Ontogeny

Chapter 20b

     Emperor Tyron Alexis Alexander stroked his moustache as he listened to the report on the progress of the Carrow, Helberion war being given by his intelligence chief, Serge Petrov. It contained a lot of numbers that he only paid partial attention to, but the gist of it was that, in the expert opinion of the analysts, Helberion had about a fifty fifty chance of pulling off their extraordinary coup. It seemed very likely that they would succeed in destroying Salford, killing or taking prisoner the twenty thousand Carrow troops stationed there, but they were tired now. Exhausted by march and battle. The next garrison city, Tibre, was the largest, and there was a considerable chance that they'd received warning of what was happening by now. Those Above only knew what kind of stress King Leothan must be under as he waited anxiously for the next messenger to arrive.

     “Technically, we are obligated by treaty to help Helberion,” said Kutuvol, the Emperor’s Foreign Minister. He had a large dog standing beside him. A bull mastiff, staring up at him in total devotion. His son, only newly parent bonded and yet to show any significant physical change. He reached across to rub its neck distractedly. “They struck before we could officially break off relations.”

     “The treaty said that we would help defend Helberion against Carrow aggression,” replied the Emperor. “It says nothing about aiding them in a war of conquest.” He was wearing an overly elaborate uniform in the military style; a reminder to everyone in the room that he had served in the army for several years, back when his father had still held the throne. There was a sword and pistol strapped to his waist, both more decorative than functional. The guards that surrounded him at all times ensured that he would never again have to fight like a common soldier.

     “It says that, in the event of another war between Carrow and Helberion...”

     “We will not get sucked into a war we have no interest in. They knew they were forfeiting our friendship when they acted against us. Our men are needed here, to keep order in the provinces. We cannot send them off on some foreign escapade while things are so uncertain in Ukrann and Listania.”

     “If we do not honour our treaty obligations, what message will that send to everyone else we have a treaty with? What will happen to our international reputation?”

     “What did we care what lesser nations think of us?” said Demos Tiver, Undersecretary of State. Reputed to have been one of the best warriors in the Empire in his youth, he had long since gone to fat as a result of his indulgent lifestyle. He had a spattering of sores around his nose and mouth that made the Emperor feel faintly ill whenever he looked at him, but his contacts in the Constituent Assembly made him unfortunately irreplaceable. “The only thing they need to, to...” He paused a moment while he thumped his huge stomach, then let out a loud belch. “...to think about us is the size of our armies.”

     A couple of months before, the Emperor might have argued with him. Helberion had been a valuable ally in the past, but relations had taken a drastic downturn since then. Their victories against Carrow in decades past had given this new King ideas above his station, it seemed. Made him ambitious for things that were way beyond his grasp. He thought for a moment. “Issue a statement,” he said. “The Empire cannot, and does not, condone acts of international aggression. We condemn the actions of King Leothan, and we consider that his declaration of war against Carrow renders our offer to defend them against Carrow aggression irrelevant. We offer to mediate between them if they wish to negotiate a cessation of hostilities. Other than that, we will not become involved. Wrap that up in all the usual fancy language and send it to all our ambassadors, to be communicated to the government of the countries in which they are stationed.”

     Heads nodded around the table. “Very wise, your Majesty,” said Boros Fedoros, the Minister of Domestic Affairs. “We cannot send men abroad until the situation in the west has been dealt with. The separatists grow bolder every day. There is even evidence that Helberion agents may be supporting them.”