A letter from Nazgod

04/06/97

Uncle Kamarind, dearest

I have so much to tell you about my experiences living among the Parmarians in Nazgod that it is difficult to know exactly where to begin.

Did you know that in the Parmarian language an elder friend of the family is not called Auntie or Uncle. Male friends of a family are called Amicus and female friends are called Amica. So you would be called Amicus Kamarind.

Parmarians also have a very odd way of substituting non-verbal communication for words. For example, a Parmarian man instead of saying, “I feel angry”, might say “I feel” and then pound his fist
in place of the word ‘angry’, or instead of saying “I feel tired” he might say, “I feel rather” and then yawn.

Oh and uncle the strangest thing happened earlier today. As I was walking through Torim Square back to my lodgings I saw a man dressed all in black with a black devil horned mask and a three pronged trident in his hand and he was going about prodding people with it, sometimes quite roughly but they were only laughing and then I saw the strange devil in black going over to a vegetable stall, picking up a melon and smashing it on the ground, right in front of the old stallholder
and yet the stall holder did nothing but laugh, then he went back to his prodding, jabbing his trident into the backsides of some passing men only to elicit more laughter.

I thought the whole thing so peculiar and couldn’t help but stop and stare but then, that’s when the man in black saw me and came at me with his trident and I had to suffer his prongs being jabbed into me.

I wasn’t happy, I can tell you because he wasn’t gentle with his trident but then, when I got home, I asked my landlord about it, Mr Shama and he explained that it was Vipmas day, the day when according to Parmarian folklore evil spirits roam about causing mischief and every year someone dressed as an evil spirit goes about prodding people with his trident and causing a nuisance but he also explained that on the evening of Vipmas day another person dressed up as a good spirit has a mock battle with the black devil and then leads him away in chains.

I may go down later and watch it and tomorrow there is supposed to be a procession of good spirits who go through the town distributing gifts to the poor; good acts to counteract the devils mischief,
Mr Shama says.

05/06/97

I decided to go to Torim square yesterday to watch the symbolic battle between good and evil and Mr Shama said he was going too and would go with me and translate from Parmar into Ludvian.

I tell you, it was quite a spectacle. I and Mr Shama both sat outside a café and had dinner while we watched.

The first thing that happens is that the black devil, who I am told is called a Vipf, starts causing more mischief and telling the crowd of people who, like us, have gathered to watch;

Wys knast kan svy? Mabbutz! (Who can stop me? No one?)

And the crowd starts booing which only makes the black devil throw his head back and bellow with laughter.

But then an actor dressed as a good spirit wearing a long white tunic and mask enters from a corner of the square and shouts to the demon.

“Kwa ku eras malika ta vos peruz ?” (Why you are bothering these good people?)

“Chava nu molst na” (Because I want to) replies the demon.

“Nya nu vli bost ku!” (Then I will stop you) calls out the good spirit before running over and wrestling the black devil to the ground.

But that Vipf is tough because no sooner has the angel got hold of him when the devil wrestles him onto his back.

Fortunately, the good spirit has friends and he calls to them.

“Majos, Sobre Vos Jabra ek donna moy!” (Come, Brother Good Spirits and help me!)

At which point, four other actors dressed in white robes and masks rush into the square and help him to overpower the demon and place him in chains.

The devil is then led away to the cheers and applause of the crowd.

Oh, but let me tell you about the cakes they eat at this time. After dinner we had a plate of them for desert; they are called Klabak or “devils claw” and each of them is a little chocolate and marzipan covered sponge cake shaped like a claw but one of them has a glacé cherry inside and the one who eats the one with the cherry inside becomes a “Moloti” or lucky person for the rest of the year
and it is I, Uncle, who ate the cherry.

“Slabatku!”, said Mr Shama, happily which means “Lucky you”.

Ah and you will never believe what happened then, on the way back to my lodgings.

I told Mr Shama that I had very much enjoyed our meal but that I was feeling tired and thought that I should head back home to bed. He said that he was expecting to be met by friends and so he stayed to wait for them and I walked home alone through Torim square but, as I was entering Pavat Street where my lodgings are I saw what Mr Shama calls a Klaphod or a group of loitering youths who are possibly up to no good and I thought of another of his Parmarian words, Lasjek which means “A situation that may or may not go badly”.

Unfortunately, Uncle, then this situation did start to go rather badly for then I saw two of the youths approach me and as they did one of them allowed the object in his left hand to catch the lamplight and it glittered like steel.

Then, as their friends in the Klaphod watched and laughed, one of the youths, smirking, asked,

“Zlapha kura malotzy” which I now know means “Give me your money”.

I didn’t know what to do. As you know I’m not a fighter, Uncle, not to mention that he was holding a knife.

But then, I don’t know why, I called out, “Help me, please”.

And then you will not believe what happened.

Suddenly, down the street towards us I saw five men in white robes and masks running.

It was the five actors who had earlier put the devil in chains and who by good fortune happened to be walking down Pavat street and they surrounded the two young men in an instant and in the next blink of an eye one of them had forced the knife out of the youths hand.

It was simply amazing Uncle, I wish you could have seen it.

But I don’t want you to worry about me uncle because when I told Mr Shama after he came home from being with his friends he said he would keep a good eye on me.

Besides which I shall be going back to West Ludvia on Pranachday. I cannot wait to see my Mother and Father and tell them all about everything that’s happened to me Nazgod.

I certainly know that it’s a place that will always be Brathnok which means “In my memory” and sometimes “In my heart”.