Ontogeny

Chapter 7b

     King Leothan and Queen Lacurnia were in the palace banqueting hall, sitting at opposite ends of a long table stacked with food and exotic delicacies from across the known world. Also at the table were a dozen ambassadors and their spouses, all chatting animatedly with their neighbours and with whoever was sitting opposite them. Serving maids went from one to another, refilling wine glasses and carrying away empty plates, and the large open space that filled the rest of the room was occupied by a troup of acrobats doing cartwheels and balancing on top of each other while the guests applauded loudly. A large fire crackled in the grate behind the acrobats, stoked and tended by two men in soot-stained uniforms, and the occasional drop of hot wax fell from the dozens of candles burning in the large, ornate chandelier that hung over the centre of the room.

     We should get them replaced by electric candles, thought the King as he saw one of the acrobats slip and almost lose his balance of a patch of solidified wax that had formed under one particularly drippy candle. The royal palace really should be at the forefront of scientific progress, to set an example to the rest of the kingdom, and to show the world that Helberion is a world power, to be taken seriously. He found himself looking at the Kelvon ambassador, the representative of the most powerful human nation in the world. He knew that the palace of Emperor Tyron was lit throughout with electricity. Not just the imperial residence and the administrative areas, but the kitchens and the servants quarters too. Even the stables, if the stories were to be believed. What must he be thinking, the King thought dismally, to see the royal palace of Helberion still lit with candles?

     There were so many other priorities, though. How could he justify spending money on what was basically his own vanity when there were hospitals and schools out there so badly in need of more funding? And then there was the army, of course. As the situation with Carrow continued to worsen, he had no choice but to give more money and resources to the armed forces, to build up their preparations for the war that was beginning to seem inevitable. It had already meant having to delay work on the Seaton canal, which meant that hundreds of engineers and labourers were looking for other work, and the redevelopment of the Highton area of Castapol had also had to be put on hold. Maybe I should just press all the navvies into the army, he thought whimsically. Put them in uniform, arm them and send them to the western border to await the invasion. His mood darkened as he realised that he might have to actually do just that, in which case, if, by some miracle, they managed to win the war, they'd have no skilled engineers with which to rebuild the country.

     His gaze returned to the Kelvon ambassador. Arwin Tsocco. So much depended on that man. Fear of Kelvon sanctions and reprisals was the only thing holding Carrow back. They couldn’t be seen as the aggressors. Kelvon had a great deal at stake in this part of the world. A war would cost them dearly in exports and reduced world influence. If Carrow just invaded, Kelvon would likely enter the war on Helberion's side. What Carrow needed was an excuse to declare war. Something that Kelvon couldn't argue with, and the cancelling of the royal marriage had gone a long way towards securing that. The King knew that the Carrow Ambassador to Kelvon was telling everyone who'd listen that King Leothan had poisoned his own daughter in order to prevent the wedding, because he wanted a war, and the fact that Helberion had used military force fifty years before to help the Tweenlands to defect from Carrow and join Helberion made the accusation almost plausible.

     Helberion's own ambassador to Kelvon was busy telling their own version of things, of course, and sensible people with common sense knew who to believe, but political expediency pulled in all directions, and there were people in Kelvon who would profit from a war. They were adding their voices to the Carrow version of events, and Helberion agents in the Empire were reporting back that Emperor Tyron was gradually being swayed by them. Fortunately, the Emperor still seemed to be listening to Arwin Tsocco’s periodic reports back to his own country, and so King Leothan had made it his business to ensure that the Ambassador told the Emperor what the King wanted him to tell him. That Helberion was desperate to avoid a war, and that Carrow wanted to seize back the lands they had lost fifty years before.