The Magnaura

[pevergreen]

"Savvas you are tempting me to come over there and reason with you...outside. You do realise that at this point it is a lost cause. To you though Zigavinos, I presume it will be the throne versus all those who are unhappy with the royal family and it's members actions. From the Order no doubt..."

[Kagemusha]

"Calm down everyone. Who is this man coming here and talking to us as if we know him, while associating himself with the "Organization"?. Reveal everything now or maybe the Varangians should just slip your head from your shoulders, for proclaiming yourself as traitor in public, by calling yourself the former leader of this so called organisation."

[rossahh]

What, Makedonis against the Basileus? I simply cannot believe that. Surely you are mistaken?

[pevergreen]

"I disagree good sir, everything I have seen points towards Makedonis being a spawn of Lucifer himself. Truly Makedonis has had veiled interests behind everything he has done for the Empire. I do, however, recognise that my opinion is, rightly so, just mine. So I shall shut my mouth for the moment."

[Privateerkev]

Makedonios raises an eyebrow when he hears the mention of civil war.

Civil war is madness. Killing your own people is madness.

I believe people are letting their fears get the best of them.

If anyone is stupid enough to start a civil war, I will use every legal means if elected to put an end to it peacefully.

People... we might all disagree on many things... but I hope and pray that we are above such... despicable acts. We have enough enemies surrounding us. Searching for them in here is foolish.

I might vote against edicts that the Caesar or Savvas present, but to physically strike them? No. If they lunged at me I would of course block their sword. But I can not raise my hand towards another Byzantine any more than the cows can call the sun to come up at midnight.

If I hear of anyone stoking the fires of an imaginary conflict, I will be most unhappy...

Now I suggest everyone calm themselves, regain composure, and move on to more pertinent topics.

[Privateerkev]

Some time elapses. Makedonios comes into the chambers with paperwork.

Alright, if we're done talking about killing each other, we have Senate business to discuss.

Looking at the voting results, it looks like I'm going to win this re-vote.

The election will continue but I figure it is best to get started on some things now, rather than later.

I have been noticing some new oath swearing going on. I need to know who will be eligible for private armies in the future. That will allow me to budget accordingly and maybe even recruit for these armies ahead of time.

To everyone that has a private army, besides those in the Order, I will need to know exactly what units make up your armies and where those units are.

I ask that all governors allow some flexibility in what I can build. And to try to include the cheapest buildings first in the queue. It is better to have small improvements all the time than one or two buildings sucking up all of the florins.

We all know there are legal ways to stockpile excess units above and beyond what is needed for your private armies. If you do so, I will skip your settlements when it comes time to fund improvements. We will need fiscal discipline if we are to get through the current financial difficulties.

And we all know there are ways to manipulate the law with private armies. I believe someone called it "garrison dumping." If you play games with the private army rules, I will simply freeze spending and let the whole Senate know why.

Those who work with me to get the Empire's finances in order will find me most agreeable. Those who wish to keep playing games with the law will find me very cranky. In that instance, I will follow the letter of the law but will provide no extra support beyond that required of me by law.

Gentlemen, I am now available for correspondance. You can write me, day or night. A response will always be given promptly but I apologize ahead of time if the responses are brief.

[ULC]

Aleksander shakes his head.

"Are you all so arrogant as to believe it will be between the Houses? That this is at all related to how one House feels about another? The matter goes deeper, as the Basileus himself will attest to. It is a contest between Church and State, between the Patriarch and The Basileus, with the Caesar and Order as pawns, the Crusade as a tool, and the execution of thousands Christians and the destruction of holy places in Fatimid lands as mere collateral. But, since most of you want to simply ignore me, I will simply take my seat and let the Emperor say exactly what I have said. At least you listen to him, right?"

[Kagemusha]

"Stop Blabbering if you dont have anything real to say. If Patriarch has committed treason and you have proof of that. Show us the proof and He can be put on trial and executed like any other traitor. Give us what you know and stop blabbering your mysterious fortune teller tales. Lay down the evidence and we can proceed with any traitors there are."