G'heeg

G'heeg was a Hulun war-chief and father of Bundu. Though a mighty warrior, he was a cruel and belligerent man. Under his leadership the bands under his command- comprising the majority of camps south of th Great River- were in a state of almost continuous conflict with neighbouring tribes and other bands. His long and bloody reign was finally brought to an end when he was bested by K'harg in single combat, on the eve of the Battle of Rem.

Biography
Nearly seventy years ago G'heeg was born to a rotund adept named Bett after a drunken night with a minor Hulun chief. G'heeg's life may have panned out very differently if he had been left to grow up on the tribe's periphery, but the fates had a very different path for him. The chief's wife knew of her husband's indiscretion and received a vision that the simple adept's baby would grow up to be a mighty warrior who would kill her son and assume her husband's position. She arranged for a group of pariahs to attack Bett's band, with strict instructions that none should be spared, promising them many horses in return. Secretly she schemed to have the attackers slain in retribution for their crimes, but her plan did not go well. One of the young pariah women took pity on the infant G'heeg, fleeing with her lover before the pariahs had finsihed their dispecable slaughter. They had long since fled by the time G'heeg's father and his warriors exacted their revenge on the pariahs, and raised him amongst a small group of outcasts and brigands.

G'heeg grew up a tough and viscious opportunist raider, a tribeless pariah, but was spared death when his bandwere accosted by a group of Hulun. He was only fourteen, and raised to be a Hulun warrior: the band recognised his Hulun birth tattoo and correctly surmised that he had been taken as fromhis true parents as a young boy.

But the culture of the pariah had never lefthim, and though he grew to be a powerful warrior, he was a cruel and sadistic individual. His love of battle was unsurpassed, and he swiftly rose to prominence within his band, slaying its chief at the age of twenty four. Over the years he led many raids against neighbouring bands and enemy tribes, uniting him to his banner.

I was during one such raid that he came to face his own father in battle, killing him. His father's wife knew at once who the man was, recognising his birth tattoo, but feigned ignorance of his origins, offering him her dead husband's people. She schemed against him, plotting to replace him with her own son. However, her true intentions wre unveiled and G'heeg murdered her and her family. The shaman who had originally foretold this event came forth and declared G'heeg the Undying Chief. Bands flocked to his banner and he ruled over thousands.

Over the years his reign was characterised by excessive cruelty and continuous warfare. Eventually, growing discontent led many to rally to the cause of the youngchampion, K'harg. G'heeg challenged K'harg to single combat. The duel was legendary, but ultimately resulted in G'heeg disarming the upstart and knocking him prone. G'heeg showed uncharacteristic mercy, stating that he did not deserve a warriors death and would die a pariah on the plains. G'heeg miscalculated, thinking that this act would discredit K'harg and bring the revels to his banner. Instead, many of his band- including Lek and Ozrael- left his territory, travelling with K'harg to the Three Rivers to act as its protectors.

G'heeg's capricious nature and cruel treatment of prisoners made it difficult for him to broker peace with rival factions, particularly the bands north of the river. The Empire had long maintained a military presence at Rem, and through clever political maneuvering, managed to destabilise the situation to their advantage. They managed to unite several Tolda and Raven bands into a great force, launching sporadic raids into Hulun territory and threatening the Three Rivers.

Perceiving this threat as an opportunity to rally those bands not already under his yolk to his cause, G'heeg promised thoe who rallied to his banner that theywould drive the raiders from their lands. However, the sorceress Fanwé helped K'harg to unite a similar number of bands to his banner. Fanwéand Moraath feared for the future of their people under G'heeg's leadership and helped broker alliances with the northern bands and Moraath's own Pariahs of Empala. However, all recognised that G'heeg would never back down and so K'harg came up with a plan.

In a re-match of their duel several years earlier, K'harg challenged G'heeg to single combat. It was his final mistake. Buoyed by his years of success in the field and his previous victory over the upstart, G'heeg eagerly embraced the opportunity to show his people that he could lead by example. He believed that such a victory would finally prove that he was the greatest warrior in the hostory of the Hulun and forever cement his grip upon the plains.

On the very eve of the decisive Battle of Rem, K'harg and G'heeg faced one another in battle. Unlike their previous encounter, the duel was much more one-sided, with K'harg thrice offering G'heeg the opportunity to submit. G'heeg was nothing if not stubborn, finally dying from blood loss.

In accordance with Hulun tradition, G'heeg's body was cremated in a secret ceremony presided over by Moraath. It was agreed that none should know of this site, lest his few sympathisers would turn the site into a shrine.

Legacy
In spite of K'harg's victory, g'heeg did have a handful of supporters even in death, and though they sided with K'harg at the Battle of Rem, many of them quarrelled with K'harg in the immediate aftermath of the imperial expulsion. Most of them ultimately recognised the authority of K'harg, especially with the backing of Fanwé and Moraath.

G'heeg sired many sons but by the time he faced K'harg in single combat, only Bundu was still alive. the simple man had possessed noneof his father's zeal or ambition and was happy to join K'harg's band with Tudaam's parents. Bundu never speaks of his father and few know of his true origins. K'harg, for his part, keeps close counsel.

Although they never actually fought under G'heeg, the cult of the berserker in the band of Mezim sometimes acknowledge G'heeg as a truer embodiment of the Raging Warrior than K'harg. They are nostlagic for his bloody era.