11- LEGEND OF NEVETSECNUAC - EVIL PERSONIFIED - SECTION 24

Qarzten Caimund, had unceasingly for several minutes in an even tone, related the succinct, pertinent details (relevant to their assignment) to Lenny Sukzor.

 

01-QARZTEN CAMUND (10)

He paused for a spell to have some tea, and to marshal his subsequent thoughts; what Qarzten Caimund in a serious tone thence informed Lenny Sukzor of, were the latest findings coming out of the Subain Province:  

A supposed erroneous budget formula of the PM’s offices had indefinitely postponed the last shipment of allocated funds that were required for the increased policing effort, yet the authorities in Subain were still expected to resolve the situation regardless of difficulties, within the set deadlines. Already losing one-third of salt production to smugglers, the Provincial officials were constrained therefore, to report lower production figures and instead, diverted the money to the maintenance of the Coastal Patrol.

Making matters worse, about this time the Subain Province had suffered another serious setback; the endless torrential rains had broken the already neglected dikes, causing millions in damages to both life and property.

 

02-SURVIVING FLOODS  (7)JP

 The weary, disheartened officials, however, by then were reluctant to file reports and request the additional funds that were essential for the recovery; and so, instead of using salt funds to prop up the Coastal Policing effort, the money for the maintenance of the forts had to be utilized instead, to renew the dikes and repair the damage.    

The pirates with no curbs on their activities meanwhile, and searching for income to replace lost salt smuggling, had started a wholesale war against all merchant shipping along the coast, spilling over into the neighboring provinces and virtually taking over the coastal towns as bases of operation. The chief culprits here unfortunately, (other than PM’s greed or incompetence), had been the severe central government policies and the archaic system of provincial government that Zakhertan Yozdek had not seen fit to alter/change.    

The officials  had another good reason for suppressing the reports since the presence of Central Government bureaucrats (administrators) would have then revealed the true extent of the salt production destroyed ; moreover, it might uncover a far grievous breach that they had  hoped to suppress indefinitely, that of which the government’s  appropriation (commandeering)  of funds designated to building and maintaining warships and smaller patrolling vessels, had been instead,  directed to be utilized in the biggest cover-up scheme.

 

03- ILLIGAL ACTIVITY- BIG COVERUP

As it were, the responsibility and the blame for the increased criminal activity first and foremost fell on the Brigade Generals of the forts who were responsible for policing the high seas, then on the Provincial Commander, meanwhile, the inland waterways being the domain of the Prefects who had long ago succumbed to the pirates either through intimidation from above or bribery by the criminals themselves, soon everyone had a stake in covering up the true state of affairs in Subain Province.

Subsequently in Subain Province the hard-pressed authorities had resorted to, false accusations, arrests, and confiscation’s, in most cases arresting and executing the victimized civilians that were lucky, or unlucky enough to have escaped the pirates or floods, perpetuating the cover-up.

 The Subain Provincial administration had in fact became rotten to the core, as in the name of proficiency principles, law and order, justice and hundreds of innocent lives were all unscrupulously/unconscionably sacrificed, to fulfill the quota set by the Central Government in Channing. What the pirates did not pillage, provincial government officials confiscated to meet the deemed levies and set measures of production. Before long, the regional government had become a more feared, more detested enemy than the pirates themselves.

All the while the Provincial officials took exceptional care that all the damaging information was suppressed concealed absolutely from the Imperial Government's spies and Censors. Their fate hanging in the balance, their heads only inches from the chopping block, every official in the Subain Province, military or civil, was gradually ensnared.

 

04- OFFICIAL'S CORRUPTION WORSE THEN PIRATES

Increasingly more funds had to be siphoned away from vital reconstruction to perpetuate the rosy picture of a growing economy safe from smugglers and pirates that was necessary to keep Channing in the dark. During this period, each new official that was transferred to this region/or posted here, regardless of their prior moral rectitude, courage or resolve, succumbing to the all-pervasive pressures of facing serious repercussions either way, was constrained nevertheless to act in accordance and go along with the coverup.

The facts had only become known because of one conscientious, stoic official, Stean Baorak; a warrior that had recently been assigned to a lowly desk job because he had offended his superior, the grandee Don Kurig, by exposing his deceit at the annual frontier tournament. This had cost luminary (bigwig) Don the coveted prize and he, being a vindictive man, wanted Stean Baorak destroyed.  Stean, however, was a warrior too well liked, and Don could not openly act against him; therefore, biding his time till he conceived an apt plan, Don had arranged for Stean to be temporarily assigned to a lowly position of accounts clerk under the bigwig overseer Terzo Yon.

Stean Baorak, instead of atrophying (withering, deteriorating) by the constrictive and humdrum office politics and sheer volume of tedious (droning, monotonous) paperwork, however, within a week his astute mind had uncovered (decoded) the carefully concealed, discrepancies in the accounting books.

Never being one to shy away from trouble, as the saying goes, “Out of frying pan then into the fire,” he had thence bravely risked his life to submit a secret report, which included the validated copies of the doctored accounts exposing the widespread corruption in that province to Qarzten Caimund, who in turn, had brought it to the attention of His Royal Highness Zakhertan Yozdek.

 

05- STEAN BAORAK

Stean Baorak’s compiled proof and analysis, furthermore, had clearly showed the fundamental fault lay within the Imperial Government's funding policies, which had failed to provide the essential support in the fight against the pirates, meanwhile, allowing no leeway (flexibility) for an alternative course. This subtle criticism could have rebounded to Stean's detriment, had it not been for Qarzten Caimund’s persuasive arguments on his behalf, which in the end had convinced Sovereign Zakhertan to not only spare Stean Baorak from his terrible wrath, but instead, reward this honest official for his bravery (daring) and moral rectitude (uprightness and integrity).

 

                                                                                        …

 

At present there was another dangerous precedence (factors), a dire situation developing in Subain Province- other than the oppressed citizens of Subain colluding with the pirates and being on the verge (brink) of plotting a major scale rebellion to overthrow the corrupt regional government - which needed to be immediately and effectively addressed. The denizen leaders of Subain had secretly sought to form a lateral alliance and subsequently enlist covert support from the neighboring state of Guangweit. 

 

06- INSURGENTS ASSISTED BY GUANGWEIT (57)2

Guangweit was one of the few remaining strong and resilient nations that had, despite the years of devastating wars, resisted being annexed by Sovereign Zakhertan Yozdek.

A near decade now, Guangweit had remained an independent sovereign state because they had allied themselves with Wenjenkun through a Royal marriage (Late Princess Shayen, who happened to be the third daughter of the   Sovereign Arvid Mazdean of Guangweit), and furthermore, willingly contributed a hefty annual tribute to Wenjenkun.

Meanwhile, as Qarzten Caimund suspected, and this bit (of info) he kept to himself, Wenjenkun’s arch nemesis Sovereign Arvid Mazdean, aside from closely monitoring the promising yet volatile developments in both Korion and Kontu, resolutely had bid his time to revamp their once indomitable force, for that inevitable future confrontation with Wenjenkun.

 

07-ARVID MAZDEAN OF GUANGWEIT

“And now, recent intel has revealed that, Guangweit’s Sovereign Arvid Mazdean, for well over a year, had covertly fostered the advancement of Pirates and the seditious (subversive) activities of the denizens, to seriously undermine Subain Province.”   

Qarzten Caimund at this point thoughtfully nodded, and enigmatically smiled, seeing Lenny’s not too well concealed amazement.

Qarzten, leaned back and called for a fresh pot of tea; when it arrived, he then dismissing the aid, unceremoniously reached out to fill two cups with fragrant hot infusion and offered one to Lenny.

 

 

(END OF SECTION 24)