Men & Gods
Lyonesse Harbor, Lyonesse, Saprea
When the sun had risen Rolerio was on the ship that sailed to the Saprean coast. The winds had been kind and their journey had lasted a mere five days. His dark locks were softly flying in the warm wind and the day was beautiful with the sun shining down on him. A high-masted ship from the Lakelands was beating into the port, in white sails huge with the wind. Rolerio's ship moved past it, pulling steadily for shore.
The Valicios family was lined up at the end of the dock, solemn faces looking at him. From the land, Cassius stood with his brothers Lucius and Thodoris while Sandro stood to the side with the honor guard. They stood with their house banners pridefully. Sandro had not asked for Lucius, no more than he'd asked for Cassius or any of the rest, but his father felt Stravos Solattos might take it ill if only a bastard came out to escort him across the country.
Father should have met the Lakelanders himself, each of his children reflected as they stood waiting, but he would have mucked it up, no doubt. Of late the King had been plotting to run the Lakelanders poor so they'd have little to no resources and they'd have to depend on Saprea for resources.
"He should be humbled by the sight of Saprea," Sandro said aloud as they waited. Clearly, he was speaking to one of his half-brothers.
Cassius ran over the agenda once more with one of the diplomats below him, Sisseno Pierre. "The other Lakeland ambassador will accompany him from the key side to greet me at this dais, correct."
The man below him nodded every chance he got between Cassius's pauses.
"And then we'll set forth to the palace to meet my father."
So that is exactly the procedure that followed when Rolerio landed. Except, they did not expect Rolerio to be the only one of the Lakeland royal family to arrive. It was him and Prince Kano, who acted more like a bodyguard.
When he approached Cassius with his retinue, he could sense that he was being judged. The rulers and lords that accompanied him wore silk robes and jeweled belts and streaming sleeves. They arrived in blue and silver with small embellishments of enameled shining silver and gold. They came in immodestly.
The Lakelander leader walked on the land as if he had been born there. He was the very epitome of water. His eyes were hooded and were like a teardrop curve. His movements were fluid. A cloak of pale blue silk fluttered from his shoulders.
"I welcome you, my lords. We had word of your approach, and His Majesty bid me ride out to welcome you in his name." Cassius looked amongst the many nobles. "Which of you is King Stravos?"
Rolerio stepped forward. "My father's health requires that he remain at Seakey. As the prince regent, he has sent me to attend the wedding and coronation in his stead, as it pleases His Majesty."
"His Majesty will be most honored to have Prince Regent Rolerio of the Lakelands," said Sisseno, thinking that his paramour looked exquisitely handsome in his attire. "And your noble companions are most welcome as well."
"Prince Rolerio, my lords of the Lakelands," said Cassius, "you have come a long way from the other end of the sea. Perhaps, rest and refreshments would be most welcome. Might we continue on to the city?"
"At once, Your Royal Highness. Escort us," Rolerio said, convinced a meager royal reception would await him at the palace.
There were five carriages waiting for the guests, so four people packed themselves into each carriage. Rolerio, however, insisted on riding with Cassius. He wanted to become well acquainted with the high princes of Reveon. So their journey had begun. Sandro rode his horse with Lord Vyghos riding next to him and they both led the guests with their guard to Ember's Rock.
Rolerio was boxed inside a cramped carriage, unable to block out the incessant noise of gravel grinding beneath their track wheels. He felt trapped. Although it was his decision to ride with the princes, he was incredibly overwhelmed. The only person that kept him from choking on his breath was Sisseno. He wanted to make love to Sisseno at that moment, but he couldn't begin to explain the numerous reasons as to why that was a mistake. The long week journey of his sailing rendered him thirsty. He might've even considered visiting a brothel, but his brother Kano was there to stop him from doing just that.
"Are you alright, Prince Rolerio? You look worried." Sitting across from Rolerio in the carriage, Cassius had spent the past hour knotting and unknotting his fingers. He was nervous, which was no great surprise. So was everyone else.
Cassius opened the carriage window and pulled out a cigarette from his coat. He offered one to Rolerio, but Rolerio shook his head, wrinkling his nose at the stick.
"I'm fine," he told Cassius.
"Another hour, and we'll reach the palace." Sisseno seemed to believe if he always spoke with patience, the trait would inevitably rub off on Rolerio. He was doubtful.
His squirming was almost amusing to Sisseno but the obscene groans coming from the back of his throat were draining. He shifted his eyes from Cassius to look at Lucius. Lucius was staring right at Rolerio. His eyes bore into his soul. It was a mystery to the Solattos what the matter of Lucius's judgmental looks was. But the looks were many and the scoffs twice as such. Lucius could tell what he was thinking about the closeness between him and Sisseno.
The carriage rocked steadily as it turned. Rolerio unglued his gaze on Lucius. The other prince, Prince Thodoris was elsewhere vomiting in bag, his audible gags heard from within Rolerio's carriage.
"Truthfully, His Majesty will be disappointed by my arrival. I am only the Prince Regent after all."
"Why did you come to Saprea, Prince Rolerio?" Lucius asked to prompt conversation, but truly he remained suspicious. This boy who was seventeen talked to a man twice his senior like he was a familiar friend. He was the only one who didn't speak in a continuous monotone voice.
"I was invited to the royal wedding."
"I thought we were speaking the truth," Lucius said lightly.
"Lucius," Cassius warned.
"I'm just asking because there were protests in one of the most popular cities here," Lucius said with an edge that Cassius misliked. He did not want to provoke their guest.
"When was this, Your Royal Highness?" he asked in tones of polite interest.
"Two nights ago. Men and women alike were chanting your name and telling us Valicioses that we'd drown under your ferocious waters."
I had no idea that Sapreans were so intellectual, reflected Rolerio.
Cassius chastised him. "We're here to welcome him to the capital, Lucius."
"I'm surprised he's not aroused by this. I know that one can barely hear Father choking on the news from a distance," Lucius said with a sour smile.
"Enough," Cassius said.
"Oh no, do go on. I love a good tale. All that," said Prince Rolerio, "those protesters have their reasons. King Augustus II had made himself greater than King Sorrehn, I heard one preach, but only a god is meant to stand above a king. Well, when Augustus slew Sorrehn after he declared peace, Augustus broke all justice. Had your ancestor not killed mine, there would be no grudge. But truly, we know that the High Crown is in the wrong hands. If a monster cannot co-exist with a person that's granted them peace, the monster is the one who should be punished, not the surrendering party."
Sisseno abruptly changed the subject. "It's said there are to be forty-six dishes served at the crown prince's wedding feast."
Cassius asked. "Are you hungry, Prince Rolerio?"
"I have hungered for a long time. Though not for food. Pray tell me, when will the justice be served?"
Varbridge Palace, Ember's Rock, Saprea
Rolerio knew that Varbridge Palace was incredibly ornate and had an elaborate maze that he didn't know how to follow, but he did not imagine that he'd find himself and his company panting up a large number of stairs. They had told him that his chambers had been readied, so he followed Cassius to them immediately.
In the middle of the large staircase, as he was reaching the square corner, the governor of the palace hurriedly walked down the stairs. Rolerio was taken aback by how quickly the old man made his descent. His old knees didn't fail him and he didn't look winded.
"I trust His Highness did not find the journey too taxing," he said.
"Not as taxing as these stairs," Prince Kano panted.
"Prince Rolerio and Prince Kano, this is Guillaume our governor of Varbridge. He oversees that everything runs smoothly in the palace on my father's behalf," Cassius said.
"I shall take you to your rooms where you may rest," Guillaume said with courtesy. "But His Majesty demands that you are brought to him."
"I assumed that he'd be here to greet me," Rolerio admitted, looking askance.
"His Majesty hasn't been able to take a break from his business all day, I'm afraid."
Cassius moved aside and let Guillaume take Rolerio to the Wing of Affairs. Rolerio had come striding into the King's council chamber, bone-tired and dressed in borrowed clothing.
Standing across from him behind a long table, King Augustus smiled and showed Rolerio that he was not an enemy. The High King was not humble, Rolerio knew. The chamber was richly furnished. The wall had tapestries from the age of the gods and a pair of phoenix statuettes flanked the door.
"Your Majesty." He walked up to a document presented on the other side of the table. Before anything else, Rolerio swept his robes behind him and bowed to his superior.
"The document on the table," the King said stoically, "I would like you to sign it."
Rolerio leaned on the table, reading it word for word.
"It is an agreement guaranteeing me a monopoly of the trade networks through the Jade Sea."
Rolerio looked up warily. "And in return?"
"I will give you a wife. My daughter, Princess Artemisia," Augustus said, knitting his hands together.
Rolerio thought this over in his head. The Lakelands was a country that used its sea trade to prosper. He didn't need a wife, but it wasn't too early to start thinking about the prospect. In fact, he liked the idea of marriage. He was already pushing thirty and his father was doomed to die soon. He could marry Princess Artemisia and use her as a weapon against her own family if needed. But, he was wary of the King.
"Would this annul the prior proposal that you made with your son Lucius to my sister?" Rolerio asked.
The King nodded.
"Ah, but you are trying to sway me into signing some charter with crafted language that is so obscure, confusing, and uninformative, yet so precise that I would not understand," Rolerio claimed.
King Augustus simply shrugged and opened both of his palms. "My spies tell me that I shouldn't take your reign lightly. I know you have ambitions, but I must remind you who is the High King. You have debts that I simply wanted you to pay."
"The Lakelands owe nothing," Rolerio said, perhaps too sharply.
"Owes nothing? Are you saying that I made a mistake? I am the High King. I do not make mistakes."
Rolerio lifted a thin black eyebrow. "One who must constantly remind others that he is the King must not hold his power too well."
"Some people forget their place," Augustus said as suspicion rose from the back of his throat.
Rolerio could've laughed out loud in his easy confidence. "But by bringing me to bankruptcy what do you hope to gain? I know it's not just my funds."
"Justice for the High Crown's treasury. I don't know how they account for their money in the Lakelands, but Saprea provided the Lakelands a fund for catastrophic events that was managed by the High Crown. For instance, the Lotus Plague. The costs that ran higher than expected must be reciprocated. Money from other necessary expenses was taken. This had admittedly led to mismanagement by the Crown, so I kindly ask for the debt to be repaid," said Augustus. "And I'd like more insurance than your words."
"You'll have to trust my word then," Rolerio said.
Augustus sighed. "Let's focus on one thing at a time then. Sign the document."
"I have no interest in giving up my territories for your daughter's hand in marriage. She is half my age, anyway. But I'll speak to my advisors about the debt. Now if that's all..."
"What happened to the war reparations? You haven't been paying those as part of—"
"The unsustainable peace treaty in the Treaty of Reveon," Rolerio spat because it wasn't just him or his father who had the benefit of hindsight to see that it wasn't sustainable. Even his ancestors who were living in that time, who saw the provisions of peace with their own eyes, said that the treaty would lead to another war. "That treaty demands that us Lakelanders pay reparations to the tune of billions of crowns to repair the damage done by the war two hundred years ago. I don't have to be a genius to realize that such a provision is ruining my economy."
"That's the price you pay," Augustus said.
"For two hundred years? Not to mention, our profound levels of hyperinflation, but the Lakeland economy is on the brink of utter collapse," Rolerio scoffed. "Not only that, but we are made to accept full responsibility for the Great War and all the destruction by it. So not only are we suffering profoundly in economic terms, but we are also being humiliated on the world stage. Respectfully, toss your war reparations and toss that dying treaty, Your Majesty."
"The treaty was made by all nations of Reveon. By not paying to the High Crown you are going to start a war," Augustus responded in kind.
"The blame would be on all of you, specifically Saprea for codifying in the treaty your desire to punish the Lakelands. Goodbye, Your Majesty," Rolerio said in finality. "And you will not receive my signature."
Guillaume escorted Rolerio out of the room at the High King's request.
"Am I to believe His Majesty?" Rolerio asked.
"The King is a man of his word," Guillaume said.
High Lord Sisseno fell in beside them. "May I accompany the prince for a moment, m'lord?"
Guillaume smiled tightly and allowed them their privacy, waiting with the rest of the prince's entourage.
Rolerio told Sisseno everything in hushed tones and together they walked in an unassuming fashion and conspired against the High King.
a/n
game of thrones quoteee AHHHHHH