Byzantium

'Only this,' I said, and walked to where King Harald stood silent and slightly bewildered; I held out my hand to him. 'Your silver, Jarl Harald,' I said, in Danespeak. 'Give me some coins.'

'What is happening here?' he asked, withdrawing the pouch from his belt at the same time. 'What are they saying?'

'Patience, lord, it is soon over, and I will tell you everything.'

The king grudgingly placed the coin bag in my hand and I returned to my place by the throne. Nikos had already seen what I had in mind, and said, 'Reach into the purse, and take out a coin. I will take up one also. Now, show them to the emperor.'

We both extended our hands with a coin on the palm. Emperor Basil examined each denarius in turn. 'They are the same.'

Nikos took several more coins from among those he had retrieved and inspected each one. 'They are all the same, basileus.'

'I would know, Quaestor Antonius,' the emperor said, 'how the coins of this Danish king have come to be in your possession. Do you maintain that they were also part of your shrewd father's bequest?'

'Lord and emperor,' the harbour master replied, 'those denarii are the most common coin in the empire, as everyone knows. Rather ask how this barbarian king came into possession of coins minted in Constantinople.'

'These were not minted in Constantinople, Quaestor Antonius,' said the komes. 'They were struck in Rome, and all commemorate Theophilus.' Stooping again to the heap, he sifted through the coins, withdrawing the silver until he had them all. These he counted. 'Basileus,' he announced, rising, 'I would have you know that there are forty-five Roman denarii.'

The emperor glared at his tax collector. 'It appears that you have, to the very coin, the precise number of denarii this king has charged you with stealing. What is more, each is a Roman coin of the exact stamp as that from the barbarian's own purse. If you can explain, then do so.'

The harbour master, brazen to the last, shrugged. 'It is merely an unlucky chance, basileus,' he said. 'Nothing more.'

'Oh, it is too much for chance, we think,' declared Basil pointedly. The emperor gazed with cruel satisfaction at the unhappy quaestor and said, 'Allow us to suggest another, altogether more logical possibility: that you stole this silver from these men and put it in the jar with the intention of changing it for solidi-along with all the rest of the denarii you have been stealing in the course of your duties. Further, Quaestor Antonius, it is our belief that, judging from the considerable extent of the evidence we see before us, you have been abusing your position as Master of Hormisdas Harbour for a considerable length of time.' Emperor Basil sat upright in his wide throne. 'That will stop.'

'Sovereign lord,' said Antonius quickly, 'the gold is mine, I swear it on the holy name. I am telling the truth; it is my bequest. With all respect, you cannot believe these barbari.'

'Respect?' asked Basil. 'We wonder that you use such a word. You have shown little respect to us, or to your position. Still,' the emperor said briskly, 'though the silver is no longer in question, it is not proven that you stole the gold.'

So saying, Basil beckoned the magister to him. The court official brought a wax tablet of the kind the prefect carried, and gave it to the emperor. Taking up the stylus, Basil began to write.

'Basileus,' ventured the quaestor hesitantly, 'it was but a small transgression. It is not a matter for prison certainly.'

'We agree, Quaestor Antonius, it is not a matter for prison. That would be a cruel waste of a man of your impressive talents, and a loss to the empire. It is clear to us, however, that your present position is, shall we say, constricting to you.'

Glancing up from his writing, the emperor allowed himself a thin smile. 'The imperial mines are always in need of men such as yourself-men with an appetite for wealth, and an eye for the glint of silver. We are certain you will find the company of like-minded men most invigorating.'

The former harbour master's mouth dropped open; he closed it and swallowed hard. 'No…no…please Holy Jesu, no,' he murmured.

Basil, having dispensed justice to his satisfaction, dismissed the matter. 'Transportation has been arranged. You will be the guest of the emperor until your ship sails.' He made a signal with his hands and five of the Farghanese stepped forward at once. Basil passed the wax tablet to the magister, and flicked his hand towards the bronze doors, saying, 'Take him from here.'

'My money!' said the quaestor, struggling forward as the guards took hold of him. 'That is my money.'

'Your gold will remain with us,' Basil replied. 'Wealth of this magnitude would only prove a hazard where you are going. In this, we are showing you far more charity than you ever showed us.'

The bronze doors opened and the prisoner was hauled into the anteroom. He made one last attempt to remonstrate with the emperor, but the leading Farghanese silenced him with a sharp blow to the mouth and he resigned himself to his fate and allowed himself to be led away.

Emperor Basil gestured that the gold and broken pottery should be cleared away. Komes Nikos turned to King Harald and presented him with the recovered silver coins. 'Your denarii, lord,' he said, dismissing the king with a word.

Harald accepted the silver and then, in an act I have pondered often since, he stepped to the foot of the throne and, directing me to translate his words, said: 'Most Noble Emperor, I tell you the truth: I came here to plunder your treasure stores and take to myself as much as I could carry back to Skania.'

The emperor received this confession with good grace. 'You are not the first to entertain such notions, Lord Harald.'

When I had relayed Basil's words, the Sea Wolf king continued, 'Now I find myself before you, and I look around me,' he glanced around with wide-eyed admiration, 'and I see such wealth as men in my country cannot imagine.' Gesturing to the pile of gold coins on the floor, Harald said, 'What is more, I see that men in your service are rewarded far more richly than can be told.'

The emperor nodded with satisfaction. 'You have had but a glimpse of the wealth and power of the Holy Roman Empire, and you realize the futility of clashing with that power. In this, you show wisdom, Lord Harald.'

'It is true,' agreed Harald readily, when I had translated the emperor's words. 'And I ask myself, if a mere servant can amass such wealth, what may a king do? I have with me four ships and one hundred and sixty men. We have come seeking plunder, but will stay to gain wealth and renown in friendship with you, Great Jarl. Therefore, I place myself, my men, and my ships at your service, Most Noble Emperor.'

Even as I conveyed these words, I wondered at Harald's audacity. Was he so confident, so arrogant, as to believe all his men would follow him in this grand gesture? So naive as to believe the emperor would accept his offer, and even reward him for it?

In this, I was the innocent. For, wonder of wonders, the Holy Emperor of Rome, Sovereign Lord of All Christendom, regarded Harald Bull-Roar, barbarian lord and plunderer, narrowly, as a man calculating the value of a horse, and made up his mind at once. 'We accept your offer, Lord Harald. You will have seen that men of valour are welcome in my service, and they are indeed paid well. That you are seafaring men argues well in your favour: we have need of swift messengers just now, for the southern waters have become dangerous due to Arab raids.

'Therefore, let us put your fealty to the test. We are readying an envoy to Trebizond which will require an escort. Accept this service, and we will make you part of the imperial fleet. As it happens, the conventions of war at sea allow the victor to keep any spoils he should acquire when engaging an enemy. Naturally, we would extend this privilege to you, and even pray that you prosper.'

Harald, when he had heard the cast of the emperor's thought, heartily approved of the plan. 'We will meet your test, Lord Emperor,' he said. 'Your enemies will become our enemies. Our victories will be victories for you. I, Jarl Harald Bull-Roar, pledge this with my life and the lives of my men.'

Perhaps Jarl Harald, himself a man of authority, recognizing a power far greater than his own had adopted the most prudent course; perceiving the might of the empire arrayed against him if he pursued the raiding scheme, his shrewd barbarian mind had contrived the best possible solution. Or perhaps God, toiling away unseen and unknown in the fertile soil of Harald's immortal soul, had sown the seed which now bore its unexpected fruit. However it was, the result both astonished and amazed me.

'We accept your pledge, Lord Harald,' replied the emperor graciously. 'And we will pray the Heavenly Father