Stories Thread

**Kagemusha** · 06-03-2008, 09:01

Kantakouzinos residence the next morning.

Ioannis woke up early and had his usual simple breakfast. Naksos waited patiently until his master was served and then started reporting of the usual things like the household costs, new servants and other things normal.

The older man waited for Ioannis to change the subject to other things more urgent, but as the younger man did no such thing, finally he gave up and asked.

"So Master, how was the banquet."

Ioannis watched the view opening up from the windows opposite to him and replied.

"Naksos, i really do not know. Maybe the Varangian guard will arrive soon and put me into chains and i will be deported to some small island on Aegean Sea, or maybe nothing will happen. What i know is, that now Anna Komnenos knows who sent her the book and also she either understands that i have feelings for her, or thinks im crazy. Which in the end is pretty much the same thing. Only time will tell, what the princess thinks..."

Ioannis stopped talking when a young boy entered the room and whispered something to the ear of Naksos. The older man nodded as sign that he understood and the boy left.Naksos moved his eyes to Ioannis and said.

"The Basileos is about to address the Senate."

Ioannis turned his eyes to Naksos and replied.

"Then lets go."

**TheFlax** · 06-04-2008, 02:13

Reflections

Imperial Palace, Constantinople, 1081

The banquet had ended nearly an hour ago and it was well into the fourth hour of the apodeipnon. A cool breeze sporadically made the many candles in room quiver. In that wavering light, Anna sat hunched on herself at the edge of her bed, her hands in her disheveled hair and her eyes red with tears. Her silken white nightrobe echoed each shudder as Verina tried to confort her. The book she had received the other night was sprawled on the floor, minor damage could already be seen in some places.

Reality had came crashing in tonight. The day before, messages from unknown admirers seemed surreal, as in a fantasy. It had been all a game for her, trying to discover their identities, yet always missing some crucial clue. A few hours, one of them had revealed himself as Ioannis Kantakouzinos, an acquaintance she had met several years ago. Not only had he toyed with her before revealing himself, but had prompty left her in a state of turmoil that had left her defenseless against the throng of suitors and sycophants who had jumped at the occasion.

She had thanked God for giving her the strength of keeping face until the end of the banquet. Rage, frustration and sadness had built up for the better part of the night and once the banquet was over she had rushed to her room and surrendered to them. She felt angry at herself, for being taken unware, and at Ioannis, for leaving her to the wolves without consideration. She felt frustrated at her powerlessness over this whole situation. She felt sadness because she could not give Ioannis want he wanted and because the revelation had shattered her foolish but conforting romantic dreams.

Rubbing her eyes, Anna turned to her confidante.

"What should I do?" She inquired in a desperate tone.

"About what?" Verina replied, moving to sit beside her.

"Ioannis Kantakouzinos." The name was spoken without a hint of emotion.

"He loves you, does he not?"

"He said as much."

"Then use him."

Anna's expression turned from grief to shock.

"I can't do that!" Outrage was creeping in her voice, yet Verina remained calm.

"Don't you frequently use other people's weakness to your advantage when dealing with them?"

Anna pondered the question, a bit too long for her own liking. Her reply was hesitant.

"It's... It's not exactly like that...I..."

"It's exactly the same thing." Verina pressed on as she felt Anna ceding ground.

"I guess so... but it feels wrong."

Yet Anna's hesitation was slowly slipping away. Verina felt Anna was about yield and delivered the final blow. "Didn't he hurt you Anna? Look at the state you are in!" In Anna's mind it made sense, would should she worry about how he felt after he clearly abandonned her, uncaring about her feelings? She let herself fully drop in the plush bed.

"You're right Verina. If needs be, I'll do it."

"What about the two Comes you have already met, Kosmas and Makedonios?"

Anna propped herself slightly on her elbows and locked her eyes with those of her confidante. "They aren't interested in me Verina, not in that way."

The older woman laughed softly. "Anna, every man is interested in you!"

Anna shock her head lightly. "Not them, they won't."

Verina became more insistent. "Anna! You have to use every advantage you have, you must..." In an instant Anna rose to a sitting position and scowled at Verina.

"Enough!"

Verina gave her an apologetic look. "But Anna..."

Anna cut her off as she rose. "Leave." Not looking back, she made her way to the room's balcony. Pushing the drapes aside she made her way into the darkness until she felt the balcony's railing. She propped herself on it and gazed at the sleeping city before her. Somewhere out there, Ioannis was thinking about her, not knowing how she felt. She silently apologized for what she was about to do.

**Privateerkev** · 06-04-2008, 03:01

Spoiler Alert, click show to read:

1081:

A desk and chair had been moved into the Grandmaster's spartan quarters. Simple and made of wood, there was a candle and a pen on top of the desk. By all accounts, today would have been considered a good day. The politics were going about as well as could be expected. Deals were being made for the benefit of all involved. Things were moving forward. But today was not a good day.

Makedonios sat hunched over a desk trying to scribble something down on a piece of paper. Ever since he had met Anna, he couldn't get her out of his mind. She consumed his thoughts. She floated into his mind like a beautiful apparition and smiled at him with that glowing smile of hers. He had not had a good nights sleep since they met.

They had communicated since but it was... very basic. No emotion, no heart. Makedonios had poured over her letters as if to soak every last drop of emotion out of them. But there was none there. The exercise left him feeling empty. There was no solace and no closure to be found there. He needed to tell her how he felt. But how?

He was under no illusions. He knew her father would never let them marry. And he knew she only saw him as a useful confidante. And he knew his faith and commitment to the Lord would never allow anything to progress any further. But he still felt how he felt. There was no denying it. He was starting to develop feelings for her. And not the kind of infatuation all the nobles felt. No, he actually liked the person he was getting to know. He liked her for the little things. The imperfections that defined her character. The times she allowed a little weakness to show.

For when she allowed weakness to show, it proved that she was not too proud to admit she was not perfect. She was very... humble for a Princess. And intelligent. Far more intelligent than the Comes. But unlike many men, Makedonios did not mind that. He knew he was smart enough to get the job done and that was good enough for him. Her intelligence did not threaten him. He hoped she knew that. Makedonios had already gotten a good read on many men in the Senate and he could tell that many of those men could not handle being with a woman smarter than they.

All night, Makedonios tried to scribble on the piece of paper with his hands shaking. Little rolled up balls of paper littered the floor. He didn't know how to put his feelings down on paper. He glanced at a small Orthodox cross on the wall from time to time. First praying for forgiveness for his impure thoughts. Then for strength. Now he prayed for guidance. Nothing came to mind.

Giving up, the Grandmaster got up and snuffed out the candle. Putting his robe over his clothes, he left the room, and quietly padded through the Order's chambers in the Senate building. He just needed to get some air. It was an unusually hot night but there was a breeze. Strolling down the path along the Magnaura, he saw the palace. He wondered which window was hers.

Standing there thinking, he realized that if he wrote to her tonight, he'd just be putting his own problems on her. Sure he was conflicted and confused. But why did he think earlier that she could possibly help him with that? He did put some of his work problems on her but she had asked to help. But this was different. This would be putting his emotional problems on her. He still didn't know what to do. But he knew he would somehow just have to work through it. And it would do neither of them any good to have him dump his emotional baggage on her.

Saying a prayer for her, Makedonios walked back into the Senate building to go to bed.

**Kagemusha** · 06-04-2008, 10:30

Kantakouzinos residence the next evening after the banquet.

Ioannis returned home from Senate session in a good mood. Long gone were the agonizing thoughts of the morning, when he was expecting of being arrested or even deported.

The day had been eventful and in the end, after some more then comical events, the young Kantakouzinos had to leave the Senate session with almost hysterical laughter.

As Ioannis reached the Kantakouzinos residence, Naksos was waiting him already outside. With a meaningful expression on his face, the old man handed over a letter bearing a royal seal.Ioannis took the letter and without saying anything looked at Naksos, with inquiring expression on his face. The old man answered with a smile and nodding of his head.

As soon as Ioannis reached his bedroom he sat down and cut open the seal with a letter knife. His eyes moved along the first few lines and a large smile entered the face of young Kantakozinos. Towards the end of the letter, the smile dimmed and Ioannis raised his head few times, with pondering expression in his face. When he reached the end of the letter, Ioannis remained sitting still, watching as the flame of the large candle standing on his desk, created dancing shadows around his table. Slowly he pushed the letter aside, grabbed paper and started writing on it. Once he was finished, Ioannis took his seal from a draw of his desk, poured some wax on the envelop and pressed hard his seal to the wax, with smile, but also somewhat troubled expression on his face.

After few minutes of stillness, Ioannis said in a silent voice.

"Naksos, enter."

The older man who had already stood behind the heavy wooden door of Ioannis bedroom marched in and bowed to his master. Ioannis looked sharply in the eyes of the older man and said.

"Deliver this letter to the Princess and do not let it slip in wrong hands, even if you had to guard it with your life."

Bowing his head, Naksos took the letter and left the room, while the younger man remained still, watching the flame of the single candle, lighting the room.

**ULC** · 06-04-2008, 17:39

Constantinople, Order of St. John's Chambers, 1081

Iakovos rubbed his eyes and shifted in his seat, setting the book he had been reading to one side. He turned to stare at the flickering flame before standing up and turning to the shelves of scrolls and books within the Order's library within the Senate. Iakovos sighed as he looked wonderingly at the marvel the written word was, how each parchment, each scroll, each page, was the past connecting with the present. Iakovos mused to himself how he spent more time in the library reading or writing then the chapel praying and reflecting.

Iakovos sighed to himself as he reached up and pulled a copy of the book he was reading from the shelf and opened it to the page he was reading. He was sure he had come across a discrepancy, and it would need to be corrected. After a moment, he found it. A sentence had been rearranged, and the one he was reading from was written in a form harder to understand. Closing the book, Iakovos returned to his desk and jotted down the book title and page, to remind himself to look for a third to see if he could not clear up the actual phrasing.

Returning the one upon his desk to the shelves, Iakovos extinguished the candle, and turned to go to his private chambers. As he walked, a chain with a locket clinked, and Iakovos instinctively reached for it. Upon it was written in German "Seek first to Understand, then to be Understood.". It was a parting gift from his father, the only thing he had of him, who had died when Iakovos was 9 at Manzikert, along with his two elder brothers, Aleksander and Ehrhart. His mother had tried to raise him afterwards on her own, but soon passed away of heartbreak not soon after.

He was taken to a monastery, where he truly learned of God, and where he developed his love of the written word. Iakovos had made his way to his chambers, brushing open the door and sweeping in only to collapse into his bed, tired from the days activities and the lack of sleep. Iakovos quickly drifted off into a deep slumber.

**The Lemongate** · 06-05-2008, 05:57

(written with TheFlax)

The Merchant and the Princess

Anna had picked the early afternoon to visit Hagia Sophia in order to commune with the Lord, yet as she neared the Magnaura, she sensed something was wrong when she could not hear the usual heated debates coming from the building. She paused in front of the building, halting her escort, asking herself if she should peer into the building.

Her attention was suddenly caught by a clamor coming from within the Magnaura's courtyard. The seat of the Senate was rarely calm when the august body was in session, but the vociferous voice that was rising from the marble gateway leading to the Magnaura had nothing to do with bickering senators. It was rather an eclectic mix of high-pitched italian swears, some so obscure even a native speaker would have had trouble discerning their literal meaning, and boisterous oaths of revenge, most of them inhuman tortures having to do with the ingurgitation of substantial quantities of lard.

When the speaker finally exited the Senate courtyard, fearful guards respectfully keeping their distances, she could see the man was a strongly built Italian. His most prominent feature, his expansive belly, preceded him by several feet. He was dressed in the finest Italian silk clothes, although the choice of attire and color left much to be desired. In one hand he held a ridiculously large, feathered cappello hat with which he was threatening the guards following him.

As the gates were closed behind him, he bellowed :

"Pagliacci ignari! I will have you fattened with little German salsiccie until your tongues drop off! Scimmie! I will go to the highest authorities with this! The highest authorities! The Emperor himself will hear of this you can be sure! To treat Voluminoso Maiale with such indignity! I'm a prince I'll have you know! Un principe, voi imbeciles! When the consuls of Genoa learn of this! Mama mia!"

Anna could hardly contain a light laughter at grotesquely obese man's display. Nevertheless, she regained some measure of seriousness when he mentioned the emperor. If he had a complaint to make, it could be made it to her, no need to bother her father with such things.

Neither could this task be relegated to someone of lower rank if he was a prince. For diplomacy's sake, even Latin princes needed to be respected. Motioning her escort forward, Anna made her way to him. She addressed him in a soft and conciliatory voice.

"Good lord of Genoa. You wish address a complaint to the royal family?"

Voluminoso turned around with impressive speed and agility for such one of such enormous bulk. Of course, keeping his balance was something else altogether, but after nearly flattening one of the princess’ retinue, he managed to find a relatively firm footing. When he saw a lady of the highest nobility before his eyes, his years of classical education where etiquette and prestance were beaten into him with a stick (or sometimes a large trout) came rushing back to his mind. Grimacing for an instant at the thought of the trout, he quickly struck a pose and bowed, his flabby stomach scraping the ground.

"La maggior parte della altezza nobile, signora allineare, principessa generosa, I thank you for your concern! You are a true soul to take pity of a man in such extreme circumstances! Mama mia! Even in Italia the gentleladies are not so caring!

I am Voluminoso Maiale, of Genoa, merchant extraordinaire, richest man west of Constantinople e un vero Principe Italiano! I have just arrived in the city on my ship, il Carico di Lardo and I fear I got lost. Even my coach has abandoned me! So I entered this building here to seek some help, to talk to the proper authorities, but they treated me like una bestia senza valore! It is unimaginable! To treat so badly a man coming from the great city of Genoa! A man that has come to make connexions with the great people of the Greeks and Romans! I bring the best of wares! And money! I will buy entire city blocks! Make markets! And soldi! Soldi per tutto! Per tutto! For you, for me, for everybody!

And then I want to meet the Emperor! And his daughter! They say she is the most beautiful lady on the northern shores of the Mediterranean. A beauty like you la mia signora. I have brought gifts and presents for the royal family! My ship is full of them! But what am I to do, now lost in this huge city? And my coach, this idiota maledetto that has run away! I pray you can help me principessa generosa!"

Voluminoso was giving a truly a pathetic show. His beady little eyes seemed ready to burst in tears and his large, greasy shoulders were visibly sinking into his form. But worst above all, he seemed sincerely distraught at his situation. That any man be in such predicament would elicit sympathy, but that such an enormous buffoon be so assailed by misery could turn around even the hardest of hearts.

Anna usually despised Italian princes. They were more akin to rich merchants than anything else and Anna was tempted to abandon him to his fate. Yet something in his speech moved her. She pitied the man even though he was a Latin. He seemed genuinely in distress, of that she was sure. She hardly understood the barbaric tongue of the man and what she did understand of his disjointed Greek made little sense. He wanted to buy the city?

Nevertheless, he wanted to meet the emperor and her. Maybe she could spare her father the visit of this man by indulging him. Surely pointing him to lodging establishment and making him understand the emperor was too busy with the Magnaura would not be too hard. For all the pity she had for him, she would not tolerate wasting too much time with this bumbling fool. Speaking noticeably slower and very clearly, as if to an infant, Anna pointed to the building behind the man. Hopefully, he would understand, but Anna had her doubts.

"That is the Mag-nau-ra, the location where our representatives assemble to pass le-gis-la-tions. No one but those authorized to do so may enter. Now the emperor is bu-sy, but I, as his daughter and representative, might be able to alleviate your concerns. You were seeking lod-ging, yes?"

There was a pause in Voluminoso’s train of thought. His mind snapped. She had said it. She was her. Her. The woman he had come to see. The woman he had come to marry and bring back to his estate in Genoa. He felt great emotion to know that she had stopped to talk to him in his hour of need. He was overcome by a powerful feeling, something he had rarely felt before. His immense body quivered for an instant. Tender feelings flooded his mind, and for a fleeting moment, a damn broke deep inside of him and he was filled with bliss. But he was quickly called back to the grim realities of his situation, and a single thought now clearly formed in his mind:

Spoiler Alert, click show to read:

Totally unacceptable for a man of his prestigious situation to be married to a woman of this minuscule size, be she queen of half the world! No, no, no, no, no! He had to get out of this situation and fast! He felt that she could fall in love with his herculean physique at any time. He knew the sway he had over women. And yet, such a charming lady, and she was the fabled princess of the Greeks, their new Helen (well less plump of course, a shame). He could not simply push her back. He had to play the game.

"Cuore dorato, I cannot accept your help! You are a principessa, a Greek princess you see, and I am un grande e commerciante potente, il più ricco."

Voluminoso hoped he wasn’t being to hard on her. He added, with forced emphasis :

"But I will hold your smile in my heart, bella signora, it will warm me more then any hotel or senate ever could. I will hold dear this memory of the princess of the Greeks and send you the presents I have brought on board my ship! But I will be busy you understand, I’m an important man, demand and supply and bridging new markets. I might not be able to come see you, braciola di maiale adorabile, or your fine father."

As he was saying these words, his coach finally reappeared. It looked like it had been vandalized as a huge ax was stuck in a door and one wheel was missing, but it somehow managed to keep relatively straight. Voluminoso entered it as quickly as his adipous form would allow and waved at the princess as his coached dashed away :

"I know you would have me stay, but I must take my leave il mio piccolo criceto grasso. I will send you an orchestra to sing you the serenade!"

Feeling relieve that he had finally been able to put an end to this rather unfortunate conversation, he hoped he would be able to spend the rest of his trip to Constantinople without meeting her again, but he had an ominous feeling his fate might decide otherwise.

Anna was stunned at his tirade. She felt relief at the mention of not having enough time to see her, but why the sudden change of disposition? The moment she had revealed who she was, he had changed his attitude. One instant he wanted guidance and to explain his grievances, the next he wanted to never see again?

Was it something she said? Was he afraid of her? She silently hoped so, because she hardly wished to meet that man again. And yet she feared fortune would not show her that simple kindness...

**flyd** · 06-06-2008, 04:36

Constantinople, 1081

A letter is personally delivered to Markianos Ampelas. Verified authentic by a method agreed upon.

This is a preliminary report based on the information collected so far.

The subject's claim to have Greek family is likely true. His main correspondence is with a man who he identifies as an uncle, though the identity of the man has not been independently verified yet. Other possible family members have been observed interacting with the subject, though their relations have not been discovered. In general, the subject and family act normal, given that they have not seen each other for many years, and there has been no evidence that this is a ruse or cover. That, combined with the fact that he has been admitted to the Senate (though the proof presented to the Senate is unknown), strongly indicates that the subject has Greek relatives as he claims.

However, the subject has been observed exhibiting several suspicious behaviors, which are summarized below. The first set of behaviors relates to his political allegiance, and the second to the religious.

The subject has several contacts whom he meets with regularly. These men are likely of Arabic descent, though that is based on appearance only, but all of my associates, some of whom are very widely traveled, agree on this point. Their meetings have been in public places, but difficult to approach. This possibly indicates that they wish the contents of their meetings to remain secret, even at the expense of the meetings themselves being publicly observable. However, that is not the only explanation, as they could simply be unskilled in choosing clandestine meeting places, or that they are unconcerned with being seen. Furthermore, these men act in a slightly subordinate manner towards him. If he was in the Mamluk army as he claims, these could be his former comrades, especially of lower rank. If he is a spy, then these men could form his spy ring, with him as the ring leader. They remain unidentified.

The subject was observed visiting the Hagia Sophia, but did not cross himself at the entrance. This is a possible indication of heathenism, but he may have been unaware of the custom if he spent many years among the Saracens. Still, unless he was taken at a very young age, it is something he would have been taught. He was probably forced to convert to Islam when captured, and his visit to the church may indicate a desire to convert back, although his reason for the visit has not been confirmed. Another small but potentially relevant observation was that the subject refuses to drink wine. Although there are those among us who do as well, this could be a possible indication of continued allegiance to Mohamed. However, since he was taken at a young age, he may simply be unacquainted with wine, and may yet be unaware of its benefits.

These comprise the observations collected thus far. The subject appears fully unaware of being observed, and observations and other activities will therefore continue at no reduced effort.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: