Gaius,
Aurelian’s aide-de-camp, entered his study with an anxious expression. Aurelian turned from his letter writing to
receive the bad news.
‘What is it lieutenant?’ he asked
‘Citizen Perclivius and Captain Flavia wish to speak to you, sir’
Aurelian frowned and placed his quill back in its well.
‘Did they say what they wanted to talk about?’
‘No, sir, but they seem very insistent’
‘Do they…’ murmured Aurelian, ‘that’s unfortunate’
‘What shall I tell them?’
Aurelian thought for a moment. Damned if he did and doubly damned if he
didn’t.
‘Give me two minutes and then send them in’
Gaius went out of the room silently and Aurelian was left with his
thoughts. Clearly some sort of break was coming, but perhaps it could be
managed. A few malcontents and a mad old general – that didn’t sound too bad.
Round up the ring leaders and lock them up for a reasonable, but not excessive,
length of time.
Gaius returned far sooner than Aurelian had anticipated with the old
warrior and his acolyte. Aurelian rose
to meet them and bowed stiffly to Perclivius. He paid no attention to his
captain at all.
‘Citizen Perclivius – it is a long time since we’ve met in this office.
How are things with you?’
‘Poor’ responded Perclivius, ‘and getting worse’
‘I’m sorry to hear that’ said Aurelian ‘would you care to take a seat
and tell me about it?’
Aurelian gestured to Gaius to get Perclivius a seat – he really didn’t
look like he needed one. He was slightly
stooped and used a cane, but otherwise looked as strong and supple as a walnut
tree. He sat anyway.
‘You’re dismissed Captain’ said Aurelian, without looking up, ‘thank
you for escorting The Citizen here’
Flavia looked startled.
‘But, sir, we came to talk to you, together about…’
Aurelian cut her short, his voice commanding.
‘This is beyond your jurisdiction, Captain Flavia – stand down’
‘But…’
Aurelian looked up at her for the first time, with a cold look of
distrust and contempt. Flavia’s words died in her mouth.
‘I will talk to you later,
Captain’ Aurelian said.
Flavia turned on her heels with perfect military discipline and left
the room. Aurelian turned to Gaius.
‘I don’t need you either, Lieutenant’ said Aurelian, nodding at the
door. Gaius left willingly. There was a
moment of silence. Aurelian sat down and leant back in his chair.
‘So?’ he said
Perclivius looked at him with his clear pale blue eyes.
‘This is a courtesy call’, he said flatly, ‘I’m just giving you notice
of what we’re planning’
‘Well, thank you, Citizen,
that’s very considerate’ said Aurelian in equally even tones.
‘Then you can decide whose side you’re on’ said Perclivius
Irritation stirred inside Aurelian, but then it always did when he
talked to this old soldier.
‘I’m on the side of the City’ said Aurelian, ‘as I assume that you are’
Perclivius nodded.
‘Exactly’ he said, smiling, ‘that’s very encouraging’
Aurelian waited for Perclivius to continue.
‘You’ll know, I’m sure, that I’ve been refused a seat on the council’
‘I heard, yes. That’s politics – it’s not my direct concern’
‘Our view is that Marthian has exceeded her authority’
Aurelian revealed nothing in his expression, but ignored the statement.
‘Who are the “we” implied by your last comment?’ he asked
‘The Defenders of Ortia’ replied Perclivius.
Aurelian smiled a cold half-smile
‘I always thought that that was my troops’
‘Of course, general’ nodded Perclivius, ‘but that’s not the sort of
defence that the group is referring to’
Aurelian waited again.
‘They mean defence against the erosion of values, the slow decline in
morals and the disintegration of our political system’
‘Those are serious worries, and I hope that you can find ways to tackle
them’
Perclivius smiled again, a smile of indulgence.
‘I’m sure that you realise that the Defenders mean something more
specific’
‘Yes, I’m not a fool’ snapped Aurelian, ‘you mean that you can’t
stomach having a young female elf as proconsul. That’s all you mean by that
pompous rhetoric’
Perclivius stared at Aurelian sympathetically.
‘It must be so hard to have such a very obvious conflict of interest’
he said gently, ‘it is so clear where your mind immediately turns’
Aurelian knew that he must try to control his anger. He needed to keep
things professional if only he could.
‘Let me ask you a direct question – are you happy with the Proconsul?’
Perclivius made a great show of thinking about this very carefully, but
when he spoke his response was very smooth.
‘That’s irrelevant – she has no legal right to her position, anyway’
Aurelian was shocked – he’d never heard that one before.
‘What on earth do you mean?’
Perclivius reached into the pocket of his cloak and pulled out an old
faded book. He showed it to Aurelian across the table.
‘This is a copy of the Statutes
and Regulations of East Visneoria, Fourth Edition. I assume that you have a
working knowledge of them’
Aurelian hesitated.
‘Of course I don’t. Are they
part of the city’s laws?’
‘Indubitably –they formed the fabric of the legal system in the East up
until its fall’
Perclivius waited a second, quite politely, for any response. When none
came he continued.
‘Many people do not realise that these laws have never been repealed, even
though the Laws of Ortia have
superseded them, de facto, in most
people’s minds’
Aurelian was already out of his depth, and he knew that that was
entirely intentional.
‘So, how do these laws affect the Proconsul?’ he asked
‘Ah, well, General, it is a little complicated, but we have had our
best lawyers within the Defenders unravel it as well as they could’
He paused very briefly.
‘It seems that the Statutes
take precedence over the Laws and Civil
Justice of Ortia as the former is more inclusive than the latter. That
means that on any point of legal dispute we need to follow the Statutes’
Aurelian shook his head.
‘What does that matter? They surely can’t differ much’
Perclivius smiled warmly and nodded.
‘Yes, you’re right – they really don’t – a remarkable fit in nearly all
cases’
‘But…’
‘On the subject of the appointment of the Proconsul, the two texts do
diverge’
‘In what way?’
‘The Laws state that the
rules of primogeniture will apply, with the exception that if there is no
surviving male heir then a daughter can succeed’
‘As has happened’ indicated Aurelian, ‘quite smoothly and legally’
‘Sadly, however’ continued Perclivius, ‘the Statutes state unequivocally that after the death of a proconsul
the eldest son succeeds unless the Emperor himself designates a successor. In
the event of there being no male heir then it falls to the Emperor to designate
a successor in all cases’
This was a shock to Aurelian – he hadn’t expected this legalistic
attack.
‘And how is he going to do that?’ wondered Aurelian
‘Well, clearly he can’t,’ said Perclivius, nodding, ‘however, in the Statutes there is a provision for a body
of worthies to act in loco imperialis
and to appoint a proconsul by consensus if necessary. The Defenders intend to
do exactly that. Clearly we cannot continue supporting the illegality of the
present government’
‘Illegality? Only in your biased opinion’
Another spasm of anger passed across Aurelian’s face.
‘Of course, the fact of Marthian’s sex, youth, inexperience and her
recent displays of dangerous incompetence have merely confirmed the wisdom of
the Statutes’
‘And let me guess – your group has unanimously elected you as
Proconsul’
‘As it happens, yes, but I was only one of many candidates’
‘Why are you talking to me, anyway?’ You know that I won’t support any
of this nonsense’
Perclivius nodded, leant over and touched Aurelian’s arm, confidently
but not too firmly.
‘So loyal – that’s very admirable. But putting that to one side for a
moment – I’ve come to offer you a deal.’
Aurelian removed Perclivius’s hand from his arm dismissively.
‘A deal? What on earth can you offer us?’ asked Aurelian, his anger
rising.
‘Ah yes’ said Perclivius, with a sparkle in his eye, ‘you’re an ‘us’
aren’t you – how romantic!’
‘That’s absolutely none of your business; and let’s be clear about this,
I’m completely committed to the Proconsul entirely in my role as Commander in
Chief’
‘Of course you are,’ said Perclivius very carefully, ‘but let’s be
honest and admit that that’s actually mostly because you’re in love with her
and very little do with your role’
‘Nonsense’ lied Aurelian.
‘And it’s because you’re are clearly so much in love with her,’ Perclivius continued, ‘that I think you need to think more
carefully about reality and what’s best for both of you’
‘What do you know about reality?’ demanded Aurelian, ‘you’ll never get
the support you need for a coup’
‘I have no interest in clashing with you, General, or with the small
number of supporters that you still have in the military…’
Aurelian glared at him.
‘And. in fact, I have every confidence in you and I would welcome you
remaining as military commander in my administration.’
Perclivius was now warming to
his task.
‘We also have nothing at all against Lady Marthian. I have always found
her a delightful, attractive and lively young woman. She has, I am sure, an
important role to play in the life of the city’
‘What sort of role?’ asked
Aurelian, narrowing his eyes and wondering what could possibly come next.
‘As the military commander’s wife, of course, Commander Aurelian,’
Perclivius explained, grinning ‘and as the mother of your children. I envisage
you having three – two strong boys and one beautiful girl. Your family would be
a role model for every citizen’
Perclivius smile was now that of the world’s most indulgently loving
uncle.
‘And, sadly, as you well know, it would be impossible for you to marry
Marthian as things stand... City etiquette would never allow it – separation of
powers and all that…’
‘How dare you!’ shouted Aurelian, finally completely losing his temper
‘you’re a slimy little snake of an elf! You’re full of guile and poison! ’
Perclivius stood up and frowned, but he didn’t respond to this attack.
He slid the Statutes back into his
cloak.
‘If you both agree to our terms – Marthian stands graciously down and
you remain in post – then you can have what you both want, with no bloodshed’
He looked carefully at the fuming general with his unblinking blue
eyes.
‘Perhaps you should think about my quite reasonable proposal a little
more carefully than you appear to be at the moment’
Aurelian rose, his fists clenched.
‘I need you to go’ he bellowed, ‘now!’
Perclivius got up from his seat slowly and then reached for his stick.
‘Gaius!’ he shouted through the door. His aide appeared immediately. ‘Show
Citizen Perclivius out’
Gaius walked up to Perclivius and began to usher him out.
Perclivius paused.
‘I’m so disappointed about the way that you’ve taken this...’ he said
wistfully, ‘...such anger’
He turned to leave, but then
stopped and looked back at the general.
‘Of course…’ he said, nodding his head wisely, ‘oh, I see...’
He continued his exaggeratedly plodding walk to the door.
‘What?’ demanded Aurelian, knowing this was a trap but walking into it
anyway, ‘what do you see?’
The old elf stopped at the door.
‘You worry that she doesn’t love you. No wonder you’re so reluctant to
reach for happiness – you’re convinced that she’d turn you down’
Perclivius looked at him intently, barely smiling but with his head
tilted slightly to one side, and then he was gone.
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