Special Holiday Short, 'the pearls of Anatolia', and related note.

"Happy Junsrew Daniel."
It had been fifteen years since the Ga-Vok invasion. Kiera and Daniel had stuck together since that first date and were celebrating yet another Junsrew, the Nieldic new year and commemoration of the establishment of the empire. It was the most important holiday of the year and even as important a noble as Kiera made sure to take the day off to spend it with those close to her.

"Any day with you is a happy one milady."
Enge would have been making fun of him for that one. The old salt had been right to call him a romantic, but Kiera didn't mind and they'd gotten along pretty well so far. He hoped his present this year wouldn't be overdoing it, even he thought it might be a bit much.

"This seems like a good time for presents wouldn't you say?"
It was the traditional way to celebrate Junsrew. It had never been explicitly stated when the holiday was established but within a few years even the poorest Nielda had adopted the practice of buying family and friends gifts to celebrate the holiday. The military had all of the recruits scheduled to enter boot camp a month after Junsrew and training cycles completed a month before it. More of the country would be home at this point in the year than at any other time. And all those soldiers bringing their kids back trinkets from distant parts of the empire had probably started the tradition.

"Alright Daniel, but you go first; My present is pretty big."
"I didn't bring them all," He presented a small chest, and a thin box. She opened it to find a necklace of silver with dozens of pale green pearls, and the chest was full of pearls the same hue as those on the necklace.
"I spent the last year gathering every single pearl on the planet, There are some fourteen-hundred thousand of them all told."

Kiera just stared vacantly at the wall in shock. After a few minutes she looked over at him.
"You realize you probably could have bought a planet with that much money?"
"I like you better." He gave her a roguish grin. He was just glad she had recovered so quickly. He was equally glad she hadn't gone ballistic on him for being so indulgent.

"Well it hardly sounds as big compared to a million and a half pearls but I think I still have the better present. Daniel, you're going to be a father."



..................................................................................


Note:
Although it was purely unintentional, Daniel actually wiped out the Anatolian oyster. As a pirate, thief, and head of the Ukown guild he knew the value of a good security system; the one placed on these pearls could actually be considered extravagant even for a treasure of this size. The enchanters of the Daniellandish empire were individually employed for as many as ten-twenty pearls apiece to set a curse that would rot anyone who took these and did not have the legal right to their possession.

The particular value of the pearl to magicians would actually make this gift quite valuable to later generations of Anatolian nobility, and several of these pearls would be used by the most prominent Nieldic magic-user of the first empire.
No other pearls of this hue have been discovered in nearly ten and a half milenia since they were given to her as a gift.




Happy Junsrew and Merry Christmas to all.