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Apionnas stood to speak, however after the Basileus's last comment regarding Senator Aristenos, he raises an eyebrow and resumes his seat, his eyes now sifting through the applications for the University.
From his seated position he says;
I second CA 6.5
"I wish to know why our 'lord' wishes our best fighting men only under his command? I question your motives Ioannis."
Savvas stumbles into the Magnaura. His face clearly shows the signs of a rough night. He sits down and empties a goblet of wine, muttering to his scribe 'I'm getting too old for this nonsense'.
He stands up and addresses the Magnaura.
Allthough I wish both candidates the best of luck with their campaign, I must say that I prefer experience over youth and thus I want to make it public that I support the candidacy of Pavlos. His decades of loyal service to the Empire and our Basileus are an example for all of us.
The Fatimids and Seljuks have been disposed of and I agree that the time to march West has finally come. I support edict 6.1 wholeheartedly.
But we should be more ambitious then that.
Therefore, I propose Edict 6.4.: The Empire will conduct a direct assault on Rome. An army containing at least 15 regiments will be shipped over the province of Rome and shall march on the City of Rome. After conquering Rome, the city will be occupied.
Yes, fellow Senators. I am convinced that the time has come.
Rome belongs to us, let's take it!
Savvas takes the goblet of his scribe and drinks. He mutters 'bah, water" and spits out the water, accidentally in the direction of Klimis Dokeianos. He mutters "sorry", fills his own goblet with red wine and empties it.
Apionnas:
My lords, the following Senators are currently scholars at the University.
Patrikios Armatos ek Naksou
Patrikios Ioannis Kalameteros
Strator Andronikos Komnenos
Domestikos and Caesar Methodios Tagaris
I would request these gentlemen resubmit their reasons for remaining part of this August learning body if they wish to remain.
I am also asking all other senators to submit their own cases for admission.
All submission must include the trait they wish to enhance or remove and why.
Spoiler Alert, click show to read:
To one side of the Magnaura a whispered debate breaks out among a group of scholars. At last one of them hesitantly brings forward an outside messenger who displays a letter bearing the seal of Vissarionas ek Lesvou. The messenger nervously glances at the Emperor and the members of the Privy Council for any sign of disapproval before he begins to read.
Senators of Rome,
A pretender sits among you issuing commands and proclamations that run counter to the good and necessary running of the Empire. That vile false king struts about trying to mismanage our war in Egypt and the Holy Lands for his own petty causes, ignoring what is best for Byzantium herself. He even threatens to steal away our children for his nefarious purposes!
What is worst, though, is that he does all this at the behest of Islam itself! He is stealing away our Empire to deliver it into the hands of Muslims. Here, near their base of operations, word runs rampant that the Emperor is seeking a deal with the cult of Assassins to secure their services for him and his cronies alone.
I am certain I need not point out that a Muslim sits among you even now, enjoying the highest positions, indolent in luxury provided by the power of the throne.
God watches our Empire, for it is beloved of him, and surely he is not pleased by what he sees. I hear word that we may move to make war on the Catholics. I am certain we will find victory despite the absence of a true leader at the head of our nation, but nonetheless be wary of launching this war! If the false king supports it then it must somehow aid his nefarious Muslim heart!
The day is coming when my work here will be finished, when I will return to Constantinople myself. If I have discovered anything here in the desert it is that God saves no mercy for the infidel or those who shelter him, protect him, or work with him. I beg you, noble senators, do not be counted among that number, for God has a higher purpose for our Empire than dancing on the puppet strings of Islam!
Vissarionas ek Lesvou
As he reaches the end of the letter the messenger at last takes his eyes from the throne and sheepishly glances around the chamber, relieved to have completed his duty. The depth of his error becomes apparent as abruptly Apionas Vringas leaps up from his seat and, with a wordless roar of fury, seizes the messenger by the throat. Holding the slight man up with only his toes still in contact with the floor, Apionas says,
It is to this degree that I hold the words of this messenger and the person who wrote them in contempt and treason.
Forcing the messenger's head back with his thumb Vringas then drives the side of his other hand forcefully into the flesh of the man's throat, knocking him out entirely. With a rough shake Vringas determines that the messenger is truly unconscious before depositing him on the Senate floor for the guards to drag away.
:egypt:
Efthymios views this shocking scene and his face turns purple.
Um, well, I will be back later, I have some buisness to sort out before I put my point forward. Yes, um, goodbye.
Efthymios trots out and breaks into a jog when near the doors of the Magnaura.
*The Protoasecrets tamps his staff loudly on the marble floor of the Magnaura.*
"ORDER! THERE WILL BE ORDER IN THE SENATE!"
*He glares balefully at Senator Vringas.*
"Senators will commit NO violence in this chamber while I still draw breath! I care not whether it be against the Antichrist himself! If there is a living being in this chamber that needs to be removed in some manner, the Senate Guards will deal with him personally, under the specific command of the Basileus or myself. If the Guards must resort to violence to remove this person, then so be it, but it will not be done by the Senators!"
*The Protoasecretes stands very quickly and suddenly; all vestiges of his former frailty vanishing instantly.*
"And if any of you 'politicians' think you can overwhelm me due to my age, then you are in for a most unpleasant surprise. In the Magnaura I am the law. You will respect the peace or you will be removed from this chamber! If you want to kill each other, go to the Hippodrome! This is Byzantium, not Rome, AND THERE WILL BE ORDER IN THIS SENATE!"
*The Protoasecrets glares around the room once again, before slowly sitting down. On his descent, his cane wobbles heavily and it appears the old man is going to fall over and break his hip. However, he manages to secure his seat once again, and starts mumbling to some invisible figure about the disrespect of youngsters and the decline in the quality of Creten figs.*
Savvas stands up, clearly annoyed because of the interruption right after he proposed his Edict.
Well, now that we have heard the message of our brave friend Vissarionas ek Lesvou, whose heroic deeds like, eh, ehm, writing insulting letters, will be remembered for generations, we can perhaps focus on more trivial matters, like the conquest of Rome?
I wonder.. will the Protoasecretes throw the Basileus out of the Magnaura if the Basileus commits a personal attack against some Senator?
Since Protoasecretes said that He is the law in here then I wonder - who is Basileus then?
Theo smiles..
Apionnas glances coolly at the Senator. Nodding his head at the subtle comment he gives a rueful smile.
My friend Savvas perhaps you are correct - a speedy attack at the bishop of Rome may be the best way to completely devastate that meddling entity once and for all.
Make no mistake the agents of Catholicism have committed gross acts of treachery against Orthodoxy. There were those among us that believed after the great Schism that we would one day unite together under Christianity.
But Rome watched whilst we burned at the hands of the Turks and shockingly allowed a Moorish Jihad to cross their lands to eventually besiege Consinantinople itself. Add to this the blatent open missionary work being done in Belgrade and Durrazzo, along with the German presence in the Levant perhaps it is indeed time that Rome realised who the authority on Christianity is in this world.
I wish to second Edict 6.4 , so that it can be put to vote and test the loyalty and piety of the people of this Orthodox Christian realm.
Conquering Rome now would be like putting a stick in a bloody hornets nest! All the Catholics would be offended and want to avenge him. And as long as there are Catholics they will have some Pope or another, severing this snake's head will only have them sprout another one. We have legitimate claims regarding Venice and the rest of the Italian peninsula. Let's wait with the final strike until we are truly prepared.
Aren't our claims on Rome justified then? We are the only civilisation worhty of the name civilisation left in this world.Quote:
Originally Posted by Ituralde
The Eternal City is ours! We have tolerated this abomination of Catholics ruling our city long enough now. We are finally powerful enough to claim what is ours: Rome and the entire peninsula surrounding it.
Dear Pavlos, gentlemen, with those Fatimid and Seljuk dogs out of our way, we are ready to write history. Let the world know that Manzikert was just a regretful coincidence. Let the world once again tremble for the might of the Roman Empire!
Klimis Dokeianos:
Rome yearns to be taken. I believe that we are ready to do so this term rather than later on down the line. It it thus in this spirit that I second Edict 6.4.
*The Protoasecretes pounds his staff on the floor once again, though with less enthusiasm that he displayed a short while before.*
The time for proposing legislation has passed. Voting will now commence and remain open for 48 hours, until 23:00 GMT on Wednesday, October 22nd.
The Basileus walks into the Magnaura a grave expression on his face.
Senators, I have a grave announcement to make. Our Caesar, Methodios Tagaris, has blatantly violated my will, and has rebelled against me and my authority.
I therefore command all houses to declare war upon the rebel Caesar and bring him to account. Remember your oaths of loyalty at my coronation when you consider your position.
I hereby call upon all senators and nobles of the empire to declare their hand - now. I will have no neutrality. You either will declare against the Caesar, or against me.
The Basileus marches out of the Magnaura, and indicates to the Protoasecretes that the Chancellor will publicly receive the pledges from the nobles.
I thank you Senators for the support you have shown to me in the recent Election. I will fulfill the position of Megas Logothetes to the utmost of my ability.
That being said I highly condemn the actions taken by Caesar Methodios Tagaris. He acted in direct violation of an Imperial prerogative! Such disobedience will not be tolerated. I declare war on Methodios Tagaris!
But! I will not condone the spreading of Roman blood under my rule. I ask the Caesar and Basileus to come together and agree on a Peace Treaty, determining the punishment for the Caesar, before it comes to bloodshed.
Savvas raises an eyebrow.Quote:
Originally Posted by Ituralde
First you declare war and then you demand a peace treaty?
I thought you were elected as Megas, not our resident stand-up comedian specialised in absurd humor...
Savvas sighs.
Indeed, Methodios Tagaris should be punished for his disobedience.
Banning him from the territory of the Empire, disowning and disinheriting him and stripping him from all his titles and retinue, seem like better solutions then killing thousands of Roman taxpayers...
I understand the rage of our Basileus, but I humbly request that we solve this unpleasant matter in a more civilised way.
Of course, if it would come to a de facto civil war, it is pretty obvious on which side you will find me.
Tiverios stands.
I support the Megas Logothetes in his request for negotiations. I suspect the Basileus decreed the marriage without consulting the Father, which is his right even if brusquely done. However both parties should take the oppurtunity to talk that they ignored before.
These are modern times, we should no longer should go to war over a woman, no matter how. . .beautiful. . she may be.
I understand there are deeper currents to this matter, but. . .this is madness.
Tiverios trails off unsure what else to say.
Theo starts to laugh...
Stupid people! I say this to all of you.. STUPID people! Start a war because of a woman who is .. well.. what she is! I would slap Pavlos against his face and clear his mind but Protoasecretes wouldn't like it probably.
Theo smiles..
I agree with Tiverios, let those two roosters talk to each other and solve it with out a bloodshed! And if they can't solve it then.. it's simple.. They both are STUPID! Have I said 'stupid' before already?
Theo looks his scribe who smiles and nods..
Bah! I'll say it again.. Stupid, stupid, stupid, stupid... This is what you get when a stupid man is on the throne! I almost wish that there would be those Praetorian Guards from the Roman times present today. They knew what to do with STUPID people!
Theo sits back.. and burst into laugh again..
Spoiler Alert, click show to read:
Savvas looks at Theo.
Dear Senator, I believe that calling the man we all swore allegiance to stupid, is,... well, stupid.
Savvas sighs and sips from his goblet of wine.
Theo smiles..
Perhaps you did but I didn't. And why? Because I knew he will do some stupid things soon. And was I right or what?
So, you think the Basileus should simply ignore the blatant disobedience of Caesar Methodios Tagaris and act as if nothing happened?Quote:
Originally Posted by Ibn-Khaldun
You don't agree that Methodios should be punished?
Pavlos turns to look severly at Savvas ek Militou.
Do I look as if I'm bloody joking, Senator?
I mean exactly what I said! The right response to the act of treason done by the Caesar is to declare him an outlaw. To do this we must declare war on him. This does not mean that I will lead legions of men into devastating battle, yet. The decision is now up to the Caesar. Either he is willing to face his just punishment or we will have to make sure that he does. You might prefer to talk the day away, I prefer action.
Pavlos then looks at Theo Petzeas
And concerning you, I have just about had enough of your petty insults. If you truly believe that this matter is over what exactly Princess Hypatia is, then there is little help for you.
Well.. Methodios IS the father of Hypatia. So he should have the right to marry her to whom ever he wants. Or with whom Hypatia wants.
So I don't think Methodios should be punished. Basileus' shouldn't be able to stick their heads into someone else family life!
Senator Petzas, it may have escaped your attention but as heir to the Imperial throne Methodios Tagaris is part of the Imperial family, which is headed by the Basileus, Ioannis Komnenos. The Basileus is enacting his prerogative by sticking his hands into his bloody own family life!
No it is not his family. Is Ioannis Methodios' father? Or brother? or Son? They are not even related to each other! So, the Basileus should not stick his head into Methodios' personal life!
Nikolaos enters, calmly sits down, and takes a sip from a mug, Demetrios ever present at his side with his smug Cheshire grin. "Now, lets start business. Who can promise me that after my House is gone, that I have something to look forward to. Name something concrete please, because we all know that is exactly what I have now, and that is exactly what is disappearing out from underneath me."
I guess you should check with your secretaries regarding an old Roman tradition called adoption.
And you should check the Royal Family Tree much closer! It was not Ioannis who accepted Methodios in to the Royal family. It was late Mavrozomis. And it was not adoption but patronage. After he died there were no ties anymore between Methodios and Ioannis! Also.. I don't remember anyone yelling and screaming and declaring civil wars when Ioannis Kalameteros' daughter married!