Greek Fire

by James Boschert

  “He said he was going for more wine but I think he has had enough and is probably gone to find his servants in order for them to carry him home,” Antonia said.

  “Oh no, he hasn’t!” Nikoporus said, leaning over her with a leer. “I want to hear more about this Frank of ours. He said he was a Knight Templar but did not explain whether this meant he was a good horseman or not,” he said with a grin at Talon.

  “Niko! Where did you come from?” Antonina squeaked in surprise. “Niko is fishing, Talon. Beware!” She said this with a laugh and shot an affectionate glance at Nikoporus.

  “The Templars charge into the enemy as a unit and destroy them. Is that not true?” Alexios asked.

  “It is true the Templars charge as one. It seems to be very effective, especially against lighter cavalry and of course infantry,” Talon said.

  “I am talking about real horsemanship, something you Franks do not do,” Nikoporus said with a sly glance at Alexios.

  Alexios sighed. “He is talking about tzykanion, Talon. Perhaps you have never seen it played.”

  “But what is it? Is it played with horses?” Talon asked.

  “It is played on horses on a large field,” Alexios began.

  “The riders use a stick to drive a ball through a pair of poles and that counts as a score,” Nikoporus interrupted, lifting his arm and swiping at the air with it, spilling some wine in the process.

  “Niko, settle down!” Antonina exclaimed with a giggle, moving out of the way.

  “But that is Chogan!” Talon said, his interest rising.

  “Chogan as the Persians play it?” Alexios asked.

  “Yes, that is what I mean, with a mallet and a ball. Several players and you score goals.”

  “We use a stick here too, but it has a small net at the end and you can flick the ball through the air or carry it, but not for long, as the other players will smack you hard for doing so. They sound similar but not quite the same. So do you play Chogan, Talon? Is that what Sir Guy called Arab Polo?” Alexios asked.

  “I have played…yes.” Talon did not want to give too much out as there might be a reaction, but he wanted to see this game.

  “Well, Niko plays like a demon and Theo here plays really well, as do I of course.” Alexios pretended to preen. “And then there is the champion of champions, Pantoleon over there, who has his own team.”

  “I would very much like to see this game,” Talon said.

  “You could play too if you like. We are always looking for more players.” Niko grinned. It sounded like a challenge.

  Before Talon could say anything another voice interjected.

  “Is this right what I hear? The Frank says he knows how to play tzykanion?” It was Pantoleon who said this, and his look at Talon wasn’t particularly friendly. The same girl he had been with before was hanging off his arm and still smiling vacuously. She was clearly too drunk to know much about what was happening.

  “I know it as Chogan, but from what I hear there are differences,” Talon replied, his tone mild.

  “I wonder. You Franks point spears at one another and then ride in a straight line. It is not what we call horsemanship,” Pantoleon retorted.

  Nikoporus gave a wicked grin. “Better not let Manuel hear you say that, Panto. He thinks jousting is the best thing since…well, there is only one way to find out. You have your team and our Alex’s team is short a player. Perhaps Sir Talon,”—he emphasized the Sir—“would like to play with us in a friendly game?”

  Alexios gripped Talon’s arm. “This is a dangerous game, Talon. You do not have to play.”

  “I am willing to participate in a game, Niko,” Talon said in an even tone. He knew that Pantoleon was out to humiliate him and was not sure why, but he was not about to back down. “Unfortunately I do not possess a horse at the moment. So unless someone is very generous I shall have to run about on my own two legs.”

  Antonina laughed merrily and Alexios joined her. “I shall provide you with mounts, Talon. Niko can provide a couple as well so that you do not ride mine into the sand.”

  Pantoleon looked smug. “It is settled then. Why do not we play in two days’ time at the barracks where there is a small field?”

  Alexios looked a little worried. “That is the parade ground, Pantoleon. If someone falls there will be a serious injury—why not the fields to the west of the city just next to the walls?”

  Pantoleon ignored him and stared at Talon with a challenge in his dark eyes. “Well, you have the horses now; are you still willing to show us how well the Franks can ride?”

  “I shall be there,” Talon said, his tone neutral.

  Pantoleon sauntered off, taking his girl with him.

  “Now what was all that about?” Nikoporus asked, looking puzzled.

  “It is your fault, Niko. If you had not opened your big mouth Panto would not have heard and Sir Talon here would not be forced to play that silly game.” Antonina looked annoyed.

  Nikoporus looked hurt. “Panto will do what he wants regardless of what I say. Why he is picking on Sir Talon I do not know.”

  “Probably because he does not know the difference between a Norman and a Knight Templar. And he has a good team. He is probably just showing off as usual, and at the expense of someone else,” Alexios stared after Pantoleon with a look of distaste on his face.

  “I am under the impression that Franks are not much liked in this city,” Talon remarked.

  “No, they are not, but it is unpleasant of him to have challenged us to a game and to have used you to do so,” Nikoporus said. He appeared to be sobering up. Talon decided that he liked him.

  “You see, Talon, it is not really you he wants to humiliate, it is Alex and me.”

  “I do not understand,” Talon said.

  “We trounced him about six months ago and now he sees an opportunity for revenge,” Alexios said.

  “Well, that is very likely if you have me on the team. I am used to Chogan, not this tzyka…this complicatedly named game you play here.”

  “You need to understand, Talon. I am not sure how you Franks do things, but horsemanship is a very important skill here. Pantoleon is not only a superb rider and player, he is also a champion charioteer. He is a member of the Blue team and has won many laurels.”

  “I recall seeing him the last time in the Hippodrome.”

  “The game is called tzykanion. Let’s discuss the differences between the game you know and the game you do not know,” Nikoporus said.

  *****

  Two days later Talon, accompanied by Sir Guy, Max, and Claude, appeared at the gates of the barracks.

  The guards appeared to have been alerted to their arrival, as the officer motioned them in politely and then guided them to the parade ground, which was bare except for two thick poles at either end, spread about twenty feet apart.

  The horse lines were packed with animals and men attending to them. Talon noticed that Alexios and Nikoporus were waiting for them. Both men were dressed in tunics and hose with short boots, as was Talon, who intended to be unencumbered when he played.

  They had spent the last two days practicing and Talon had by now managed to convince both men that he knew how to ride. Now they were nervous that there would be an accident; in his role as emissary for the Templars that could make for a scandal none of them wanted to be responsible for. Pantoleon, however, showed no concern about that and was at the other end of the field with his six men, cantering in lazy circles as he swung his stick.

  Talon had discovered that the stick used in the Byzantine game was made of cane, just as the mallet he was used to; but at the end of this stick was a small leather net that could just accommodate a wooden ball about the size of a man’s fist, which was made of willow root.

  In many respects the games were similar in that once a player possessed the ball he tried to hurl it at the goals on the opposing side, on a field that was about two hundred paces long. The other players would try to stop him…and that was where th
e game became rough. However, there could be no striking of the ball, as it was not a mallet but a net.

  Sir Guy was annoyed when Talon had told him of the challenge and had almost forbidden him to participate, but realizing that this would put Talon in an embarrassing position he had relented and then decided to come along.

  “To see fair play,” as he put it, and also to remind the other players that Talon was a guest of the Emperor and, as such, should not be harmed. He wore the Templar uniform to make his point.

  Once mounted Talon cantered his small but fast and responsive pony out onto the field, leaving Sir Guy, Max and Claude standing near the horse lines with Alexios, who was also preparing to mount.

  Talon felt a rider come alongside him and found that Pantoleon was riding a beautiful pony nearby. He stopped and greeted him.

  “God’s Greetings. You have a good-looking animal there, Pantoleon. How are you today?”

  Pantoleon surprised him by greeting him in a pleasant manner. “Greetings yourself, Frank. Thank you, she is one of my best and knows this game as well as I. Perhaps we will have a good game today.” He smiled, showing white teeth, then rode off.

  Talon looked after him and thought about that.

  The game began with a throw in from the sides by a soldier, and then the players went at it trying to hoist the ball out of the sand into their nets and carry it a small distance before hurling it in the general direction of the opposition goals. The game thundered back and forth along the length of the field with the riders pushing and barging into one another as they tried to take the ball from each other. Good-natured curses and insults flew as the teams faced off against each other.

  He made good progress but the other team began to put the pressure on, and by the end of the game his team mates were bruised and definitely beaten.

  He rode off the field on yet another horse he did not know alongside his new friends, who were not particularly despondent about the defeat.

  “You did well there, Talon. I think that with some practice you could become a very useful player,” Nikoporus remarked. Both he and his pony were sweating from their exertions in the hot morning sun.

  “Yes, you did. I was watching and I liked the way you avoided Pantoleon when he came after you. I think he was frustrated at how well you could evade him and still carry the ball. I had the feeling he was trying to make you fall,” Alexios said he rode alongside, his pony’s flanks still heaving from the game.

  “Wouldn’t surprise me at all. He is an arrogant bastard. You did well to not get injured, Talon.”

  “I am bruised all over from the whacking his team delivered to me,” Talon said in a rueful tone.

  “Oh, do not worry about that. You got off lightly. At least they did not poke you in the eyes. Go to the baths and get a good massage and you will be fine,” Nikoporus said with a laugh.

  “I think that we are probably done with tzykanion for the time being. Honor seems to be satisfied for the moment,” Alexios remarked to Nikoporus as they dismounted.

  “I agree,” Nikoporus said with a glance over his shoulder at the other team. “Talon, as I said, I want to show you around one of our warships one of these days. How about it?”

  “I would like that very much, Niko,” Talon said, and went to look for his Templar companions.

  Sir Guy pretended to be upset. “Max told me that you were a good Chogan player, Talon. So this game is all about being chased all over the field by others with sticks and they try to beat you?”

  Talon glanced at Max, who was grinning, and wagged a finger at his friend.

  “No, Sir, but in Chogan at least one can hit the ball and control the play that way. This game is about taking the ball to its destination or close to it and then trying to score. As you can see, the other side beat us handily, but I think I could get used to this game too.”

  “You managed to stay out of most of the trouble at least,” Sir Guy rumbled, but Talon could see that he was not displeased at the way he had acquitted himself.

  “I am very bruised and will need to rest and recuperate, Sir,” Talon said with a grin. “But I do have an invitation to go and visit one of their warships. Would you like to come too, Sir Guy?”

  Sir Guy stopped in his tracks and stared at Talon. “So this is what you are up to?” he asked slowly.

  “Only partially, Sir. I like to play Chogan, I mean tzykanion too.”

  “Yes…I would like that very much,” Sir Guy said. “But do not put your friends in a position where they have to explain my presence on one of their war ships. Perhaps upon reflection you should go alone, at least the first time, and not in Templar uniform.”

  *****

  In the Blachernae Palace that evening the Emperor listened to the reports coming in from his officers. Several of them were eunuchs whose sole purpose in life was to keep in touch with everything that went on within the city walls. There were others who were messengers from the outlying provinces who had come in with intelligence on the condition of the empire. A few of his most senior officers were nearby to offer comments and further information about reports delivered from afar.

  It was a custom Alexios I, Manuel’s grandfather, had set for each week, and his grandson followed suit, having found it wise to do so. The first reports were to do with the Bulgarian border and the murmurings of unrest in the region of the city of Dorostal, in the northeast of the empire.

  Today, however, Manuel was more interested in what what the Venetians might be plotting. “Have we heard anything that might indicate they’re planning something perfidious with their fleets?” he asked the eunuch who was charged with watching the Venetians.

  “No, Your Majesty, but it is clear that they would like to join forces with the Normans and make a bid for Chios and Lesbos.”

  “Can we stop them if they make a determined attack?”

  The chief of staff eunuch looked uncomfortable. “I am not sure, Your Highness. We do not possess a sizable fleet anymore and to divide it…might be unwise.”

  “What are you telling me?” Manuel demanded with some impatience.

  “Sire, we do not have enough ships in the south to protect our colonies and at the same time keep the seaways clear of pirates and other predators.”

  “Then send ships from the Grand Fleet! They sit there doing nothing most of the time.”

  The eunuch looked very uncomfortable at this point. “I shall pass along your wishes, Your Majesty, but you yourself did say the fleet must remain intact and near to the city while we prepare for our campaign.”

  “Why do we not have a fleet in the south? Why can’t we just build more ships to do this?” he demanded with much annoyance.

  “Sire, there is not enough in the treasury to both build ships and pay for the upcoming campaign,” said the unhappy official.

  Not for the first time Manuel, Emperor of Byzantium, felt himself in a corner as he contemplated his empire’s demands. It did not put him in a good humor.

  The affairs of state required the Emperor’s attention for another two hours, after which he stood and dismissed most of the officials with a wave of his hand. He took some wine and then motioned an officer of the light cavalry who had been waiting patiently near the entrance to the room to come forward.

  “Tell me of the game that was played at the barracks today. I heard that the Templar, Sir Guy, came to watch the other knight play against our chariot champion.”

  He listened with interest to the officer’s account of the game and how the players had performed. This report was merely one of the many that were presented to the emperor during the course of a day. His spies and agents were always on the lookout for anything out of the ordinary going on in this volatile city. The intelligence was useful for deflecting trouble before it could mature into a riot. The game of tzykanion was one of those games that Manuel was passionate about; he enjoyed playing immensely, as did his brother Isaac and others of his family.

  “How did the game go? Did Pantoleon win?”
Manuel asked.

  “It went well, Your Majesty. He won easily.”

  “How did the Frank play?”

  “He is unfamiliar with this particular game but there is no doubt he can ride with the best of them in a game of this type, Your Majesty. They say that he played Chogan with the Arabs, Sire.”

  “Sir Guy de Veres said the same thing when we gave audience, did he not, Your Majesty?” the parakoimomemos murmured from nearby.

  “Yes, I believe he did,” Manual said. “This Frank is different from the usual barbarians we meet, it would seem. I hear that Pantoleon challenged him to play our game. Perhaps he feels threatened by the Frank? Now that is amusing.”

  He came to a decision. “Who are the players in the game I am to watch in two days?”

  They gave him the names of the teams.

  The Emperor began to make changes to the listings with a smile on his face. “This should prove interesting. See to it,” he said. “Tell Isaac he now has a different team to play against.”

  *****

  Talon received the news that he was to play at the Grand Palace with dismay. He was told by no less a person than Alexios, who hurried down to the inn where Talon was staying and woke him up to tell him.

  “I cannot play in the tournament!” Talon exclaimed. “I do not have the experience, and besides, there must be many others who can really play well.”

  “Well, the Emperor can be rather whimsical about these things,” Alexios said, his tone anxious. “He is a great sportsman himself and this game is very close to his heart. It is the game in Constantinople for the nobility, and close behind the chariot racing in popularity. Do not forget that Pantoleon is one of his favorite players too.”

  “But Pantoleon is a very experienced player!” Talon protested. “Why in God’s good name did he choose me to play as well?”

  “It is worse than that. Isaac, the Emperor’s older brother, wants to play. The Emperor agreed.”

  Talon gaped at him, his eyes wide. “Dear God protect us; so we are going up against the royal family now!” he groaned.