::The book features a scarlet leather covering with a golden sigil of a creature with two heads. One of a stallion and one of a fish::
As follows is the account of the life, death, and unlife of the Vampire, Lord Inja Issan the Radiant as noted by the Ginoki, order of the sanctity of death. Complied 897, Age of the Five Dragons.
Compiler’s note. The Lord Inja Issan was his final name. But he was also called Saku, Lord Saku Issan, Whisper, the Lord of the Radiant Hills, The Sorrow of Ekari, The Radiance.
Compiler’s note. Where possible, known names were provided. Some lowborn names may not be accurate but were added as a way to give some measure of honor to the notable lowborn in this account.
Compiler’s note. There are many differings in the dates and details of these accounts. However, the notes provided are believed to be the most accurate according to the Ginoki keepers of records.
Compiler’s note. In recording this information, many tales and deeds differed greatly according to the accounts given by Lord Inja Issan himself. In order to minimize bias, this writer only includes accounts which were corroborated by independent sources in addition to the testimony of Lord Inja, so the readers may have the truest accounting of events possible.
551, Age of Reorder
Saku was born a peasant in the lands of Lord Inja Iko called the Radiant Hills, near the western shore of the southern lands between the temple of the Five Dragons and the Tears of the Dragon Swamp in the modern day gold empire.
557 (AR)
Saku was chosen as Lord Inja’s stablehand. A vibrant boy of bright spirit. Saku showed tremendous promise as an animal handler and a fisherman during his years in the Lord’s service.
Saku formed a special relationship with a warhose foal named Issan, whom he helped birth. Issan would go on to be a prized warhose of Lord Inja, but then later stolen by Saku.
568 (AR)
Saku fell in love with Lord Inja’s third daughter Inja Akira.
570 (AR)
Saku and Akira’s love affair was discovered by their pregnancy during her betrothel to the eldest son of Lord Ishi Ichiro. Having not yet consummated their marriage, Akira’s sullying was laid to bare. Thus great shame was brought onto House Inja and the betrothel was dissolved. Saku was given 100 lashes minus 1 for his crime.
Lord Inja ordered the removal of the bastard child from his daughter’s belly. Defying the order of her father, and believing Saku to be dead, Akira did commit sepoku while still with child.
Saku’s family was ordered to be put to torch by Lord Inja in retribution. While still fevered from his lashes, Saku caught word of his beloved Akira’s death and Lord Inja’s plot to murder his family. Saku stole the corpse of Akira and carried her upon Lord Inja’s prized warhorse, Issan the Radiant Whisper. Saku rode Issan through the night carrying the body of his beloved Akira and their unborn child. He rode to his family’s home many leagues from Lord Inja’s manor.
In the middle of night, Saku buried the body of his love and unborn child in a non descript grave on his family’s land. Saku warned his family of Lord Inja’s designs and they left in secret before daybreak.
Lord Inja ordered hefty ransom for the capture or death of Saku and his family.
Saku nearly succumbed to his fever but was nursed back to health by a Ginoki.
His family including his father, mother and sister evaded Lord Inja’s notice, moved northeast and settled between the Mother and the Father rivers where they became renowned fishermen.
Compiler’s note. Some accounts list Saku as having two sisters.
576 (AR)
Lord Inja searched unrelenting for 6 years when one of the scouts recognized the warhorse Issan. Saku’s mother and sister were captured. They were tortured and ravaged by Lord Inja’s knights. Saku and his father narrowly escaped, and his father was badly burned. Saku himself took an arrow through the his ribs.
Saku managed to escape South riding the speed of the warhorse Issan and through their skill gained navigating the river lands. Saku’s father did not survive the next few days of harsh winter.
578 (AR)
The horse Issan broke his leg and had to be put to the sword as a mercy. Saku in his grief gave to drink and was a drunken hermit. Despite his unsavory appearance, Saku was a very comely man. A mysterious patron lavished him with clothes and fineries and he gave himself no more to drink.
579 (AR)
Saku became the horse trainer for his patron who was the wife of a Warlord named Ekari Anji. Saku took the lady Ekari to bed in the absence of her husband.
580 (AR)
The Lady Ekari gave birth to the sons of Saku. As this would be a grave crime for a woman of her station, the twins were raised as if the children of a peasant girl. Saku and the peasant girl Eniro were wed to maintain the appearance of being the son’s mother and father.
The peasant girl Eniro was barren and hideously deformed. And many questioned why the comely Saku would be married to the monstrous Eniro. Many murmured and speculated that the children did not belong to the peasant girl Eniro. Saku and the lady Ekari maintained their love affair, and the twin boys were presented publicly as her wards.
Compiler’s note. It is with some amusement I write that by all accounts, the parentage of Saku’s twin sons may be the worst kept secret in all of history.
583 (AR)
The lady Ekari died of the scarlet malice fever, three years after giving birth to the twins. Before her death, she ordered the execution of the peasant girl Eniro and her family to in an attempt to maintain the secret of the sons of Saku. She granted her lover Saku the title of adviser as well as a small estate, now allowing him noble title.
For his family name, he chose to honor the legacy of his father also named Saku. And for his common name, he chose Issan in the fashion of the warhorse whom he loved. Thus the lady Ekari granted him the title Lord Saku Issan, and named him custodian of the Ekari estate as well as provisional heir, in the event of her husband’s death in battle.
583 (AR) continued.
The sons of Lord Saku were given name after their 3rd markday of birth. They were called Gin and Chiro (shield and sword in the old tongue). They were also named as provisional heirs to the Ekari estate, next in line after the absconded Lord Ekari and their Lord father Saku Issan.
585 (AR)
The warlord Ekari Anji returned home to find his wife dead and an unknown custodial Lord living with sons in his home. The whispers of the true parentage lords Gin and Chiro were wide and often. The boys did favor the Lady Ekari in look, and the whispers of the Lady Ekari’s infidelity did reach her Lord husband Ekari’s ears. Suspecting his wifes honor having been tainted, Lord Ekari charged Lord Saku with this crime. The Lord Ekari ordered the Lord Saku Issan to death and ordered the eyes of Lord Saku’s sons be plucked. Lord Saku intervened and offered to be tortured to Lord Ekari’s content if would show mercy. Lord Saku offered for his sons to renounce their noble titles and be shown mercy, to live out the remainder of their lives as peasants. Lord Ekari showed mercy and accepted Lord Saku’s offer.
586 (AR)
Having been harshly tortured for nearly a moon cycle, Lord Saku’s spirit was broken when he was presented the bodies of his sons. Lord Ekari’s final torture was to reveal his treachery to Lord Saku. Lord Ekari did not allow the Lords Gin and Chiro to leave as he had promised. Instead he starved and tortured them in secret and then to presented their corpses Lord Saku.
Compiler’s note. It is said that Lord Ekari laughed when he presented the dessicated corpses of Saku Gin and Saku Chiro and claimed to have kept his promise. The boys did die as peasants.
586 (AR) continued.
It is said in the solitude of his cell, Lord Saku’s grief was so tremendous it blackened out the sunlight and called forth a dark stranger from the shadows of his dungeon. The dark stranger entered the cell of Lord Saku as if his body was made of shadow, and no bars could contain him.
The stranger drank from the grief of Lord Saku. He gorged himself on his unspeakable sadness, removing it completely from the Lord Saku. The dark stranger himself became grieved, as if drunk from Lord Saku’s sadness. The taste of Lord Saku’s grief was so sublime and pure to the dark stranger, it wanted to help him. The dark stranger offered to free him his cell and give him the power to pursue revenge, but at a terrible cost. Having been drained of his grief, only rage remained in Lord Saku. Lord Saku accepted the offer of the dark stranger, with no consideration to the cost.
586 (AR) continued
Lord Saku Issan became vampire, both master and slave of the dark. He laid waste to Lord Ekari’s estate, slaughtering all of the Ekari’s servants and soldiers, and putting all to the flame. Lord Saku abandoned his lordly title and referred to himself only as the mysterious traveler named Whisper.
Compiler’s note. Apparently not all servants of the Lord Ekari were killed, for how else did Lord Inja Issan maintain the nickname The Sorrow of Ekari if not for witnesses?
Compiler’s note. While it is not canonized in any written references, all of the oral tales of Lord Inja Issan indicate he buried the bodies of his sons aside the unmarked grave of his lost love, lady Inja Akira.
896 (AR)
For the next ten and three hundred years, Whisper maintained his moniker. The vampire remained hidden, unnoticed and relocated often. Whisper grew in power and was a stalker of night and master of blood. He fed upon thousands, killed hundreds, and loved no one. His grief never returned to calm his rage or sate his thirst.
During this time, Whisper decided to abandon the life hidden in shadow. Obscurity had always been his shield. It was his resolve that his shield would instead become power.
Whisper plotted to pursue an old revenge, the destruction of the noble House Inja. Whisper was not foolish enough to attack a well fortified home of a noble lord. For even if he succeeded, his terror would certainly gain the notice of others with power. Whisper chose subterfuge and obfuscation as his weapon to bear agaisnt noble House Inja.
Whisper once again picked up his noble title of Lord Saku Issan and abandoned his clandestine moniker of Whisper, never to be picked up again.
He traveled to his birthplace, the Radiant Hills, manor of House Inja. Lord Saku planned to request audience with current, Lord Inja Akutomi, who is the descendant of the Lord Inja Iko who murdered his family. Because of his ability to change form, and spy unseen, the Lord Saku Issan learned the descendant Lord Inja to be a sickly man with a wife and children to whom he paid little heed. It was a little known secret that the descendant Lord Inja preferred the company of men to his lady wife. But it was a secret which Lord Saku discovered and used to his advantage.
The Lord Saku Issan gained audience with Lord Inja and charmed the Lord Inja who fell in love with him. Although Lord Saku himself did not fancy the company of men, he was perfectly willing to keep such a farce if it were to aid him in gaining the noble House Inja’s empire.
During the months to follow, the vampire Lord Saku slowly poisoned the mind of Lord Inja and convinced the Lord that his lady wife Inja had cuckolded him and his children belonged to another man. Lord Inja, believing the charms of the Vampire lord Saku, had his children put to flame, believing they were the children of another man. Lord Inja had his wife ravaged and executed by his knights, believing her virtue to be sullied. As a result of this act, Lord Inja had no legitimate heirs remaining.
904 (AR)
The lords Inja and Saku remained the closest of friends and Lord Saku even took up residence in the home of Lord Inja during this time. Lord Inja professed his love for Lord Saku and his desire to wed, taking him as fellow lord husband. This arrangement being forbidden by law, but a marriage would allow for the legal transfer of all the wealth and lands to Lord Saku if legal. But the sinister vampire lord, sensing his goal of House Inja’s destruction near, plotted another plan.
Lord Saku convinced Lord Inja to present a story to the servants and peasants. In story, the lords would publicly state Lord Saku to be the distant brother of Lord Inja who had been off to war these many years. If they were able to convince the masses of this story, Lord Saku told Lord Inja he would agree to marry in secret. The Lord Inja was in agreement and publicly declared to his subjects that the Lord Saku was not his real name, but in fact his legitimate brother, Lord Inja Issan who had returned home.
After some time passed and the people came to accept the story of the wayward brother, the Lord Inja Akutomi suddenly died of fever. Lord Inja Issan, being believed by all to be the younger brother of the now departed Lord Inja Akutomi, became Lord of house Inja and Master of the Radiant Hills. The Vampire’s plan had succeeded. He had destroyed the line of House Inja and inherited all of its wealth and land.
Compiler’s note. It was at this time, the vampire lord Inja Issan changed the sigil of House Inja to that of a two headed monster, one head bearing that of a stallion in honor of his horse Issan. The other head of the monster was a fish in honor of his family’s trade as fishermen.
7, Age of the Five Dragons
In the political tumult which followed the end of the age of Reorder and the beginning of the Age of the Five Dragons, the Lord Inja Issan grew in power and influence. He charmed the coin from many lords and the virtue from many ladies. It has been said the best time to buy land is when there is blood on the ground; a convenient fact for a creature capable of spilling much blood.
The Vampire Lord Inja Issan changed household servants often, so that none would question his inability to age. He also styled his hair over his ears and allowed people to believe him to be Elvish. The vampire learned much from his time of secrecy as the vagabond Whisper. He was careful to never allow house staff to come to harm, or to be tempted to do so lest they suspect him to be a monster.
It was a secret he kept through much discipline and effort.
During the 7th year of the Age of the Five Dragons, Lord Inja Issan writes is his now lost journal of being visited once again by the dark stranger who begged him to allow him to feed once again on his grief. The vampire lord refused, telling the dark stranger he is now devoid of all grief.
191 (AF)
After nearly 2 centuries of gathering wealth and opulence, the vampire Lord Inja Issan fell in love once more with a house servant bearing the likeness and ironically, the name of his lost love, Akira
During their romance, Lord Inja secretly revealed his vampire nature to Akira and offered to turn his love into his vampire companion. She agreed and the Lord Inja Issan turned his love Akira into his vampire companion and took her to wife in the year 191.
546 (AF)
For the next four and one half centuries the Lord and Lady Inja shared a deep and profound love. The lord and Lady vampire did have many exploits during this time which is covered extensively in the treatise, “The Dark Reign of the Lord Inja Issan and the Lady Inja Akira” which can be found in most libraries. During this time many historians and records keepers began to take note of his long reign. For many years, people believed the Lord and Lady vampire to be elves, which explained their long lives.
Through a series of events lost to history, their undead nature was discovered. The Lady Inja Akira was captured by holy men and put to death by sunlight.
The Lord Inja Issan, once again, narrowly escaped but was now sick with grief for the loss of his dearest love and long time wife Lady Inja Akira. In his grief he was once again visited by the dark stranger who drank from the Vampire’s grief, this time without asking.
The dark stranger’s lust for the grief of the undead was so strong, the dark stranger never wanted to taste anything other than vampire grief. And once again, the stranger drank too deep, having removed all the grief from Lord Inja Issan and now the purest of rages now manifested.
818 (AF)
During the next centuries, Lord Inja Issan slid into obscurity and hiding. Hunted by day by the Ginoki and others who loathe the undead. And hunted by night by the dark stranger who also began to make vampires of others, just to destroy their lives and drink their grief.
Being a much older and more powerful vampire, Lord Inja Issan himself hunted and killed many of these vampires with ease. The Lord Inja Issan and the dark stranger were locked in a battle. Neither having the ability to directly harm the other, they entered into a centuries long dance of both creating and trying to prevent grief. The dark stranger created many many vampires with the intention of drinking upon their grief. And the vampire lord sought to deny the dark stranger this pleasure. And so the Lord Inja Issan killed many vampires created by the dark stranger.
In the 818th year of the Age of the Five Dragons, the Lord Inja Issan made a desperate gambit. He appeared to the Ginoki under an offering of truce. He parlayed with them appealing to the fact they share a common foe. The Vampire Lord wanted to destroy the dark stranger and the Ginoki wants to rid the land of the many fledgling vampires and the curse of the dark stranger. So vampire lord and the hunters of the undead became uncomfortable allies.
849 (AR)
After 30 bitter years of hunting, the Ginoki and the Lord Inja Issan trapped the dark stranger. They captured him and banished him through ritual, forcing him through a gate to the Penumbral realm. The gate is hidden in a lost temple of the Ginoki.
851 (AR)
After banishing the dark stranger, the Lord Inja Issan agreed to depart and not draw the notice of the Ginoki again. Grateful for his assistance, the Ginoki agreed to allow him to leave. They believed the gate to be sealed forever, the seal was broken when blood was spilled before the gate. The dark stranger escaped once again, this time accompanied by Penumbral hordes of goblin and orkish warriors. All of the Ginoki in the temple were slaughtered and the dark stranger terrorized the nearby countryside with his shadow army.
The Lord Inja Issan, though not near to the gate, was plagued with the nightmare of the Dark strangers return.
Thus began the War that Never Was.
852 (AR)
Having grown in power, the Lord Inja Issan was a formidable foe for anyone. Though it is not clear how, he also became friends with the leader of a clan of assassins from the east who came to his aid. Now allied with assassins, Ginoki warrior monks, and other holy men, a stage was set for a large scale war.
But Lord Inja Issan was clever. The force gathered was a diversion. On the eve of the battle, Lord Inja Issan rode into the camp of the shadow army, bearing a holy weapon of legend called Sunrider. Sunrider drank the blood of many orks and goblins. Lord Inja Issan wielded the blade though it burned his hand tremendously to even hold it.
He cut through much of the shadow army before the Ginoki and the league of assassins launched a surprise attack to follow. It was a slaughter. But it came at a great cost to the vampire lord. Although wielding sunrider allowed for an easy victory over the army of shadow, it burned and marred the hand and arm of Lord Inja, never to be fully healed.
The dark stranger was once again captured and sealed through the gate. Lord Inja Issan took several of the dead enemies and made them unholy servants in the temple of the Ginoki. Where he stayed in solitude, guarding the gate himself allowing no blood to be spilled there.
896 (AR)
A Ginoki monk visited the temple to ensure the gate remained sealed and the Lord Inja remained on vigilant watch. The two formed a friendship. And it was during this time the vampire lord confessed to his Ginoki friend that his Solitude was unbearable. In his 40 years to think, he was once again overcome with unbearable grief for the loss of his loves, for the loss of his sons, and he stilled grieved for the loss of his beloved horse Issan.
The Ginoki offered to release him from his grief and prison but the Vampire refused, insisting he must remain vigilant. But Lord Inja did agree to have his life and deeds written so this it may be recorded in the records of the Ginoki. For it was widely celebrated among the common folk the Ginoki were called Vampirebane and were credited with the destruction of all vampires plaguing the 5 empires, including Lord Inja himself. But despite his misdeeds, and his undead nature, the Ginoki found an unlikely friend and guardian.
897 (AR)
The writing of the life of Lord Inja Issan is complete by Ginoki accounting. The entrance to this old temple will now be sealed and warded by spell. The once-servants of the shadow, undead orks and goblins, now serve to help keep the gate safe.
Compiler’s note. In one of our last conversations, the Lord Inja Issan confessed his solitude was unbearable not because he was alone with his grief. It was because he could always hear the dark stranger knocking from the other side of the gate. His solitude was never truly alone.