The Triumph of Venus - Chapter 19

Devnum

Lucilla sat at her desk in her private office, transcribing the words Sophus was dictating in her ear, finishing the last in a large stack of documents, when a knock drew her attention.

The door opened a moment later as Gaius admitted Ramirus, Hortensius, and Sorantius into the room, all three men bowing respectfully as they approached.

“Please sit, I know you all have busy schedules so I appreciate you making the time to meet with me today,” Lucilla said, setting down her quill. “I’ll try and make this fast.”

“We are always ready to serve, your majesty,” Ramirus said.

“I know that, and I appreciate it. As Ramirus knows, and I’m sure everyone else has heard some kind of whisperings of, we’ve been experiencing difficulty getting the manpower we need to support the legions as they get closer to Carthage. I’ve been in talks with our countrymen in Uliad and Caledonia about the possibility of their freeing up more men who can join the legions, but those talks have been … unproductive as of late. Part of the problem we’re having is that both states have given a large amount of manpower already, and we’re entering into the peak growing season. They fear, not unfairly, that they will not have enough people to harvest their crops come fall, leading to food shortages over the winter. I have sent messages to Ky and he has sent back some thoughts on new technology that could help us there, allowing fewer people to harvest more. Which now, of course, puts the problem in your laps.”

Both Hortensius and Sorantius looked intrigued in their own way, Hortensius’s inventor’s soul nearly jumping up with excitement at the prospect of something new. A stark contrast to the slight tick of an eyebrow from Sorantius, which for him was the height of exuberance.

“I’ll start with what I need from you, Hortensius,” she said, handing over a stack of pages, one of which still had damp ink drying on the page. “It’s a device called a mechanical reaper. According to Ky, it will greatly increase efficiency in harvesting crops, allowing one man to harvest what it would have taken dozens.”

Hortensius’s eyes lit up as he looked over the drawings and notes, mumbling to himself as he traced his fingers along the diagrams. “Fascinating! Using a reciprocating blade to cut the stalks. Brilliant! And you say the Consul wants this device completed before harvest season?”

“Yes, if at all possible. I assured both Conchobar and Talogren we could provide an efficient harvesting machine in time for late summer and fall harvests. Can it be done?”

“I believe so. Technically, this is much simpler than some of the things we’ve worked on recently. Had someone had this idea even before the consul, it might have been possible, although maybe not, since our steel at that time did not handle up to torsion stress well. These pieces are very long and will require setting up new production lines, but that simply takes time. From a technical perspective, this is very much achievable.”

“Good. I know you have a lot happening, finishing the line to Londinium, getting the telegraph network extended in Uliad and to our allies on the continent, but this is very important.”

“I understand, your majesty, and I will see it done.”

“Thank you, my friend,” she said, before turning to Sorantius, handing him his own stack of pages. “In addition to a new mechanical solution to help crop production and manpower, the consul had a new chemical solution as well, which he says will greatly increase crop yields. He called it ammonium nitrate.”

Sorantius’ eyes narrowed. “Ammonium nitrate? It sounds familiar to several other compounds he has shown to us.”

“I know little beyond the name and intended use myself,” Lucilla admitted. “But Ky seemed quite confident in its potential. My understanding is that there are similarities and you already have the base components to create this, but that he has waited until now to introduce it because of our need for nitrates in other areas. Apparently, our nitrate production has increased to the point he now feels comfortable diverting some of it from gunpowder manufacturing into other areas.”

“You are correct. We do produce more than our needs at the moment. I had been looking to other uses hinted at by some of the Consul’s previous instructions. Looking at this,” the chemist said, holding up the pages. “I think this might be one of those. The instructions are clear, although mixtures such as this aren’t as easy to test results as it is for something mechanical. More so with something like this, that had less instantly obvious effects. If I had my choice, I would test these on an isolated patch of crops for a season, to establish a baseline of results and determine proper usages.”

“I understand that and applaud your caution, but as with so much of what I’ve given you over the past few years, we are under time pressure. I don’t want to push you beyond your comfort level or jeopardize any of your people, but we do need this as quickly as possible. It’s too late to help with the initial plantings, but there is time for it to help with winter.”

“We will do the best we can,” Sorantius said.

“Good. I appreciate anything you can do for me,” Lucilla said, pausing for a moment. “While these projects are important to the empire, they aren’t the only reasons I asked you both to be here in person, instead of messaging these over or sending anything over the telegraph. This is not, and hopefully will not be, public knowledge, but the two of you are critical to the running of the empire and have the ‘need to know,’ to borrow a phrase Ky likes to use. Very soon I will be leaving Devnum and the empire, and I don’t know for how long I will be gone.”

Hortensius and Sorantius exchanged surprised glances.

“That means both of you will be on your own for overseeing all of your projects in my absence. I know you are both capable and have run operations of your own before being employed by the empire, but this is more than just managing the creation and production of your assigned works. It means you will need to work with Lurio on distribution of the products and dealing with the issues that may arise. To be clear, this means both practical issues and, potentially, political issues. I know that is outside the scope of both of your work and both of you dislike politics in general, and I apologize for asking so much of each of you. It is, however, critical and there is no one else I trust to handle things in my absence more than the two of you.”

“We are, of course, at your command and will do anything you require of us,” Hortensius said almost as soon as she finished speaking. “If I may ask, however, where are you going? You’ve made trips to the other states before, so I assume this is more than just visiting Caledonia or Uliad.”

“I’m sorry, my friend, but I can’t answer that. Please know it’s not that I distrust you in any way. Ramirus and Modius, however, both believe that there is risk associated with this trip, and the fewer people that know specifics, the safer it is. I can only tell you this trip is necessary, and that I would not be going if the need were not great.”

“You can count on us, your majesty,” Hortensius said, Sorantius nodding his agreement.

“I knew I could count on you both,” she said.

She stood, smoothing her stola, signaling the end of their meeting, the two men quickly getting to their feet in response.

“Before I let you get back to your work, I want to sincerely thank you both for your loyal service these past years. I’m not sure if our empire would have survived without your contributions, but I do know that you are both major reasons why we have stood our test as well as we have. You both have my deepest gratitude.”

Both men seemed to take that as seriously as she’d offered it. Even the normally businesslike Sorantius seemed a little moved by her pronouncement. She ushered the men out, leaving the specific details of how they’d administer everything to Ramirus, who followed them out.

Now she just needed to find someone to mind the empire as a whole in her absence.

***

Medb sat in the lavish chambers she normally shared with her husband Cormac in the Imperial Palace, lounging on a divan with a book in her hands. Coming to Rome had introduced her to many amazing things that she’d never thought possible, from trains to baskets that could fly in the sky under a globe of fabric, but the one she found the most fascinating was books like the one she was reading.

In practice, it wasn’t that different from what she’d had at home. They’d had collected works of long scrolls and even tied “books” of parchment, but those had been treasures, hoarded and not accessed casually. The sheer time and expense of producing them was such that they were mostly used for short things like messages and speeches.

It wasn’t until she came here that she’d discovered the mass-produced tomes with their stamped-out letters, each copy almost identical to the next, so easily produced that she had even seen merchants and laborers with them. They were still new and hadn’t only started making it into the further reaches of the empire, but as she understood it, they were bringing about a wave of literacy, even among the lower class.

While she cared less about that, their popularity also meant that more artists, men who previously had penned works for the stage, were putting their ideas to paper. The explosion of printed materials underway was largely driven by entertainment, of all things. Medb had always been a lover of plays, poets, and dramatists, and to have their works in her hands, where she could revisit them whenever she wanted, or find new ones each time she went to the market, had been like a gift from the gods.

Which is why she sighed in annoyance as a knock at her door interrupted her reading, forcing her to close the leather-bound writing, setting it aside on a small table.

‘This had better be good,’ she thought to herself as she crossed the finally decorated quarters she’d spent so much time cultivating and opened the door. Her face fell even more, which she wouldn’t have thought possible, when she found Ramirus, the Empress’s watchdog, standing outside her door.

He didn’t say anything and the two just stared at each other for a moment before Medb stepped back, allowing Ramirus to enter the room.

“I guess you’re going to come in no matter what, so come in,” she said flatly over her shoulder as she walked back into the room.

“I’m sorry for disturbing you, Lady Medb,” Ramirus said, closing the door behind himself and following her.

Medb waved a hand dismissively as she settled on the divan again. “Let’s skip the pleasantries, shall we? I assume this isn’t a social visit.”

Ramirus’s mouth twitched into a slight smile. “No, I’m afraid not. Though I had hoped after the last few months, we were beyond such hostility.”

“Yes, that started right after you threatened to execute me.”

“I think you would agree the outcome following your … efforts to influence members of the clergy into open opposition against the empire was far more lenient than even you expected. More so, I believe the Empress is trying her best to uphold her end of the bargain you struck with her.”

“I think my results should prove that I’ve done the same. Nothing in my agreement required me to be pleasant about it while doing it.”

“Fair enough,” Ramirus said. “I came to talk to you about Senator Fiacha. I have been following your progress. You did well in setting him up in the forum with Senator Taenaris’s bill. But I had expected more to come from that little maneuver.”

“My job is done. Fiacha will not only stop blocking the bill, he will now be far more cooperative in all ways the empire needs of him.”

Ramirus looked genuinely surprised. “Oh? I had thought you were simply going to expose Fiacha and force him out of politics.”

“What would be the point of that? If we simply exposed Fiacha and forced him out of politics, we’d just end up with some new Uliad senator who could potentially be even more troublesome. Instead, I convinced the senator that it was in his best interest to become more cooperative with the empire on future dealings. This way is far better. We now have a senator firmly in our pocket, and the more we compel Fiacha to act in the empire’s interests, the deeper in our debt he becomes.”

Ramirus raised an eyebrow. “It sounds like Fiacha is more in your pocket than in the empire’s.”

“There’s the trust I’ve come to know and love. And you wonder why I’m still unagreeable after all your kindness.”

Ramirus inclined his head slightly, acknowledging her point.

“And no, not in my pocket. I just put things in place because that was the job you asked me to do. If you want to take point in correcting the senator, by all means, go ahead. Though I should add that doing that puts more culpability on the empire.”

“How so?” Ramirus asked in that maddening way of his.

She knew he already knew the answer but wanted to hear her reasoning before putting his own out there. He would have given the Greek philosophers a run for their money.

“I am still technically a subject of King Conchobar, so my controlling a Uliad senator is problematic, but not as bad as Rome having direct control of one of the Uliad senators. Especially since, of all the states of the empire, Uliad is still somewhat distrustful of the Empire as a whole and the Romans specifically. With my managing Fiacha, it provides the Empress with plausible deniability. I make an excellent cutout, wouldn’t you agree?”

“I suppose,” he said, skeptically. “I will admit to having concerns over your managing an … asset like Fiacha, but you are correct about the relations between ourselves and our the Uliad.”

“You can only dance in the middle for so long, Ramirus. What do you want me to do? I couldn’t care less either way, but if you have concerns, then you take him.”

“No, I think that won’t be necessary,” Ramirus said. “However, I do want to be there the next time you meet with him, to ensure he understands what his position is in all of this, and where his obligations lie. I would ask that you keep me informed of any instructions you give the senator moving forward. I would have liked to know you were taking this route before the deed was done.”

“If there’s time, I’ll try,” Medb said. “You know, if you keep assigning me work like this, at some point you’re going to have to decide if you trust me or not.”

“Don’t take it personally. There are very few people I trust completely. You’ve done good work here and I will make sure the Empress knows it. However, it will take time to repair the damage done by your own actions.”

Standing, he straightened his clothes and started toward the door, before stopping and turning back toward her. “You know, the Empress thinks you’re hungry for power. At first, I agreed with her, but now, I think we were wrong. I think you like the game. I think it’s one of the few things that really gets your mind going, and you’ve enjoyed being in it again. You’re also very good at it. I’ll promise you now, as long as you never try and turn your genius in this area against the Empress or the empire, I will ensure you get as many chances to play as I can.”

Giving a slight nod to himself, as if confirming he was right about something, he turned and left her quarters.

She watched him go, closing the door behind him before reaching over and picking up her book once more, settling back into the cushions. She tried reading a page, found she retained nothing from it, and tried a second time before shutting the book and dropping it in her lap.

Damn that man, she grumbled to herself.

***

Port of Kalb, Hispania

Cormac stood at the center of the amphitheatre, built by the Carthaginians to entertain their soldiers, a wave of sound washing over him as representatives from all over Hispania talked excitedly, and angrily, to one another. The Britannians had sent runners across the peninsula announcing the council, making it clear the central topic to be discussed was the raids still occurring across Hispania. They had made it clear that if any tribe wanted a say in what the response to the raids, they needed to be here.

Even with the urgency of the announcement, the sheer number of men that showed up for this meeting surprised Cormac. He had through the wrestling match and other games of physical challenge had been well attended, but that had been a fraction of the total population here. Men were packed into the auditorium, crowded shoulder to shoulder on the stone benches.

More surprisingly than how many were there, were some of the tribes that had decided to attend. The Arandur and several of the other tribes who’d been identified as the perpetrators of the raids had sent representatives to the council, and were the only ones with some room left next to them. Cormac was honestly impressed they had the brazenness to attend a meeting that was, ultimately, about them. Although, it would make sense the people being accused of committing the raids would want a say in what happened to the raiding tribes, he supposed.

Cormac raised his hands, gesturing for silence.

Once the rumblings died down, he said, “I welcome you all to this council. I know you’ve come from far and wide, each with your own concerns and grievances. We’ve heard and understand your concerns about the escalating raids, and the use of Britannian weapons in those raids. I can promise you this, we are determined to work with each of you and make this right.”

“How? Your weapons are killing our people!” a voice called out from the audience.

“You’re right. We don’t deny Britannian weapons were used, and we are committed to helping solve the problem. I also think it should be acknowledged that the raids did not start with the introduction of the weapons we sold all of you. Bandits, sacked villages, and kidnaped people have plagued this region since the withdrawal of the Carthaginians. I say this to put these troubles into context, not to absolve Britannia. We came here because we were the ones who drove the Carthaginians out, making everything that’s happened here since our responsibility.”

He paused, looking across the audience. That last section had been from Llassar, and had the effect the Caledonian said it was. They’d all come here ready for Cormac to defend Britannia and to deny any culpability on their part. They hadn’t expected him to do the opposite, and now that he had, some of the anger was taken out of them.

“So what is to be done?” he continued. “We called this meeting to offer additional ways we can offer our support.”

A chieftain from one of the tribes stood up. “You Britannians came here with your weapons, making the raids and bandits worse only to return and sell us the solution. You show us who you are!”

Murmurs of agreement rose in pockets around the auditorium.

“I understand why you would think that, and all I can say is I’m not here to sell you anything. Any chieftain is free to take up all, some, or none of what we’re offered. Consider each part separately, judge the merits, discuss with your councils, and decide what is best for your individual tribes.”

The murmurs didn’t silence, but did die down a bit.

“Which brings me to what we’ve come prepared to offer you. First, we will continue to maintain the forts along the border between your land and Gaul. While we are allies with the tribes there, and hope to have good relations with all of you, we understand that does not remove long-standing difficulties between your two people. We also know that, even as the Carthaginians retreated and our line of forts went up, you have not had issues with raids across the mountains to your north. I know that doesn’t do much for some of you, of course, but the tribes in central and northern Hispania I hope will see the value in this. I also hope that all of you can see the value in making Hispania a self-contained, fortified area, protected from the rest of the continent, allowing your people to work out their own destinies.”

More discussion among the tribal leaders. It was impossible for Cormac to tell, but he hoped most of the murmurs were signs of positive reactions to the news.

“Furthermore, we will rebuild Portus Invictus and grant its governance and profits to the tribes collectively, with Britannian assistance. This will give you much easier access to trade with Britannia through three major ports in easy reach - Portus Invictus, Kalb, and Daramouda. Since both Kalb and Daramouda are under Britannian control, we thought it fitting at least one of the ports be under local control, so you aren’t beholden to our good graces to connect to the wider world,” Cormac continued, and then held up his hands as rumblings of unrest started rippling through the audience. “I know how that sounds on the face of it. That we will be ‘assisting’ you, and some of you take that to mean we are giving it to you in name only, but will still be in control of it. It’s a reasonable assumption, but I would suggest you consider that, should we give the port to just one tribe or even a set of tribes would breed issues with the rest of the tribes, and be seen as Britannia picking a favorite partner or who we thought we could control. If we handed it over to all of the tribes and walked away, much as how you have continued to have raids, I think it’s reasonable to argue that stronger tribes would take over control of the port from weaker ones, again, effectively having the port under control of one tribe to the exclusion of others.”

Cormac could see the men nodding along with that point.

“Our only goal, in assisting you, is to act as an intermediary as needed for the council appointed, and offer suggestions that you are free to take or dismiss at your leisure, for how to assemble that council. Last is not part of the offerings to help ease the burdens the raids are causing your people, since it is something for sale. It isn’t, however, military in any way or connected to the raids. It is something that is on the verge of becoming available to our people, or so I’m told, that we want to give you the same access to. By that, I mean you will be able to trade for this at the same time that our own people will. Specifically, it is a set of tools that will allow you to reap far greater crop yields with significantly fewer men, freeing up manpower within your tribes. With that freed up manpower, you can focus on other projects to enhance and improve your own lands.”

“That is what we’re offering to do to assist all of the communities in Hispania, with one exception. Any new sales of goods, any goods, as well as membership to the ruling council over Port Invictus, will only be available to tribes who have refrained from initiating hostilities among their neighbors. When we started selling muskets and gunpowder, the agreement we made with each of you was clear. Sales would only happen if your tribe did not conduct hostilities. The same of weapons has already stopped to tribes identified as one of those raiding their neighbors, and will remain that way until those neighbors agree the hostile tribe no longer poses a threat.”

Cormac paused, looking around the room, to make sure his words set in.

“I know this isn’t enough, however. Some of the hostile tribes have taken to raiding settlements they know have purchased firearms and gunpowder from us, to replenish what they could not buy from us. Britannia is offering to patrol any area requested and will come to the defense of any tribe in good standing, who hasn’t attacked their neighbors, if asked.”

“Liar,” an angry voice called out from the crowd. “You speak of unity and bringing all the tribes together, but then you design tests of loyalty, pitting us against each other.”

It took a moment to find the man speaking. When he did find him, Cormac was surprised. The protest came from none other than the representative from the Arandur tribe, the biggest offender when it came to attacking their fellow tribes.

The look on Cormac’s face must have been easily read, since the man said, “You may not have said our names, but you have painted my people as one of these aggressors, simply because we have not bowed to your wishes as easily as some of the others. Even though we have not raided any of our neighbors, and have in fact been raided ourselves, you have labeled us as aggressors and enforced your rules that make it impossible for us to defend ourselves against this aggression.”

Cormac tried, and knew he failed, to keep the skepticism off his face. Nearly every other tribe in Vettones, the central region of Hispania, and the northern parts of the Turdetani regions all agreed the raiders they faced were Arandur. This was clearly a ploy targeting the tribes further east and west, who weren’t in direct conflict with their neighbors, perhaps in hopes of upsetting any long-term agreement that would allow their raiding to continue.

“We did not identify you as anything,” Cormac replied. “Your own neighbors are the ones who pointed to your people as the primary raiders across central Hispania.”

“Lies!” the Arandur man shouted, cutting him off. “Our villages have been raided relentlessly! Our people slaughtered! Yet you take the word of our enemies as truth?”

The crowd erupted into chaos. Cormac was nearly positive no raiding had occurred in their area and that they were behind the raids on their neighbors, but there were enough men from the tribes further out looking interested and concerned that Cormac didn’t think he could just dismiss them out of hand.

“Since our goal is to be an independent arbiter and allow the future of Hispania to be guided by its own people, we will not make the decision out of hand. Instead, we will dispatch a representative to determine the truth of these claims. We will continue to hold any sales or assistance while this is being determined, but we will not take direct action against your people, even at the request of your neighbors, until we have all of the facts at hand.”

“So you will just decide our guilt? You already have our neighbors as puppets, who will attest to anything you direct them to. What is the point of this charade?”

Cormac didn’t know if this man thought he could simply talk his way out of any consequences for their actions, but it wasn’t working. He was pushing too hard, and the positive response was less than it had been before. He was losing the audience, and he knew it.

“But,” the man continued. “We have nothing to hide. We welcome your agents to see for yourselves the lies portrayed against us.”

“Good, then it is settled,” Cormac said quickly, before the Arandur representative could attempt to weasel out again. “Before this council breaks, I will say again. We have already been asked to directly intervene on behalf of several of the attacked tribes. We only hold off to make sure we understand the full situation before acting. That pause will not last forever. Any tribe involved in hostilities against their peaceful neighbors, attacking unprovoked, will find a Britannian legion at their doorsteps.”

He looked across the assembled men, letting that sink in. Some tribes, like the Arandur representative, looked nervous at the pronouncement. Encouragingly, the majority, however, looked hopeful.

It meant they were on the right track. If they could just get these people working together, Hispania would finally have peace.