Fall of Empires

Chapter 35

From his vantage point atop the headland Shahrbaraz watched in dismay as his soldiers were drowned and slaughtered by the Roman fleet. He cursed the loose tongues of Rhazates’ supposedly unbreakable men whom he had entrusted with carrying his messages to the Avars. Their failure to keep their silence had consigned thousands of their comrades to a grim death and a watery grave in a perfectly sprung Roman trap. This young cousin of the emperor’s had proved himself an able defender of his capital and Shahrbaraz lamented once again that the Great King had not heeded his advice that Heraclius would not be drawn back west by this toothless threat to his city. Even with the assistance of the Avars, Constantinople remained unassailable. With a fleet of warships instead of log rafts Shahrbaraz conceded that he may have been able to successfully assault the city. Without such a fleet he was powerless and the attempt to cross the straits had been a desperate stratagem.
As he was about to turn and leave the sorry sight of the shattered flotilla behind, Shahrbaraz noticed the leading Roman ship changing course and making for a landfall in the small harbour on his side of the straits. Once he had assured himself that only one ship was headed towards the Persian-held shore and that the enemy’s intentions must therefore be peaceful, he spurred Rakhsh down the slope towards the harbour.

As he arrived on the quayside the general paused to admire the graceful ship of war that had put in. His face darkened as he noticed the two disembodied heads displayed upon the prow. The fate of his messengers was confirmed. As his gaze moved to the Roman delegation disembarking onto the quayside, he was taken aback at the sight of two young men he had not expected to see again, two young men he had last seen galloping away at the bloody encounter on the Saros River. He struggled to repress the unexpected upwelling of affection that he felt upon seeing them again. This was another trick of Heraclius’ he reminded himself; a very deliberate choice of envoys calculated to put him off his guard. He put aside the warmth of his feelings and instead greeted the young Romans with cold impassivity.

‘Your emperor sends you back to me I see,’ Shahrbaraz called out. ‘You have displeased him in some way?’

He was gratified by the expressions of confusion and uncertainty that played across their faces. They did not respond but instead approached him purposefully. His Daylami bodyguards moved swiftly to cut them off with spear-tips pointed at their throats but the general raised his hand. ‘Let them pass. They do not come to kill me I hope.’

Isaac came in close, his expression furtive. The general leant down from the saddle to hear what he had to say.

‘General, do you trust these men around you?’ Isaac spoke softly.

‘With my life.’

‘We must speak with you secretly and at once.’
‘Then let us speak here.’ Shahrbaraz dismounted and gestured towards the squat stone turret on the end of the quay which served in peace time as a beacon to light the harbour entrance. Loudly for the benefit of those around him he declared. ‘I shall not receive you in my camp with the heads of my men displayed upon your ship so brazenly. You dishonour yourselves with such barbarism. I shall hear what you have to say here and then you shall be gone.’
To the largest of the Daylami warriors who served as his personal guard; a mountain of a man with an ugly scar running across his face from chin to empty eye socket, he commanded, ‘See that no one approaches.’
With that Shahrbaraz strode towards the lighthouse with Theophanes and Isaac following in his wake.

The inside of the tower was mostly stuffed with faggots to keep the  beacon alight, although it had not been lit since the arrival of the Persian army on the Chalcedon shore. Several amphorae of oil were stacked against one wall beneath a staircase leading to the beacon above and a stone bench protruded from the other. Shahrbaraz gestured for Theophanes and Isaac to be seated whilst he remained standing. The broad frame of the Daylami bodyguard blocked out most of the morning sunlight shining through the doorway.