The Triumph of Venus - Chapter 4

In spite of her approval, it had taken several days working with Lurio, the imperial treasurer, to build out a budget for the rail project and go through all the details to make sure she understood exactly what Hortensius was planning. She didn’t exactly need the permission of her council of advisors for the project, but she wanted to run the idea past them.

Lurio already knew about the project, naturally, but Ramirus and Lassar were both brilliant in their own areas and could predict a lot of complications she might run into. More importantly, Taenaris was part of the council, and they needed his help to make this project work.

Finally, she was about ready to assign the budget for the project and only had her council’s thoughts left to get, which is why she was now at the long meeting table she’d sat at with her father so many times, now at the head of the table, instead of in the chair to the right, which was now occupied by Lurio.

“Thank you all for coming. While we have a lot of business to cover, the main thing I’d like your attention on is our new rail project. I know we have previously discussed the steam engine prototype being built, although at the time it was more of a curiosity than a major topic of discussion for this council, but we’ve entered the point of needing to build out the infrastructure for this new transportation system the Consul has been introducing. This means buying large areas of land and a wide building program significantly larger than either the semaphore or telegraph projects.”

“Surprisingly, the largest expense of this project isn’t constructing the lines or building the endpoints at either side for loading and offloading cargo and passengers,” she continued. “The largest cost is buying all of the land needed for the rail to cross. All but a small fraction of the land is in private hands, and we’ve decided to purchase it rather than just take it from the landholders. Considering the unrest, mostly supported by the large landholders, in our recent past, we wanted to avoid additional problems that would almost certainly come from just taking the land outright. Lurio has been good enough to find four million denarii for the land purchases and initial construction material for this first line, not counting the engine itself.”

“Yes,” Lurio said, stepping in. “That should be enough for the twenty mille-passus line between here and Factorium, and be sufficient for supplies, labor, land acquisition, station construction, and other associated costs. Minus the engine and developmental costs, as the Empress said. We anticipate needing seven hundred thousand for…”

“I’m not sure we need a part-by-part breakdown of the individual costs, although I’m certain Lurio will be more than happy to provide it to anyone who wants a more full accounting. He has assured me, however, based on his conversations with Hortensius and the estimates Ky left the last time he was in town, that it should be enough to cover it.”

“Correct,” Lurio said, stepping in again. “Although I do believe I can come up with five hundred thousand more if absolutely necessary, although that will take from the funds available for other projects. I would like to point out that, having looked at the numbers, I believe that the reduction in labor costs alone for the near-constant stream of wagons and barges down the river, not to mention the time savings of getting goods to market, will allow the rail line to pay for itself in under ten years, even with additional maintenance that might need to be met.”

“Exactly so,” Lucilla said. “Although I think we should also recognize that this isn’t just about money. More importantly than cost, the rail line will free up vitally necessary manpower for other industries or even the legions, since we won’t need nearly as many people transporting goods back and forth and reduce the four-hour round trip travel time many of the workers undergo every day. However, we need to get it built first. Which is where you come in, Taenaris. I know you’ve been helping Hortensius acquire the land needed. How is that progressing?”

“Well, actually. While it did look like there would be a few holdouts early on, we have been able to convince most of them to see the benefit of selling already. There are a few left to convince, but they are leaning toward selling now. I believe we should have the required land in the next few weeks.”

“And they’re happy with the agreement, or are we making new problems for ourselves down the road?”

“While I wouldn’t describe them as thrilled, they are generally accepting of the value they’re being offered,” the senator said. “I believe we may need to find other ways to work with or compensate a few further, to ease some still ruffled feathers, but I have some thoughts on that. Although I think we should wait, so as not to make the situation purely transactional, which might limit the credit and goodwill those efforts will generate with these landholders.”

“Excellent. I’ll leave the timing to the council’s suggestion, as long as none of our delays slows the rail project itself.”

“Is this really the smartest thing the empire can be doing with its limited resources?” Medb broke in. “Weapons production lags dangerously behind what the legion requires, and just two weeks ago, Ramirus reported to this council that our tribal allies are asking for more muskets and gunpowder than we can provide, and this is with the campaign seasons having ended. In a few short months, we will have legions marching across Germania, fleets in the Mediterranean, allies more actively engaged in everything from supporting our combatants to hunting, and my own husband in Hispania attempting to work with local tribes to secure that region as an ally. With all these demands on the empire’s large, but limited resources, is this the best thing that we can do with them? And yes, I understand there are potential logistical benefits down the road, but there is talk of this being the last year of the war, if everything goes well, meaning by the time we see those benefits, we will no longer be in as much immediate need of them.”

Lucilla had to fight everything inside of her to repress a frown. She’d added Medb to the council as part of her promise to help the former queen in return for the end to her plotting, and in hopes of finding a use for the otherwise wildly intelligent woman. At the time, it had seemed like a reasonable option to Lucilla, since the other option was to execute her, which would have almost certainly caused some kind of backlash in segments of the Ulaid populace. Her reasoning had been that, since the council was a more or less unofficial body without real authority, but with real power due to its influence over imperial policy, Medb would find enough satisfaction for her ambition to come into the fold.

And Lucilla had regretted that decision ever since. In every single meeting the council had held since Medb’s inclusion, the former queen had questioned every single decision Lucilla had made. Always with the utmost respect and always seemingly reasonable, but Lucilla wasn’t fooled. If it was anyone else, she would have found ways to excuse it, or if it had only happened once or twice, but the constant nature of it belied any good intent on her part.

Lucilla knew Medb was pushing, looking for an opening to exploit, and had yet to decide what to do about it because the questions were just innocent enough to be explainable. Medb wasn’t wrong; they were being pushed on both material and manpower from allies, the fleet, and the legions, which the queen would almost certainly hide behind when questioned. In spite of that, Lucilla wasn’t sure how much longer she’d accept her attempts at influencing the empress’s supporters.

Still, killing the woman outright was out of the question, so she’d have to be diplomatic.

“I appreciate the input, and I understand your concerns. However, we have looked closely at the overall impact of this project, and I do not believe the expenditure will significantly hinder our war efforts,” Lucilla said, pressing her hands under the table as a physical reminder to play nice. “The largest restrictions to our war production aren’t financial, but production capacity. We need rifles and gunpowder, neither of which will be overly delayed by the supplies the rail project is taking, especially gunpowder. Since the biggest delay in increasing our production is manpower at the factories and raw material, which is slowed by manpower in the mines, just spending more money will not increase the supply of those weapons.”

Lucilla could see Medb about to break in and held up a hand, anticipating the queen’s rebuttal. “Yes, the rail line requires some additional manpower, but Hortensius has specifically allocated workers in Devnum already tasked for domestic building projects. Legionary ranks and the number of factory workers and miners will be unaffected, and even if they were, the manpower use is large for a single building project, but small when compared against one factory, let alone a legion.”

“Further,” Lucilla continued, “this project has strategic value beyond logistics. It provides a valuable test platform for implementing new technology that could have a significant impact on dozens of new industries, both civilian and military. I believe the benefits outweigh the costs.”

Lucilla held hard eye contact with the queen for several seconds, daring her to respond. Medb knew she was being challenged and knew if she pushed too hard, she would make things worse for herself. After a moment of returning Lucilla’s focus, the queen looked away. A victory, of sorts.

“Any other questions or comments?” Lucilla asked, looking around the table at her other advisers.

She was certain some might have had a comment or a question, but Medb had successfully taken the wind out of the sails of that, to use an adage Valdar was fond of. She would pull the others aside one on one later and get their take individually, giving them opportunities to voice their concerns privately.

“Good. Moving on to other business. Lucan, you had some concerns about the current batch of Caravels under production,” Lucilla said, moving on, but not forgetting the confrontation.

***

“If there is no further business, this council is dismissed,” Lucilla declared forty-five minutes later, rapping her knuckles on the wooden table.

As her advisors and ministers began collecting themselves and preparing to leave, Lucilla held up a hand toward Medb, who had hopped up almost as soon as the meeting ended, making a line for the door.

“Medb, a moment please,” she called after her sharply.

The former queen halted, turning back with eyebrows raised, “Yes, Your Majesty?”

Lucilla waited until the last of their subordinates had filed out before speaking, “I wish to continue our prior discussion in private. Come to my office.”

Medb’s mouth thinned briefly. “As you command.”

Her words may have been polite and proper, but Lucilla didn’t mistake the woman’s eyes, which painted a very different framing of the words.

Lucilla walked past, leaving the queen to follow in her wake. If it was just them, Lucilla would never turn her back on the woman, but her guards would make sure Medb didn’t act out too much and corral her if she decided to try and avoid the confrontation they both knew was about to happen.

At her office door, Lucilla entered first, moving behind her desk and pointing to the padded stool across from it, directing the former queen to sit.

“Please shut the door,” Lucilla instructed her guard Modius.

She couldn’t help but notice that, while her guard followed her command, he did so while staying inside with them. While she would have preferred to have this conversation in private, she couldn’t fault him for his caution. She also wasn’t sure it was unwarranted. Either way, she didn’t want to distract herself with an argument of etiquette with him, so she let it be, turning her attention to the woman in front of her.

“We need to talk about your behavior in the council meetings,” Lucilla said, trying to keep her tone cool yet authoritative, instead of how she really felt. “Your constant questioning of my decisions is becoming disruptive.”

“My apologies, Your Majesty. As a member of this council, I only wish to provide constructive advice on matters of state.”

While her voice was polite and deferential, Lucilla wasn’t fooled for a moment.

“Of course, advice is always welcome when offered in the spirit of cooperation. However, your ‘advice’ often seems intended to undermine my authority, not strengthen it.”

Medb opened her mouth to object, but Lucilla held up a hand.

“Do not try to deny it. In every meeting you find some way to subtly criticize my decisions. Framing your insults as ‘innocent objections’ does not change their purpose.”

“I deny nothing,” Medb said. “I can only defend the words I say. If you feel there’s something in my heart, I can’t control your interpretation of that, unless you are claiming some powers granted by the gods. You submitted a massive new building project, and I simply pointed out that it would tax our capacities. You asked me onto this council to offer my long experience ruling a kingdom in my own right, before your war destroyed my home.”

“Let’s speak plainly. I brought you onto this council in hopes it would satiate your need for power and put an end to your plotting and scheming. I did not elevate you to this council to obstruct or delay. If you wish to contribute, do so constructively, not by implying incompetence in my administration.”

“Why even bother having a council to evaluate your decisions if you crush any dissent or disagreement?”

“I don’t crush dissent. I even want it, when it’s offered constructively. But sowing seeds of distrust with thinly veiled criticism serves no purpose but your own ego. I know what you’re doing, Medb. If it continues, we may reach a point where our agreement no longer works and we must resort to other options.”

“If Your Majesty is unhappy with my performance on this council, perhaps you should tell me plainly what you want.”

“I have too much respect for you to believe you actually want me to answer that,” Lucilla said, meeting the former queen’s gaze steadily. “You’re far too intelligent not to know or understand what the problem is already. I don’t consider you an idiot, Medb. I expect you to stop treating me like one.”

“Fine. What do you want from me then? Do you just want a pet, someone to repeat your words and give you praise? Because I might prefer the platform on the coliseum floor over that,” Medb said, referencing the current form of executions used in the city.

“I still hope we can avoid that. Bring your thoughts and speak them openly, as long as they are genuine complaints and not attempts to needle or gain some kind of upper hand against me. But once my decision is final, I expect your support. How this relationship proceeds depends on you. You can accept the situation and make the best of it, or keep playing dominance games. I don’t want to go with the other option, but if that is the direction you want to go, that might be the only option left to us. Do I make myself clear enough?”

Medb didn’t answer for a long time. A minute stretched by, the silence hanging between them. Lucilla didn’t know if the former queen was wrestling with her own thoughts or if this was another of her attempts at establishing dominance, but Lucilla was willing to wait her out as long as she needed to.

Finally, Medb said, “I will... consider Your Majesty’s words.”

“That’s all I ask. I know you might never believe me, as this is foreign to you, but I really do want to find a way to work with you. You’re a brilliant woman, Medb, and I have no doubt that you would be an amazing asset to the empire, if you could stop your scheming for only a moment. I know the one thing you want will never be in your grasp, and that can be infuriating, but you have a real chance at power here. At a station, even if it isn’t the one you want. I hope you choose not to throw away that chance you have in some foolish pursuit of ones you will never get. Either way, I’m tired of the games. It’s up to you to decide how things progress from here.”

“I understand,” Medb said.

Lucilla hoped so. She really did.

***

Port of Kalb

Cormac leaned against the railing as the ship glided into the harbor of Kalb, watching the bustle of activity around the sprawling military port. Ships of all sizes, from the large Caravel he stood on, to small refitted galleys, came and went. Some were part of Valdar’s fleet, protecting the mouth of the Middle Sea, while the rest were a mixture of supply ships for the fleet and legions or private ships taking advantage of the new opportunities opened by the legions’ conquests.

The one thing that was readily apparent was that every ship was Britannian. The Carthaginians had a stranglehold on this part of the world for a long time, and they had never been ones to allow private enterprise they could not directly control or exploit. Although, if things went well, that would change, as the villages stepped out of the Carthaginians’ shadows and began fighting for themselves.

Cormac had spent the entire journey amazed by the massive ship they sailed on. He’d only traveled by ship once, and that had been a galley that would have been considered large when he took the short trip on it five years ago. Next to the behemoths the Empress had given him as transportation to Hispania, that galley would have seemed like a toy. If he’d had any doubts about their winning this war, they were squashed on this journey. He’d seen the guns and cannons, and they’d been impressive in battle, but they were still weapons. Far removed from sword and bow, but he could understand them. The industrial might required to produce massive ships like this, and not one or two but dozens now—how could anyone stand against it?

Cormac was pulled from his thoughts as the gangplank thumped down on the dock and men began shouting orders to disembark the supplies and handful of additional legionnaires that had been sent along with Cormac.

Seeing Llassar by the gangway, he followed the Caledonian down onto the dock, where a man Cormac actually knew waited for them. Niall had traded the leather and iron armor his father’s men had worn when they took Ulaid from Fergus for the legionnaire’s more traditional legion armor, but otherwise, he looked the same as he had a year ago when he’d gone from his father’s service to the empire’s.

“My Prince,” the man said, thumping a fist to his chest in salute. “Welcome to Kalb. I can’t tell you how happy I am to have you here.”

Cormac returned the tribune’s salute, “It’s good to see you again, General. No, tribune, I see. The years have treated you well.”

“They have, my prince.”

Turning to gesture to Llassar, Cormac said, “Allow me to introduce my advisor, Llassar of the Caledonii.”

Cormac liked introducing Llassar as his advisor or sometimes, when he was feeling particularly brave, as his ‘aide.’ Besides tweaking the old man’s nose, it allowed Cormac some semblance of authority that would be lost if he introduced Llassar as his tutor or, worse, wet nurse. Even if that is what the Caledonian thought of himself as.

Llassar gave a curt nod in acknowledgment to the tribune but otherwise gave no indication of Cormac’s subtle slight.

“I’m eager to hear how things fare here in Hispania,” Cormac continued. “The Empress spoke of unrest among the tribes since the retreat of the Carthaginians. Has there been any progress on that front?”

“I’m afraid the region remains chaotic, my prince. With the legions focused on securing the coast and major cities, the rural tribes feel abandoned. Raids, skirmishes, and banditry plague the countryside beyond where my limited men can patrol. Here in Kalb,” Niall said, waving an arm at the port around them, “we can offer a little support to the closest tribes, but our range is limited.”

“How bad is it in the interior?”

“It’s bad, my prince, much worse than in the closest regions. With the Carthaginians gone, it seems every two-bit warlord or tribe is trying to seize power and territory. The tribes refuse to unite, too caught up in old rivalries and grudges.”

“Beyond the reach of our patrols, it’s like what is happening closer to us, but worse. Villages are being not only raided constantly but some even razed completely,” Niall continued. “Livestock stolen, homes burned, people kidnapped for ransom or sold as slaves. Trade has all but collapsed from banditry along the roads.”

Cormac frowned. The Empress had mentioned the situation was deteriorating, but she’d made it sound as if all he had to do was negotiate a few treaties and keep the tribes from interfering with their business in Gaul. What Niall was describing was a much worse situation than she had apparently known, or at least had been willing to tell him.

“And have the tribes shown any interest in talks of alliance?” he asked. “Surely they must see that some kind of mutual defense is their only real option out of the situation. Unless they’re asking for an overlord to replace the Carthaginians.”

“They aren’t looking for that, no. In fact, that’s what’s made helping even the closest tribes difficult. They are suspicious at best and openly hostile at worst any time we sent an emissary to try and broker deals to trade for supplies or negotiate passage. It’s clear they’re afraid of our being just another Carthaginian empire.”

“Are there any signs the Carthaginians have attempted to influence them or set up some kind of foothold?” Llassar asked, finally speaking up.

“Not yet, and based on the attitudes we’ve seen, it seems unlikely they would find much success without a full invasion and suppression of the locals.”

“You’d be surprised,” Llassar said. “Even in Rome, there have been a few here or there working for the Carthaginians, trying to sow unrest. They, of course, don’t let it be known that’s what their intent is, but it has been effective in causing delays to the war effort. There is a possibility some of the resistance you’ve gotten to your offers to help were in fact manipulated in that direction, and not a true indication of what the tribes actually want.”

“Which is why the Empress sent us,” Cormac said, trying for a confident and leaderly tone.

While this was more than he’d bargained for, it was also his first chance at real leadership and he wasn’t going to throw it away. If this is what he had to deal with, it’s what he would deal with.

“We’ll have to change their minds and get enough of these tribes united, or at least cooperating, that it’s difficult for dissenters or Carthaginian agents to sow any distrust or cause problems. The Consul made similar things happen in Gaul, and that has, so far, worked out, so we should be able to follow the same strategy ourselves. We offer what protection we can and, more importantly, tools for them to protect themselves in exchange for agreements of cooperation with each other, and us, of course. Once they begin to work together, we can then build on that.”

“As you say, my prince,” Niall said, but Cormac couldn’t miss the look he exchanged with Llassar.

It aggravated the prince. He’d seen senators, legionnaires, and businessmen all exchange the same look with his minder, and he knew what it meant. They either thought his suggestion foolish or him incapable of carrying it out. The look was one of derision, when they couldn’t otherwise say something directly like Llassar always felt he could.

“I will take a detachment of men and go visit the largest of the inland tribes myself, negotiate with their leaders, and explain the benefits of working with us, instead of against us.”

“Is that wise?” Llassar asked. “Aside from the danger of marching away from the protection of the port, which from the sounds of things is no small point, the commander just described a people who openly resent the treatment they had at the hands of the Carthaginians. And how they are seeing us as no different in their minds. If we march into their villages with soldiers, we’re just going to increase those fears, not diminish them. Shouldn’t our first goal be to calm them and convince them that we aren’t the same as the Carthaginians?”

“That’s what we’ve been trying. We are nearing the end of winter and the Carthaginians have been gone for months. The commander has offered supplies and assistance to them from a distance, and they have turned our hand away. We left it to them to work the issues out amongst themselves, and we’ve ended up with chaos. I think it’s time we try another tactic.”

Llassar opened his mouth to say something, but Cormac cut him off. This wasn’t like in Devnum, where he was Llassar’s subordinate in everything but name. The Empress had given him command of this expedition, and he was going to use it.

“I said I understand. I’ll be diplomatic. And yes, I understand there’s a danger of marching unsupported into the interior, which is why we’re going to focus on the lower tribes, closer to the port, if we can, to avoid being cut off from support. We brought enough men with us that I believe the Tribune can spare a century to send with us. Surely that should be enough to protect us from bandits.”

“My prince, I have to agree with your associate on this. It is dangerous to travel north and while a hundred men might be enough to protect you, it also might not. Surely there’s another option?”

“I’ve made my decision,” Cormac said dismissively. “The Empress sent me here to get Hispania in order, and that’s what I intend to do. Tribune, begin to collect supplies and prepare a century to march by week’s end. Send a runner ahead to the tribe, announcing our intended arrival, which should allay any fears they have of this being some form of new invasion. I want this done quickly.”

Niall hesitated before replying. “Yes, my prince. I’ll see to it personally.”

As the tribune hurried off, Llassar fixed Cormac with a stern look. “Are you, perhaps, being somewhat reckless? We know little of the interior or the disposition of these tribes. Even with warning, our marching in with soldiers may provoke a response other than the one you’re wanting.”

“Perhaps. But we cannot sit idly by while the countryside descends into chaos. As I said, the Empress tasked me with restoring order here, and I fully intend to do so.”

For a long moment, Cormac thought Llassar was going to correct him again, or order him to not go.

Surprisingly, when he finally spoke, the old Caledonian only said, “If you think that’s the right approach.”

While not exactly a ringing endorsement of his plan, it was nice to not have Llassar actively standing in his way this time.