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Gates of Greed
Gates of Greed
Gates of Greed
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Gates of Greed

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This historical graphic “R” rated novelette centers on the war in 1583 when fifty thousand Ottoman soldiers prepare to attack Persians defending the city fortress of Derbent. This lucrative citadel, located on the shores of the Caspian Sea, sits astride the Silk Routs of the Russian steppes to the north and the arid southern lands, collecting tolls from passing caravans. In a battle known afterward as the Battle of Torches, commander Azim and his battalion have the secret mission of launching a surprise attack on the western end of the massive fort during the early morning of the third day of the Ottoman assault. Their objective is to seize and open a gate that allows ten thousand of their fellow warriors to enter the fortress as a flanking maneuver. Azim, however, is distracted. Five years earlier, he led an army group to the Kupa River on the Balkan Peninsula. Celibacy was the corps rule at the time. He broke the abstention from sexual intercourse with Maria, a beautiful peasant woman, forcing her cooperation by threating to kill her young child. Now, he often dreams of her naked figure, the color of her eyes, the total command he possessed, and the fulfilling knowledge, if illogical, that they conceived a son. He dreams of returning to the Kupa River after the current battle and bringing Maria and his son to Istanbul-the boy to become a warrior like him, she to service Azim’s needs, if he survives the upcoming battle.

LanguageEnglish
Release dateFeb 3, 2018
ISBN9781370776641
Gates of Greed
Author

K. Richardus

Over thousands of years, the Balkan Penninsula has been subject to warfare and feudal control-first by the Romans, followed by the Venetians and then the conflicts between two empires, the Austro-Hungarians, and the Ottomans. Added to these were the turmoil in the Near East between Ottomans and Persians. Clashes of culture, religion, and lifestyles were endured by the people working the land. My ancestors were Italians, Croatians, and Slovenians. I enjoy researching historical events and incorporating these into my stories.

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    Book preview

    Gates of Greed - K. Richardus

    GATEs OF greed

    A novelette

    By k. rICHARDUS

    East 74th Street Press * Washington

    Copyright © 2018

    This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places, events, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. The cover image was suggested by an unknown artist from antiquity.

    All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the express written permission of the author.

    ISBN:

    This story is based on historical events.

    Table of Contents

    Chapter One

    Chapter Two

    Chapter Three

    Chapter Four

    Chapter Five

    Chapter Six

    Chapter Seven

    Chapter Eight

    Chapter Nine

    Chapter Ten

    Author Notes

    About the Author

    Other Books by the Author

    Chapter 1 —

    May 8, 1583, Shore of Caspian Sea

    Abdul Azim sat on the hilltop in the warm sunshine with his back against a large stone, eyes closed. He commanded a well-trained fighting force of five hundred men who were part of the Janissary Corps in the Turkish Army. They had traveled months to participate in the upcoming battle to retake the heavily fortified Persian city of Derbent.

    For the moment, though, he was lost in his thoughts. It had been nearly five years since he last journeyed to the Christian lands of the Balkan Peninsula, yet memories of Maria, the serf, continued to haunt him. He vividly recalled how he had threatened to destroy the small Fiefdom of Kostel entirely if she disobeyed him about their newly conceived child.

    He also recalled storming out of the grain storage shed and, at the time, never expecting to see Kostel or the peasant woman again. After all, who could foretell the future? Even so, he never forgot her and their lovemaking. It was as though she had entered his being—his very soul—and nothing erased it. At night, he dreamed about her. Images of her graceful, full-breasted figure filled his head, as did her dark hair and blazing blue eyes.

    The image stayed in his mind’s eye of her standing naked in a streak of sunlight in the shed, turning around at his command with her rounded buttocks giving way to the dark-haired valley between her thighs. And then there was the ecstasy of fulfilling his desire of intimacy with a woman. All these memories he treasured, and despite the intervening years, she continued to captivate him. Maria had been his first and, while it had taken threats to her newborn son, she had shown him the way to fulfill his passion.

    Good day to you, Aga, Tasar called to him, walking toward him.

    Irritated at the interruption, the commander kept the annoyance off his face and remained calm. Inwardly sighing and placing the cherished thoughts in a secret compartment of his mind, he waved a welcome to his short-statured, barrel-chested second in command.

    Tasar looked perplexed, sitting down next to him and leaning back against the same stone. Aga, our army captured the city below years ago, the man began, then we lost it. How could such a thing have occurred, given the magnificent fortification we see?

    It is not difficult to explain, Azim replied. He gazed at the broad panorama spread before him, as a light breeze tugged at his tall, white-crowned Janissary hat and his flowing tunic. Even from a distance, they both stared in awe at the sheer size of the massive structure. We drew back too many soldiers to Istanbul and left an insufficient number to defend it. The Persians continued their hit-and-run attacks for years on trade caravans passing through, then blockaded the port and the gates. Our governor confronted two choices: Our garrison could either smash through the Persian line and survive or stay in the city and starve to death. Using all the troops at his command, they created a wedge, drove through the enemy at night, and took refuge in a mountain gorge west of here. With its steep terrain, that location was readily defensible, and thus they survived.

    Ah, now I understand.

    As you can see, the fortress contains two parallel walls that run west to east for nearly one and one-half miles—on a bench of land that extends from steep mountain foothills to the blue waters of the sea.

    Tasar added, My eye gauges the distance between the two exterior walls at three-quarters of a mile.

    Azim also had another second officer, named Josephus Srdoc, who had become part of his unit months earlier before leaving Istanbul on this campaign. The new man joined them now and heard the last comments. As a young soldier, I helped build fortifications like these for our army, he remarked. Fitted stone blocks create inner and outer skins of the walls. Rocks, dirt, and debris fill the space in between, forming a thickness of about ten feet at the base. The walls follow the contours of the down-sloping and undulating terrain, so they are not level. Additional fortifications at each end complete the stronghold’s rectangular shape.

    Tasar commented, "I cannot help but wonder why the

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