Tyranny of Steel

Linde was sitting within her favorite tea shop, which had begun to sell the remarkable substance of coffee; sitting across from her was a man from the East that she knew pretty well. A downcast expression was on the man's face as he shifted his eyes to his surroundings, making sure that he had not been followed.

After realizing that the place Linde had chosen to discuss critical matters was secure, he let out a heavy sigh of relief. Following this, Andronikos took a sip from his coffee mug before revealing the thoughts that had plagued his mind over the past few weeks.

"Arethas is dead..."

Linde, who was about to take a sip from her coffee, immediately paused as she heard this; she was well aware of the tragic fate of the once-mighty Strategos of Ionia; after all, her intelligence network had sprawled across the Mediterranean and into the heart of Constantinople.  She wore a compassionate expression on her stunning face as she began to speak to the man across from her.

"I am sorry for your loss, but these things happen in warfare; it is because of this that I pray for the safety of my husband every day."

Andronikos was aware that Linde and Berengar were not married, and as such, he rolled his eyes at Linde's words before leaning in close and explaining his suspicions.

"He didn't die on the battlefield like your agents have reported; he was murdered in cold blood by his troops!"

Linde had already taken a sip of her drink when Andronikos said this; the moment she heard such a shocking revelation, she began to choke on the creamy brown liquid. It took a few moments for the stunning beauty to recover her composure; as she did so, she whispered to the man across from her in a hushed tone.

"Do you have proof of this?"

Andronikos sighed and shook his head before revealing his cards.

"No, only the word from a loyal soldier who claims to have witnessed the event, however before I could get my hands on him and find out the truth of the matter, he disappeared. Whoever killed Arethas is someone with great power in the Empire and does not want the truth of his death to be revealed."

Linde sighed heavily as she heard this; if what Andronikos said was true, there would be some difficulties with their relations to the East in the upcoming future, as such, she took a bite out of the pfeffernusse cookie that was sitting on her napkin before washing it down with coffee. After doing so, she began to inquire about Andronikos' reason for visiting.

"Let me guess; you want my agents to investigate the death of Arethas?"

Andronikos nodded his head in silence; as usual, this beautiful young woman was two steps ahead of him; when Linde saw his response, she put on a stoic expression as she began to negotiate with the man.

"What does the Austrian Crown have to gain from such an action? If what you say is true, then somebody powerful, somebody with close ties to the Imperial Family, is responsible for Arethas' death.

As outsiders, if our investigation is discovered, we could easily be framed for his death; at the very least, whoever is behind this horrendous act would make sure that relations between Austria and Byzantium weaken because of this. Do you even have a suspect in mind?"

Andronikos struggled to come up with a response to this question. Eventually, he only said one word, the man's identity, who he believed to be the perpetrator.

"Decentius..."

When Linde heard this, she was pretty surprised; after all, as far as the intelligence she received showed, all of the Emperor's children were extremely close with Arethas, especially Decentius. If the second prince was responsible for the Strategos' death, that meant something serious had to have occurred. With this in mind, Linde naturally began to investigate Andronikos' claims.

"Why would Decentius betray Arethas? As far as I know, the man was practically a father to the Second Prince."

When Andronikos heard this, he immediately began to back up his claims with his reasoning.

"Decentius was tasked with finding the missing Princess; after he failed to do so, he fell from the good graces of his father, and by extension, those who were backing him in his attempt to gain the throne.

If he could not locate a simple runaway, then how could he properly run the Empire? Or so was the thought of the people backing him. He needed a grand achievement to recover the losses that Honoria had caused him, and as such, he took credit for the North African Campaign; the only way to do so was to kill off Arethas, take Cairo for himself, and rewrite the narrative!"

When Linde heard this, she stared at Andronikos with disbelief; such a plan was quite foolish, after all, there would undoubtedly be witnesses to Decentius' betrayal, but then again, when she took into account all of the foolishness that Lambert had engaged in with his attempt to depose Berengar she began to realize that maybe second sons were simply idiotic by nature.  She contemplated these words for some time before revealing her thoughts on the matter.

"Let's say that all of this is true, and Decentius is as big as a fuckup as Lambert; you still haven't answered the most important question of all."

Andronikos looked at Linde with confusion as the woman calmly took a sip from her coffee cup. When Linde saw this, she sighed before repeating her question from earlier.

"What does Austria stand to gain from investigating Arethas' death?"

When Andronikos heard this question repeated, he felt quite wounded; he had always thought of Linde and Berengar as friends of Arethas and his household. He never expected the woman before him to act so coldly in response to the news he had brought her. As such, he sighed heavily before once more checking his surroundings to see if anyone was listening in on them; after confirming that nobody could hear them, he leaned over and whispered in Linde's ear.

"I know you are harboring the Princess. I also know that Berengar has taken quite a liking to her. Tell me, is she pregnant yet?"

When Linde heard this, she was shocked to the core. After all, she and her Intelligence Agency had gone through great lengths to cover up any information regarding Honoria's identity. However, Linde was a professional, and as such, she maintained a calm facade as she responded, despite her heart beating rapidly.

"I have no idea what you are talking about..."

In response to this, Andronikos leaned back in his chair with a broad smile on his face. Though Linde was convincing, to the point that he almost believed it himself, he was on good authority that the Byzantine Princess was one of Berengar's lovers. As such, he demonstrated his knowledge thoroughly.

"White hair, pale skin, mint green eyes, gorgeous appearance. She's going by the name Valeria Zonara now. Or is it Valeria Melodia? After all, maintaining the appearance of a pirate queen and a Byzantine noblewoman is not something that can be done with a single identity."

When Linde heard this, she knew that Andronikos was not simply bluffing; as such, she inquired about his source of knowledge.

"How did you know?"

Andronikos chuckled as he heard this before responding to Linde's question.

"You are not the only one with an extensive spy network, Sweetheart. I'll admit you covered your tracks well; I almost didn't believe it at first, if it weren't for the fact that Arethas had written me a letter about his regrets regarding the Princess, informing me of the conversation he had with her the last time he saw her, then I would have never suspected you, and Berengar to be involved."

When Linde heard this, she sighed heavily before admitting defeat; as such, she inquired about Andronikos' intentions.

"So you intend to blackmail us into supporting your cause?"

When Andronikos heard this, he was genuinely offended; as such, he put down his coffee and sat up straight as he revealed his offer to Linde.

"The thought honestly never crossed my mind; I am not your enemy Linde, you should know that by now. What I offer you is something mutually beneficial to our two realms. There are men in the Empire, powerful men, who are not fond of either Decentius or his older brother Alexius.

Don't even get me started on the youngest of the Emperor's sons. In the simplest terms, he is a lustful drunk who is more interested in hedonism than ruling the Empire. He would turn the palace into his personal brothel and bring an era of decline upon Byzantium. With this in mind, my supporters seek an alternative option for the succession crisis we currently face. "

When Linde heard this, she scoffed at Andronikos' statement.

"So what? They want to put Honoria on the throne?"

In response to this, Andronikos shook his head and revealed his true intentions.

"Not even close, but the son of the King of Austria and the only Byzantine Princess? That is an appealing concept to my new master. You may not realize it, but your so-called husband has caught the attention of the entire world.

Annexing the Swiss Confederation? Allying with Granada? Creating a bunch of proxy wars so that the Church has its hands full? Those are some bold moves. We have been watching the West's wars for some time now; the dominance Austria displays under Berengar's rule is unreal. If left unchecked, I would not be surprised if a new Empire forms in the West, rivaling that of Rome.

What your husband does in Europe is of no concern to our Empire, and my backers want to make a lasting alliance with your man. After all, we are sure that our two realms are better off as partners than as enemies. Of course, the faction backing the other two Candidates views Austria as a threat, especially now that it has a powerful navy; they will stop at nothing to prevent your rapid growth.

With the help of the men behind me, we can convince the Emperor to make Honoria one of Berengar's wives; after all, his intentions of legalizing Polygamy have become quite apparent. When she gives birth to a son, he will rule the East one day, while Berengar's heir will rule the West.

By helping us investigate Arethas' death, you also help your husband create a powerful ally. As for what you personally gain from this, isn't it obvious? You gain the upper hand in the war for your husband's affection. What do you say? Are you interested now?

Linde thought about it for several moments in silence as she gracefully sipped down the rest of her coffee. After careful consideration, she made ad decision, as such a pretty smile formed on her have as she declared her intentions.

"Alright, I'll play along..."

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