions would be answered in time, so they just kept this student safe.

Two days later the tribal shamans came to the temple and told the priests they had been summoned to the area. The high priest immediately ushered the council of shamans to meet Mondru IV. They entered the room containing the young warrior holding his great spear. One shaman stopped and sneered at him and said loudly, "Is this a joke?" Mondru IV immediately, before thought, hurled the great Alkarg and struck the man through the chest, killing him. He stopped, checked his anger, and waited.

Another shaman came forward and said, "Good. You are the one who is in His sight. Are you the boy who was taken by us so many years ago from your tribe? Are you the one whose father was not born upon this world?"

Mondru IV looked puzzled and so the high priest spoke, "Yes, Honorable Brother, this is the one."

"You have not been told of your past, have you? You have been raised without family or tribe, you have never bowed to a chief; from whence do you get the pride I see in those young eyes? How did you know how to pass that first test so perfectly when you killed our disrespectful Brother here?"

"I have no family, but I see that those I call family are all around. I have no single tribe for I feel I am a member of the great tribe of all orcish people. I see no reason to divide our people by family or standard for I have learned that all things orcish are great."

"Ah, I see now. You have heard all the stories and recitations of our glorious past, our great leaders and gods, the tales of our victories and losses and you know the importance of honor and respect for heritage. These you have memorized from the Prayer of the Single Eye, correct? But your actions are made because you know you should, not because you feel you must. Your orcishness is in your face and your words; it is not in your blood. It is not in your heart. How can you feel the power of family if you have none? When you speak of orcish honor, of what do you speak? I am afraid our decision, Brothers, after his birth was a mistake. We have made a god's son into a scholar, not a warrior."

The shaman turned his back to Mondru IV and said to the other shamans, "This one is like a spring flower, it tries to show that it doesn't really belong in the swamp from which it grew, but it still needs the swamp to live. His honor is confused. Brothers, cast your bones at this one. We must know more."

The bones told them of Alkarg and of its link to Mondru IV. The spear was a powerful gift, but it needed to be wielded by a warrior who would be able to rouse its greatest power. The spear and the man needed each other to become great. The shamans spoke long. The bones' Truth was clear. Mondru IV would not continue his education with the priests. He was to go back to his tribe and take the chieftain role.

Mondru IV marched confidently into the small group of reed huts and demanded to see the chief. The chief was fat, slovenly, and careless. A challenge had never been made to him. His tribe was small and weak and his land was a shithole. He was chief because it was easy. Mondru IV looked around him at all the orcish "glory" and was disturbed by his inheritance. The two shamans who followed him to the village saw the contempt in his face at this place and its association with orcs. Mondru IV looked back at them with a sneer. One said privately to him, "Remember. All things orcish are great." and raised a clenched fist in a mocking salute. Mondru IV lost all expression from him face and with new resolve turned, raised Alkarg, and shouted, "Where is your chieftain?" He had been brought here to test his faith. He would not be made a fool.

The chief did not reveal himself. The people revealed him to Mondru IV. Alkarg exploded into flames and Mondru IV let out a cry and drove the spear into the fat one's throat. Drawing his ancient scimitar he began to kill everyone who was within five feet of the chief. He whirled and slashed and orcish men and women fell to the ground feeding the marsh their blood. The priests of Ilneval taught him well. When he was done he had slain all of the personal guards and wives of the former chief.

He retrieved Alkarg and wiped a smear of blood from its tip upon his palm. "Who amongst you has this blood in their body?" Quickly several small children were slain and their little bodies thrown at his feet.

Satisfied Mondru IV looked at the remainder of the weak little tribe. He looked in their eyes and raised his spear. He shouted, "Know you all this. I am now chief of the mightiest tribe in the marshes!" Then he turned and went into his new home.

The next day he ordered all of the little huts torn down and had a great hall built in their stead. It was completed that day. All of the orcs now ate their meals together and slept side by side. Mondru IV told them this was an honorable way to live, that to honor family is to share meals with and sleep beside in life and death.

The next day a palisade was built around the hall. Several of the men fussed and complained about the work and by mid-day they had gone off to take a nap away from the noisy work. Mondru IV stood upon the mound raised his hand and voice saying, "Listen. We build this wall for two reasons. This wall will protect our people from enemies, animal or man. This wall also shows us those amongst us who are not in His sight. He sees only those of us with honor and greatness. These men are not in His sight." And the three men who had slept were cast upon the palisade spikes.

The following days more improvements were made to the village. The people feared him and worked hard, but they began to appreciate the things they made. The people learned to love to stay busy and they wove curtains and mats and made furniture and great doors for their great hall. The pride in their works and their people was evident. They were in the sight of He-Who-Watches.

The two shamans came to Mondru IV and one said to him, "You are a bad chieftain. You have no wife. You will have no family. The people will know that you think they are His lost eye. You must take a wife."

"You must take five, if you can handle it," snickered the other.

"You make me sick," responded Mondru IV.

"Yes, but we are undeniably in His sight and you will do as we say, pup."

That night Mondru IV took all of the young women of his tribe into his room and he did not sleep. In the next day, the men of the tribe were unsettled. There were no women left to have in the night but the crones. Mondru IV suggested then that they should find more. In a week Mondru IV's people had located several squalid neighboring tribes who were weak. A week after that those tribes were gone but for the young women and children who had joined Mondru IV's people. Mondru IV's tribe grew. Other tribes attacked his people and Alkarg would seek and find the heart of many chieftains. When he held the spear, magic would not strike him and steel was turned from his flesh. Nothing could harm him. Fear was in the hearts of chieftains all through the land.

At the yearly council of chiefs, all the leaders of the land gave fealty to Mondru IV. His first act as over-chieftain was to declare the shamans enemies of the orcish people. He claimed they were liars and tricksters. They did not believe in Truth or honor. Many shamans were brutally slain immediately, many were hunted as they fled; few escaped. The priests became the true keepers of the history and mysteries of the greatest people of the world.

With this act, it is said, He-Who-Watches blinked.

The shamans of the orcish people are the holy men of the individual tribes. They are the healers, storytellers, and spiritual advisors of chieftains and tribesmen. They are the link of the people to the gods. But the priests in their secluded temples are the best diviners and most powerful of spirit. They know the secrets and honor the glory of all that is orcish. They talk to the gods, but alas they do not often speak with the people.

Mondru IV still believed in the ideal and glory of orcishness. The shamans were too sectarian for the vision of Mondru IV and not idealistic. He was determined to unite the people under one true ideal. The shamans were the only powerful threat to that vision. Mondru IV was wise to remove this threat from his growing empire. But what were the wishes of the gods? Anyway, the priests were now the great spiritual advisors of a unified people.

But this was not enough for Mondru IV. Alkarg was sent to him to fulfill a mission, a goal that lived in the heart of every warrior—to destroy the elves. Mondru IV was given this opportunity and he would not let it slip from him. He would conquer them all.

To the south the elves had grown numerous and lived without fear. Orcs and elves began to cross paths on the edge of the marshland skirmishes became frequent. But still they came and they began to build in orcish lands.

The insult was too great to bear. We, the orcs, hid in the muck and mire scratching out a life of swamp water, frogs, and marsh rushes and the elves walked upon the solid grounds. They did not hide. They did not fear or fear for their next meal. They walked in the sun like they ruled the world. They wore faces like children as they smiled and laughed and even when He-Who-Watches turned a baleful eye toward them in the night. They had no honor. They did not respect the powers around them as they walked in the sunshine on their tiny feet. When we took their wagons they begged us for mercy like dogs that ate your food as you were about to eat it. Many did not even fight to protect their children or women. And we found they had much good food and good clothing and tools. All of their armor was not rusty and their weapons flashed in the sun. And they had much treasure.

And then the orcs learned that there was a great city near the sea, a city of jewels upon the coast. Elves are small and weak, it was not right that they have such great gifts. The priests told their people that this was indeed a gift for the orcs. He-Who-Watches makes all of His people work for the gifts He grants. It was a small test to obtain this great treasure. All of the orc tribes of the marshes prepared for war.

It was Mondru IV, raising Alkarg high over his head with a shout, who assembled the orcish warriors. He told them, "You honorable orcish warriors. You are all in the sight of He-Who-Watches. You are ready to receive His glory in battle as a hero here in this world or a hero in His army in the next. But it is not just glory and treasure we seek. We also seek victory. We must come together now to achieve that great end."

"There is order that we must follow in life. There is order that we must follow in this. If we go to the elf-lands as many tribes they will chop us into many small pieces and eat us like gamjit. But if we come together as one great army we will strike them like a fist until we crush them into the sea. Look around you at our great numbers here. There are ten more warriors for each one of you here still living in smaller lesser-known tribes throughout the marshes. Bring them to me! Tell them to come under this banner, this great spear, and we will destroy all elves for one thousand days around us! They will pay for the First Insult, and they will pay for the Second and the Third! And we, we will be the next great rulers of a land and empire never before seen in all of history!"

He raised Alkarg and the tip grew red and burst into flames. A great roar exploded from the crowd and they surged forward to touch him. "Go!" he shouted and they all ran off into the dark swamp.

For the next two weeks the orcs came to Mondru IV in droves. Small orcish tribes from the far ends of the marsh came to fight under Mondru IV's banner. The best weapons and armor, relics from the ancient times when we dwelt in the hot sands of the west, were brought to show heritage and family honor and to shed elvish blood once again. They gathered into a great horde that sat in the marsh waiting and growing. The warriors were ready for battle. Old tribal conflicts and enemies began to squabble. The army was going to destroy itself.

So, Mondru IV invited twenty of the best warriors in the army to fight by his side with his great tribe. Mondru IV made a contest and invited all of the warriors to compete. The only rule was that any warrior who killed another warrior during or apart from the contest was disqualified. By the time he had chosen his twenty battle champions the army was wound tight as a bowstring. Mondru IV then released them upon the elves.

The army rolled over all opposition in the open lands south of the marsh. The orcs scattered across the fields and destroyed everything for the first three days. They came together again and shattered two elven forces that came to meet the orcs in the sun. Mondru IV brought the army together and marched to the sea burning, killing, and looting everything in the path. His goal was the city he called Elves-Blood (Alhurmus).

He arrived after several days and found the city empty except for the elven soldiers within the citadel upon the sea cliffs. The city was looted and flattened and the army surrounded the citadel walls like the closing fist of Ilneval. The warriors hurled themselves at the walls and attacked the elves on the wall with arrows and javelins. The orcs fought bravely and many died with honor by the shafts of the cowardly elves upon the walls. The walls ran with the blood of our fathers and grandfathers.

Mondru IV raised his red-hot spear and Alkarg burst into flames again. He howled a great battle cry and led another charge at the walls. The elven arrows all missed the great chieftain and the orcs fought again at the walls. They were repelled many times and Mondru IV continued the relentless attacks for three days. Eventually, Mondru IV and his warriors attained the wall and wreaked a bloody revenge upon the elves inside. Every time his spear struck out it hit and slew elves two and three at a time. Alkarg blazed with fire and ran with blood. Once inside Alhurmus fell swiftly. The last elf to die upon the tip of Alkarg, before he was struck, swore to the mighty chieftain that the power of the great orc's hatred would turn on him and slay as many of his people as elves that died in the war. Mondru IV sneered his disrespect and plunged his spear into the elf. He-Who-Watches protected his champion from the curse. This was the third gift given to Mondru IV, but he never saw it. All remaining elves were slain except for ten that Mondru IV had bound and locked away. Hurriedly, he reorganized his army swept the remainder of the peninsula to its very tip. All of the elves had been vanquished.

He returned to Alhurmus and decided that he liked the land and he liked the fortress. He would stay and claim this land for his people. He invited the priests to come and build a temple on the site of his glory. Many came to be with this great chief. Many orcish warriors stayed in the land with their warlord. Mondru IV began to build and make Alhurmus an orcish home.

More tunnels were dug in the stone beneath Alhurmus. There were great halls carved with pictures and decorated with statues of the great heroes of the war. A great temple beneath the earth was built when the priests arrived. For the ten elves that were captured, Mondru IV chained them to the walls of a room and kept them alive. His intention was to show that their long lives were really a curse. He would keep them there chained to the walls for the thousand years of their lifetimes. Now they would know a lifetime of suffering.

Mondru IV ruled his new land with absolute power. All enemies were turned back and totally destroyed. The borders of his empire grew as his armies took more and more land from the local humans. Treasure, food, and slaves were brought to him from all corners of his lands. But Mondru IV did not become lazy and fat. He was still a powerful and honorable warrior. He-Who-Watches was always watching him and His eye steadily watched. Then one day The Eye closed forever.

It was disgraceful that Mondru IV never recognized the protection He-Who-Watches granted him against the elven curse. After ten years He-Who-Watches lifted his ward from Mondru IV and the hateful curse fell upon him. Not even Alkarg could save Mondru IV from the wrath of the dead elf. He was stricken with a terrible disease that marked his skin and burned in his arms and legs. The priests were sent for and they came. They cast their divinations and learned of the powerful curse, but they were not healers and they could do nothing more. The coven of Luthic was too far from the chief's bed and all the shamans had been cast out. Mondru IV would not be cured.

In a day his whole house had become ill with plague. Then Shargass entered the temple and walked among the people of Alhurmus. He touched many and killed them all. Mondru IV was the first to die, Alkarg clutched to his chest. And then his bodyguards and family all passed on. Thousands succumbed to the power of Shargass and many fled the doomed land.

The priests hurried to make the temple a tomb for all of the great warriors who died in their filth and bile. They said prayers to the gods to spare the souls of these dishonored heroes. The bodies were set, the guardians placed, and Mondru IV was left upon his throne holding his great weapon Alkarg for eternity. Then a mysterious event occurred. The high priest as he finished preparing Mondru IV's tomb stopped in mid prayer, looked dazed, and announced, "Memnox will not rest!" and then he died suddenly. The other priests fled and sealed the tombs. Alhurmus was a nightmare. Some rooms were piled with the dead and those who placed them then went to a room or hall, sat down and died. Some priests stopped to bless the dishonored dead. Many did not finish their prayers and died where they knelt. Some priests did escape to tell the story.

Mondru IV was the greatest chief ever known. He was chosen by the gods to be the greatest in the land. He carried the mightiest foe-smiter ever known and it gave him great power. But Mondru IV did not honor and respect his greatness in the end. He forgot the source of his mighty power. And when He-Who-Watches closed his eye to him Mondru IV was soon destroyed by foes he could not battle. Alkarg grew in power with him, but Alkarg cannot die. It still has the power. It waits today for a great warrior to find it and lead the people to build another empire. Alkarg now has the power to bring greatness to he who holds it.

Chemlup of the Moldering Feet claims that his tribe waited for the priests to flee Alhurmus when they let themselves into the tombs through a secret entrance. They plundered the dead and took much treasure including the spear. The spear has been passed down in the family and is still owned by the blood of Chemlup. They do not invoke the power of the spear out of their own "respect and honor for heritage."

Some human tomb robbers took the spear from Mondru IV's blessed hand. Most of them died of the curse set upon the tomb by the high priest, but the survivors sold the spear to a magician for study. Where the spear is now is not known.

There are many stories told of Mondru IV, Alkarg, and Alhurmus. It is said two hundred elves died on the tip of Alkarg atop the walls of Alhurmus. It is said of the captured elves that for the first three days of their new life Mondru IV gave them only feces to eat which was not from elves, but of elves. Some even say that in the final days before the curse fell Mondru IV could speak to the slain of Alhurmus. Listen to the stories the elders and shamans tell you of Mondru IV and remember his greatness. He is eternally our mightiest champion.

~*~

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