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Six for Gold

Page 24

by Mary Reed


  Crispin bowed. “That is so, excellency. It has pleased the Lord to deliver unto His followers a sacred artifact as irrefutable proof our understanding of His true nature is correct, and one which I venture to suggest will not disappoint your expectations. The man who brought it to the city awaits without.”

  John glanced around. Theodora’s expression remained unchanged, while a smirk of satisfaction crossed Hektor’s ruined face.

  “Very well,” Justinian replied. “Then it is our wish to observe and examine it.”

  As the emperor uttered the words he cast a quick sidelong glance toward the impassive empress.

  John signaled to the excubitors guarding the bronze doors at the other end of the hall, which immediately swung open to reveal the diminutive figure of Dedi.

  The magician was dressed in plain white garments appropriate for the solemn task before him. He approached the throne slowly, almost hesitantly. An hour before he had appeared supremely unconcerned about attending an audience with Justinian, but, John supposed, coming face to face with the man who held the power of life and death over everyone in the empire was enough to give even a boastful Egyptian charlatan pause.

  When Dedi reached the imperial couple he bowed clumsily.

  “And this is the rogue who was responsible for the death of the sheep?” Justinian asked.

  “Yes, Caesar. However, Dedi now brings two gifts and begs for the favor of performing for your imperial highnesses, possibly thereby earning your gracious pardon.”

  Theodora gave a vicious smile. “Perhaps this little man believes he can mislead our beloved emperor and myself as easily and conveniently as he did ignorant peasants?”

  Justinian waved his hand. “Indeed, indeed. The tale you have told intrigues me, Lord Chamberlain. We shall not rush to hasty judgement. Bishop Crispin, you assured me I would not be disappointed. We shall see. However, it seems this man has brought two gifts. What then is the second?”

  Crispin looked startled, but quickly recovered his wits. “I believe Dedi wishes to present it personally.”

  An excubitor appeared with a lidded basket which he placed at Dedi’s sandals.

  Dedi drew himself up. “Here is a wonder to behold, most gracious one. A rare and fine example of a beast many have sought but few have found! That semi-mythical beast, the radish-colored cat.”

  There were a few nervous laughs from the onlookers.

  “There’s no such thing,” someone remarked too loudly.

  “Pliny would surely be amazed,” another voice added.

  Crispin directed a furious scowl toward Hektor.

  Dedi waited for the murmuring to die down, then opened the basket and extracted a small kitten.

  Theodora’s caw of laughter rang out. “You fool! It’s gray!”

  Dedi bowed yet again. “But highness, do not radishes turn gray as they age and mould?”

  Justinian chuckled as Theodora allowed herself an admiring smile at the magician’s impudence. “You may be lacking in stature, Dedi of Egypt, but you have a lion’s courage!”

  Dedi handed the squirming feline to an excubitor.

  “A clever gift, and one for which we extend our gracious thanks,” Justinian told Dedi. “And now, as regards the other matter…” His gaze flickered toward Bishop Crispin.

  “That was my personal gift to you, excellency,” Dedi replied with another bow. He favored the royal couple with a crooked-toothed smile.

  “Then now let us see this artifact of which we have heard so much,” Theodora said firmly. “We trust we will not be disappointed.”

  “No true believer will be disappointed,” Dedi replied. “First, however, we must take precautions, for there are wonders that would blind if seen in the light.”

  As he spoke attendants began dousing lamps until there remained lit only those suspended from the ceiling. In the smoky haze they glowed dimly, tiny suns glimpsed through fog.

  The excubitors stationed near the emperor and empress moved closer, wary of the increased darkness. Felix peered around, alert for trouble.

  Two servants hauled a crate to the foot of the throne.

  Justinian gestured in Crispin’s direction. “Come forward now and tell us what we are about to witness.”

  The bishop made his way with obvious reluctance to Dedi’s side. He looked down at the closed crate with an uncertain expression.

  When he spoke his voice trembled, as if with some powerful emotion. “Caesar, my followers and I are blessed to present to you, heaven’s representative on earth, the brazen serpent Moses raised up in the wilderness. Nehushtan!”

  With a flourish Dedi slid aside the top of the crate, reached inside, and pulled out a shadowy form.

  Fitful light glimmered on loose coils and caught an eye in a withered human visage.

  Gasps of awe and terror erupted from the audience.

  They fell quickly silent as it became apparent that what the magician held was a stout stick around which coiled a somnolent snake fitted with a blatantly counterfeit human head.

  Bishop Crispin turned pale as a few muffled oaths of a decidedly unecclesiastical nature were heard.

  Dedi moved the stick back and forth, imparting a semblance of life to the comatose reptile. He grasped the snake under its false head and made it bow to the imperial couple.

  Justinian roared with laughter before glancing at Theodora. “We haven’t seen anything so entertaining since that dwarf mime of yours disappeared!”

  Theodora rose from her seat. “Who is responsible for this insult?” Her venomous gaze fell on Hektor.

  The former court page turned toward Justinian. “Caesar, as you can see, the information I gave you was accurate. There was indeed a threat from Egypt, only it has come to nothing. This Nehushtan is of no use to anyone.”

  Justinian, still seated, glanced briefly at Theodora. Then his gaze passed over Hektor as if he were not there and came to rest, instead, on Felix.

  “Captain. Execute Hektor immediately.”

  Epilogue

  “I only wish I could have handed my sword to you, John. Not that I minded putting an end to the villain myself.”

  Felix took another sip of wine and stared thoughtfully at the wall mosaic in John’s study. “The strangest thing was when I returned to the reception hall after escorting Hektor to the dungeons for execution as ordered. Bishop Crispin kept muttering something about how it was turning out to be true, that Hektor wouldn’t die on the street. What do you suppose he meant?”

  John shook his head. “Who can say? Now we know that Hektor alerted Justinian to the plot, which is probably why the emperor gave me so little information. I suspect Hektor didn’t tell him everything he knew.”

  “Hektor was trying to wager on both teams at the same time,” said Felix. “I know what I would’ve laid a coin or two on, and that’s that when a scapegoat was needed it wasn’t going to be Theodora’s prize bishop.”

  Anatolius spoke up. “I almost feel sorry for Crispin. I’m not sure he believed me when I told him my associates had Nehushtan. However, since I obviously knew about the plot and he was ordered to the audience with Justinian, he had little choice but to go along and hope for the best. He couldn’t have expected anything as ludicrous as that snake on a stick. I wish I had as much hair.” He ruefully patted his scalp, now covered with short, dark fuzz.

  “Dedi’s snake oracle appears much more convincing presented in front of an ancient temple ruin in the middle of the Egyptian night,” John observed.

  “I’ll have to take your word for it,” Anatolius replied. “Dedi will doubtless boast to the end of his days of his great success performing for the emperor and empress.”

  “No doubt he saw it as the opportunity of a lifetime. As indeed it was, particularly since he escaped with his life. Francio’s guests will enjoy his act.”

  Anatolius’ gaze went to the window. “See how the sky is purpling, John. We should leave soon or we’ll be
late. Francio’s been planning this recreation of Trimalchio’s feast for some time, and I don’t want to miss any of it.”

  “Just as well Francio hasn’t set eyes on Cheops,” said Thomas. “I’m afraid he might have been tempted to add ancient feline to the menu.”

  Laughter from down the hallway mingled the voices of Europa and Hypatia, now back in residence, with the deeper tones of Peter.

  “Whatever is going on in the kitchen?” Felix wondered. “It sounds as if Peter is declaiming something of great import.”

  “I believe he’s entertaining the ladies with a magick trick he learned on the boat back,” said John. “For the purpose of entertainment only, of course.”

  Thomas laughed. “It’s the leaping coin illusion. Dedi showed him how to do it, as Peter wanted to amaze Hypatia when he returned. It’s quite easy. All you need is a coin with a tiny hole drilled at the edge and a length of black hair or finely woven thread tied through it. A quick twist of the wrist and you can flip it out of a bowl as if by magick. It works wonderfully well, especially in dim light. In fact, I’m going to astonish Isis with it, assuming she’ll allow me to return to her employ after such a long and unexplained absence.”

  Anatolius remarked that Peter sometimes surprised him.

  “I expect Peter will chatter for months about our trip,” John said. “On the boat back, he observed to me that right from the time we disembarked for Mehenopolis he realized Porphyrios was not what he could call reliable. He said he’d reached this conclusion because despite the supposed charioteer’s statement about dogs running while they drank from the Nile for fear of being dragged in by crocodiles, a dog was standing quite calmly on the bank drinking from the river near where we landed!”

  They went down to the atrium. Anatolius paused at the house door. “One thing more that I don’t understand. Felix, at times it appeared to me as if you really thought John had murdered the senator.”

  Looking embarrassed, Felix tugged at his beard. “Yes, I could see you were puzzled. John indicated there was more to his exile than it seemed, but he was not very clear.” He scowled briefly at John. “Officially he was being blamed for the murder. I wasn’t certain how much to reveal of what I intended to do if we could not find evidence to clear him.”

  Anatolius gave the excubitor captain a questioning look.

  “If we could not clear John’s name—and Justinian would not—if John died for a crime he did not commit, I was prepared to take the first opportunity I had to kill Justinian. It would have been a dishonorable act to murder a man I am sworn to protect, but I knew John was innocent and as brothers in Mithra…”

  “But John is so valuable to Justinian…” Anatolius argued.

  John observed that many valuable subjects had been executed for lesser sins than supposedly murdering a senator.

  “That’s true,” Thomas said. “I’d have expected Justinian to have Dedi dispatched on the spot for trying to foist that snake oracle off on him after all that talk about an astounding relic.”

  John chuckled. “I suspect Justinian realized Dedi’s act could be used to discredit his religious opponents. Besides, the Christians’ holy book claims Nehushtan was destroyed, and Justinian certainly wouldn’t have welcomed proof the sacred writings were fallible.”

  “Then the emperor isn’t likely to order anyone to Mehenopolis to seize whatever is in the maze, even if he guesses there’s more to it than Dedi’s performance suggests,” Thomas observed. “Mind you, I wager Melios will go after it while Dedi is here, and then that’ll be the end of Dedi’s livelihood.”

  “I doubt if Melios has enough servants to fight his way through the pilgrims who’d rush to defend the maze,” John said. “Besides, by destroying the relic he’d deprive himself and the settlement of a good source of income. For that matter, once Dedi gets a taste of performing at court he might not care to return to Egypt.”

  “It’s enough to make my head hurt,” growled Thomas. “I’m a fighter, not a plotter. Give me a fair contest, blade against blade, any day and none of this creeping around and skulking in shadows. Why, even the emperor’s at it now! He needs a few good swordsmen, I’d say! They’d settle things a lot more simply, if not as daintily as some might like.”

  “Ruling an empire isn’t so simple as it seems,” John pointed out. “The imperial couple often hold themselves out in public as disagreeing on certain matters. It may be these are attempts to flush out hitherto unsuspected enemies foolish enough to declare themselves to one camp or another. Not to mention it keeps people off balance, always a good advantage to have.”

  Thomas frowned. “You mean Theodora wasn’t really championing those heretics, or Justinian isn’t as orthodox as he likes to appear?”

  “All I can say is that Justinian requires the support of the orthodox, but he also needs the resources of Egypt, which is not entirely orthodox,” John replied. “The emperor does not confide everything in me. Even a Lord Chamberlain can be trusted only so far.”

  “I’ll wager the emperor and empress don’t even trust each other,” Thomas observed with a grin.

  “That could be. Whatever the understanding or quarrel between Justinian and Theodora might be on this occasion, I believe they both keep secrets from each other. The real reason for my journey to Egypt is quite possibly one of them.”

  “We ought to get on our way,” Anatolius interrupted. “Francio’s expecting a good number of guests. I think he will get them, because according to Hypatia in the last few days—in fact, ever since Dedi’s performance for Justinian and Theodora—they have admitted no further plague patients to the hospice.”

  “Strange indeed,” John admitted as they crossed the cobbled square. “And yet, as followers of Mithra, should we not consider that as nothing more than coincidence?”

  Glossary

  All dates are CE unless otherwise noted.

  APIONS

  Extremely wealthy and powerful Egyptian family from Oxyrhynchus (present-day al-Bahnasa). A number of its members held high imperial posts.

  ATRIUM

  Court-like area inside a Roman house. Partly open to the sky, it not only provided light to rooms opening from it, but also contained a shallow cistern (IMPLUVIUM) under a square or oblong opening (COMPLUVIUM) in its roof. While the IMPLUVIUM was also ornamental, its main purpose was to catch rainwater for household use.

  BRITOMARTIS

  Cretan goddess. She was called the Lady of the Nets because while fleeing unwanted amorous attention she leapt from a cliff, landing in the net of a fisherman in whose boat she escaped to safety.

  BATHS OF ZEUXIPPOS

  Public baths in Constantinople, named after ZEUXIPPOS. Erected by order of Septimius Severus (146–211, r 193–211), the baths were a casualty of the Nika riots (532). They were rebuilt by JUSTINIAN I. Situated near the HIPPODROME, they were generally considered the most luxurious of the city’s baths and were famous for their statues of mythological figures and Greek and Roman notables.

  BLUES

  Followers of the Blue chariot racing faction. Great rivalry existed between the Blues and the GREENS and each had their own seating sections in the HIPPODROME. Brawls between the two sets of supporters were not uncommon and occasionally escalated into city-wide riots.

  CHALKE

  Main entrance to the GREAT PALACE. Its roof was tiled in bronze and the interior was decorated with mosaics of military triumphs, JUSTINIAN I and THEODORA.

  CHURCH OF SERGIUS AND BACCHUS

  Built in 527, the octagonal domed church is architecturally similar to the GREAT CHURCH. The two martyred saints it commemorates were popular in the east. It was built contiguously with the Church of Saints Peter and Paul, who were particularly venerated in the west.

  COMPLUVIUM

  See ATRIUM.

  DALMATIC

  Loose over-garment worn by the Byzantine upper classes.

  DELPHIC ORACLE

  Most famous oracle in Greece. P
riestesses serving in the temple to Apollo on Mount Parnassus prophesied in a semi-conscious and incoherent state after inhaling vapors escaping from the earth and chewing laurel leaves. Their ramblings were interpreted by a temple priest.

  EUNUCH

  Eunuchs played an important role in the military, ecclesiastical, and civil administrations of the Byzantine Empire. Many high offices in the GREAT PALACE were typically held by eunuchs.

  EXCUBITORS

  GREAT PALACE guard.

  FLOWERS OF PAION

  Peonies.

  FORUM BOVIS

  See MESE.

  FORUM CONSTANTINE

  See MESE.

  GARUM

  Spicy, pungent, fermented fish sauce much used in Roman cuisine.

  GOLDEN GATE

  Principal gate at the southern end of the Theodosian Wall protecting the land side of Constantinople.

  GREAT BULL

  See MITHRA.

  GREAT CHURCH

  Colloquial name for the Church of the Holy Wisdom (Hagia Sophia). One of the world’s great architectural achievements, the Hagia Sophia was completed in 537, replacing the church burnt down during the Nika riots (532).

  GREAT PALACE

  Situated in the southern part of Constantinople, it was not one building but rather many, set amidst trees and gardens. Its grounds included barracks for the EXCUBITORS, ceremonial rooms, reception halls, the imperial family’s living quarters, churches, and housing provided for court officials, ambassadors, and various other dignitaries.

  GREENS

  Followers of the Green chariot racing faction. Great rivalry existed between the BLUES and the Greens and each had their own seating sections in the HIPPODROME. Brawls between the two sets of supporters were not uncommon and occasionally escalated into city-wide riots.

  HIPPODROME

  U-shaped race track next to the GREAT PALACE. The Hippodrome had tiered seating accommodating up to a hundred thousand spectators. It was also used for public celebrations and other civic events.

  HORACE (Quintus Horatius Flaccus) (65–68 BC)

 

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