Chapter 951: Barred Roads(2)

In Romelian and Southern culture, bringing both knees to the ground was themost humblingaction a man could perform. It meant displaying total submission and complete obedience to one's superior.

Of course, such an action did not always carry the same weight; it depended entirely on theperformer. In this case? ALordand the undisputedVictor of the Fielddoing so? That was a matter of high political theater.

In the world of nobility, having facewas among the most important assets a lord had to uphold and safeguard. Reputation was, at certain times, even more valuable than actual gold. A man known to respect his words would lead others to trust his oaths far more than a powerful lord known to break them.

Jarza had done well to explain the gravity of Edric's error. While Edricwas a great warrior and commander, he was a politicalinfant. Before the urgent interjection of his former guardian, Edric'sthinking had been simple: he had merely disregarded a command, achieved brilliant success anyway, and now ought to apologize after receiving a scolding.

He had, however, done much worse.

It would have been a different matter had the order been given in private. Alpheoregarded the Legate highly, and in private, the reprimand would have been limited to mere verbal reprisal, ultimately inconsequential. The ordersEdrichad received, however, were delivered inpublicahead of the massed troops. Edric had just publicly disregarded the Prince's words, and in doing so, he had inadvertently impressed upon his legionnaires that the Prince's explicit commands could be flouted if the outcome was favorable.

That, to Alpheo, was a problem of thehighest order.

Who knew if in the future the legions might back one of their successful field generals instead of the Prince? He projected the legions to be similar in training and traditions to the romans one? But did this meant he wanted all of the Roman tradition and culture to seep through his society? The answer was no!

That would be a catastrophe, the death-blow to Alpheo's supreme authority. It was for this reason that Alpheo always made sure that above one's loyalty to the immediate commander, the loyalty to the Prince always overshadowed all others.

Of course, such a problem would not be present in the short term, with the legions centralized and the towering figure of the Prince always present in their eyes. But who knew what the future would behold when the legions were scattered across a vast, conquered territory? Alpheohad to impress upon all present, soldiers and lords, friends and enemies, that thesupreme authorityof the army was the Prince alone, and the Legate had command only when the Prince was not present, or when merely delivering his will.

The profound, painful show of submission Edric was performing now was to repair the damage he had done and to permanently carve into the minds of the soldiers precisely whose authority ranked highest

Alpheo was, of course, not blind to the show Edric had just performed. The prince was more than satisfied, not for a personal note, of course; as if this were all in private, he would have gladly embraced the man and made peace with him.

But he hadmore than enoughgained face in front of the entire army, reminding them of the great transgression their victorious Legate had committed, thereby putting the figure of thePrinceback on the pedestal of supreme authority.

Still, the man had achieved a great feat, and a ruler must never starve his dogs, plus Alpheo truly wished to reward the man for his achievements.

So he had to extend a rope to the man, offering him a dignified exit.

"Even though you have deliberately disobeyed my command and joined the fighting," Alpheo announced, his voice carrying the authority of final judgment. "I do not presume to be blind to thenoble intentbehind it. You have achieved great feats today, bringing the fortress to its knees. So, you may ask me for aboonfor your service. That I grant you."

Alpheo held his breath, hoping Edric would see the way out he had just offered. Luckily for everyone, the Legate did.

"My Prince, all that I have is thanks to you," Edric announced, his voice loud and resonant, meant for the ears of every soldier present. "From the armor on my chest to the steel of my sword, I presume to use them only for your defense and to uphold your law and strength. All the honor and glory I gain in battle, I extend to you as your servant."

He continued, stacking humility upon humility. "I have no holdings that have not been granted by you, Your Grace. I have no property that was not yours and extended by your generosity. I do see what I have done was a great wrong, but I promise I was moved only for your sake. I could not have brought myself to deliver unto you anything that was not absolute victory, for I knew anything less would not have sufficed for the great gifts you have given me nor would it be accepted."

"I am not worthy of any further grace from you, Your Grace, for the victory that blesses our brow isyours and yours alone. I do not presume to claim a hand over it. The victory is not of the sword but the hand that holds it."Edric'svoice cracked slightly. "But if it is your most generous will to extend mercy to an erring servant, then I have only one desire to word: I crave for your blessing, my liege, and hope that you will still allow me the honor to defend your name and serve your will still."

Without any taste or relishing in a friend's discomfort, Alpheoimmediately extended his hand.

"Let all ears be witness of this! You have never left your post at my side, Edric. Rise on your feet and assume your seat. I shall forgive the transgression you are guilty of. I hold no anger for you, nor pain. All that I have are words, so that you may truly understand what was at the heart of the matter."

Alpheo'svoice softened, becoming intimate, though still loud enough to carry. "I have already lost a great friend in this field. We are all pained by that, I do not presume not to see in your what I mirror inside. But would you have landed me the loss of another? Would you have deprived the legions that safeguard our home with their blood the service of a noble and loyal commander?

I hope you will see through these words the reason for my displeasure upon your acts, and understand that I have but the utmost care for thegreat roof where we all take cover in hard times.

The moment you donned that colors, your lives was no longer only your own, but of your legion, just as my own is. Losing you would have been an hard blow and unoworthy to bring a castle that with time would have fallen the same."

With that said, Alpheogently aided his friend to his feet, pulling him into a brief, warm embrace, and gave him thekiss of peaceupon his cheek. He personally took a cloth and swabbed the worst of the mud fromEdric'schest plate.

This allowedEdricto resume his place and showed all assembled, Romelian and Yarzat, that there was no discord between the two men, much to the great relief of theLegio IV Ardita, who bore great love for both the legate and their prince.

All seemed well; the Legate had been pardoned, and the Prince had swiftly regained his supreme authority. Of course, the entire exchange appeared utterly confusing to the Romelian prisoners and observing lords, for whom such concepts were entirely otherworldly.

The fact was, in the traditional Romelian army structure, the lords arrived with their own retinue; they were essentially feudal levies. While they wereexpectedto obey the orders of a superior Marshal, at the end of the day, the soldiers they brought weretheir own. Therefore, various degrees of autonomy were tolerated, even expected.

That was absolutelynotthe case in the legion system. The commanders did notowntheir army; they only led the disciplined troops of their Prince. WhatEdrichad done was misuse the property of the Prince for his own, personal goals, however noble. It was a crucial distinction between the two military models, but one thatAlpheobelieved to be of thehighest importance.

He had, in fact, an enormous amount of work to do to impress upon the men of his time the concept of a unified, functional state where the various branches of government and executive powers were contained and balanced, the very ideal of Yarzat's nascent political structure.

He was of the firm belief that if Yarzat was to flourish, it needed to have a common identity along with a societal structure that went beyond the simple links of allegiance from subject to master.

Still, that was work for another time, a long lecture for a council table. For now, withEdricback at his side, the Yarzat party watched the somber parade of the vanquished.

Knowing that at least, they had delayed the terrible storm that was coming their way.