The New Tumakveh King

(TA 1599-1610)
Copyright Eric Dubourg 2001
Edited by Joe Mandala and Cory Rushton for The Guild Companion
The nomination of Khruzr as king of southern Bellakar was a great shock in Southern Middle
Earth. If the Gondorians reacted well, Anbalukkhr and Umbar did not share the feeling.
Narakhn, the Northern King, reacted first by strengthening his links with Umbar. Paradoxically,
the shifting political scene strengthened both Bellakaran thrones. For three years the two enemy
realms tried to destabilize the each other, and build powerful alliances. Umbar decided to
intervene in the conflict, blocking ships coming from the north that might offer military help to the
Southern kingdom. This blockade proved largely effective, but some ships managed to pass
through (mainly those of a Bellakarni company, the Narkuzri, established in Pelargir) with arms
and warriors from Gondor in support of Southern Bellakar.
Khruzr had many difficulties governing his adopted realm, even with the forced but effective
support of the Regent, as many of his subjects were reluctant to obey a "Stranger King". The agents
of Narakhn in the South exploited this situation, where they incited the people to defiance and
rebellion against a King with no real Tumakveh ancestry. "How could you support a Queen who
deserted her own land, and a King who has no link with the Great Tumakveh dynasty, and who
is from the line of Elendil? Narakhn is the only choice we have for our great realm. Narakhn
will be able to give you great rewards, and is ready to incorporate you in his army at the highest
ranks." The refrain was echoed at every level. The only hope for Khruzr was to convene the
Invocate Assembly in Nllond. All the important families of the Assembly were ordered to attend
on 22 Mizir 1603. This was the last hope for unity in the southern kingdom, which would
otherwise face certain defeat by the North.
The Northern authorities were aware of this event, and sent agents to kill Khruzr and his
"treasonous" wife. This assassination attempt was avoided at the last minute, through the acts of
some courageous members of the Narkuzri Company. The actual assassin, arrested before he
could kill the king, was also part of this company, clearly establishing that even in the South many
preferred the rule of Narakhn. Despite this, the Stranger King attempted to mobilize his realm
against the Northern menace. He further made a surprising announcement declaring that he was a
true descendent of Belphazan II of Bellakar on his mother's side, several generations removed
through a daughter, Cervaban. In the 12th century she had married a Dnadan governor of
Harondor after quarreling with her father and fleeing to Near Harad. She had two sons, and the
first, in turn, had fled from his father as a child and returned, after many adventures, to become
his grandfather's heir and reigned as King Sakalkhd. The second son was the ancestor of Prince
Anardil; only Imruzr II had known of this.
This revelation gave the King majority support in the Invocate Council, and in the following
months with the population of all Bellakar. Most of the Bitha were impressed by the strong will of
their new King, even if he was a Stranger. If he was simultaneously the true heir of Tumakveh line,
and also a link with Gondor, this was no more than most of the great kings of the past had claimed.

If they were suspicious before, for the most part they became loyal followers of the King, and they
subsequently acted many times to save their King's life against assassins.
The South with no real difficulties gradually reconquered the Northern Kingdom. In 1603, the
asapthubth of Korlea, Sakalthr, came to pay homage to King Khruzr. Nllond was again the
new capital of the kingdom. The alliance with Gondor was fully affirmed, and the peaceful
Northern relationship with Umbar ended. Narakhn was allowed to live but was exiled to the True
Faith Monastery, where he died thirty-three years later. Khruzr became the sovereign of all
Bellakar in Kuralid 1603, after having escaping ten attempts of murder and presiding over a
destabilized realm for five years.
In the meantime, the Corsair captains of Umbar learned of the new alliance between Gondor and
Bellakar, and decided "as a sanction" to land attacks against Mardruak and Felayja lands. These
attacks were unsuccessful as Khruzr, a true descendant of the Ship Kings, was fully aware of the
naval tactics of Corsairs. Commanded by clever captains, the navy of Bellakar won several victories
at sea against Corsair squadrons. These victories were, for the Bellakaran, "a justification" that
their new King was their rightful King, even if weather and enemy blunders had played a large part
in them.
The Corsair's encroachments continued until early 1610, when a series of victories at sea against
Corsair squadrons allowed Bellakar to negotiate an "Understanding" with Umbar. With strong
Gondorian support, Khruzr also negotiated diplomatic and mercantile ties with a dozen realms
from the lands south of Harad, including Khradn and Zimrathni. Full-scale trade was
established within southern Endor.
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