The Matters of the Senate
(Taemon Tarreos POV)
"We should have destroyed the Ghiscari in the Last War, every last man woman and child!!" The Vicarius of the Glory Faction said as the Senate continued its shouting on what needed to be done as of late.
"You talk of War as if it is more important then the matters of what goes on within! WHERE is your dedication to duty you FOOL!" And there goes the Merchants going off on them.
It was times like these that made you question the point of this all. A thousand things needing to be done and not enough of it is properly done.
"Well fuck, they're all at it again..."You turned to the senator next to you as you tapped his shoulder. "Another day of pointless dribble. Senator Eleanor would have never let this shit happen."
Senator Vaerus Caeltygar, a Man of about 40 years with a finely trimmed beard, raised a finger to his lips. "You should not express such Thoughts this loudly", he said with a lowered voice as he discreetly nodded to a Senator of the Conservative-Faction sitting a few Seats away from you, who threw you a suspicious look before focusing on the Debate again. "Being heard expressing Sympathy for the Eleanors these days is a good way to make yourself a lot of powerful Enemies."
He grimaced as he looked at the so-called 'Debate' that was currently raging. "...Although I must admit that I can't disagree, old Friend. I may have disapproved of the way he went about it, but Eleanor would've been a massive improvement over what we have now. At least he was concentrated on the actual Problems instead of petty squabbling."
You looked down at your calloused hands and then to trace a dueling scar from one of the many disputes from the past that ran down your face. At 35, you had severed alongside Vae long enough to know that he wouldn't rat on you and that most disputes were above all things, pointless in the face of the many issues that the Freehold now had to deal with.
Though the fact remained the Conservatives were above all weary these days with any of the other factions that weren't themselves or the warmongers beating their chests over going all in. "If the Conservatives jump and strike at every senator who expressed admiration at the man, this whole hall would be a cemetery...and they know better than to do that. Fuck I should have stayed in the Leigons if our fathers told us the truth of every one of these meetings."
The Truth was, everyone knew, and that's is why your friendship with Vaerus was so noteworthy, as well as both of your political leanings, being Legionaries you'd have been right at home in the Glory or the Conservatives. Instead, you went against the Norms and choose your hill.
Tae and Vae...those two men who seemed to just be here in the senate.
You sighed. "But...we both know the real reason why they don't like us singing praises of the man."
Vaeron shook his head. "I suppose we do, don't we?" He looked around the Chamber. "I saw them when they made the Decision to bring him down...and they all were afraid. Afraid of losing even a little bit of their Power...and most of all afraid that this 'Upstart Dictator' was actually
right. That his way was the correct one after all. And even now, they fear that someone else will come and finish what Eleanor started." He sighed. "...I suppose that is why they went as far as they did."
You shook your head. "By the Fourteen Flames, what a fucking mess that was... If they really wanted to brand him as a universally reviled Traitor, they did a piss-poor Job. If anything, more People at least sympathize with him and his Family now then before!" You looked at Vaeron. "...You saw the young Raegon a few days ago, right? How...how is he?"
Vaeron snorted bitterly. "How do you think? His entire Family was murdered. He had to watch as his Father was torn apart by Dragons, his Mother and Siblings executed. Not even his Aunts, Uncles and Cousins were spared. He..." He looked down. "Remember how all of Commander Viscarys Brothers and Father were killed back when we served in the Legion? And how he seemed fine for a few days, keeping up a brave face and all, before we found him hanging in his tent with a noose around his neck? That poor boy looked just like him..."
You nodded. The days following that fiasco had been greatly annoying and terrifying, but the day's following the Eleanor Trial...it had never been done before, the extermination of a family of the Fourty, SAVE ONE.
It had been drastic, crude, even the trial was rushed beyond all decency, and if you and Vae couldn't represent Eleanor is the court of law, you could have appealed to their greater mercy.
The both of you DID, appeal to their mercy and their pragmatism...that this would lead to a power vacuum that would let hundreds of Dragon Rider Families to fill the spot. The Power Vacuum was all but inevitable at this point, but such is life.
"I say fuck the Conservatives! They brought this hell upon themselves", you said.
Vae was less assured as he saw the other Conservative Senators seemingly ignoring your words, but trying to hear every one of them all the same.
"You're really trying aren't you? They'll look for one excuse to kill your family too!", he warned.
"They can't...because then that would set a precedent, and the Factions looking to secure power would devolve into Civil War, leading to the Rise of a Man like Eleanor again to take power and become the master of the Freehold", you said. "And they are all smart enough to know that, Civil War with Dragon's as the Harpies breath down our necks is...inadvisable. Especially with the Legion's uppity overpayments that need to be paid... Call Eleanor a madman or a genius, he was right on that front. I'd be spreading whispers of Rebellion too if the damned Dragons can't even pay me for dying along side them."
"Now you're going to get us both killed!", he said.
"Speaking the Truth is not a crime in the Freehold senate and if it was I'd lead the Mob itself when it finally comes to removing it", you countered.
Vaeron sighed with a look of resignation. "I suppose this is why you became a Populist and I a Moderate. You were always like this, Tae... Always taking the risky path, always eager to find a Hill of Ideals to fight and die on. How often would you have already been killed if not for my help?"
You snorted with a hint of amusement. "And yet, you never really minded helping me out with what I was doing, now did you?"
Vaeron looked at you with complete honesty in his eyes. "I will always have your back. You know that. And this will be no different, no matter what you decide to do. Even if I think it's rash or ill-advised. I won't just let my oldest Friend charge off into his possible Doom alone."
You laughed. "We have a thousand friends like that, and that is why we are considered annoyances rather than threats. They can't really handle the backlash of killing more popular men, especially given that they are under scrutiny from the Army, and we fight and die for their causes on the battlefield and now in the senate."
Vae nodded. "Well, small blessings from that shall we say."
"And how is the family? You haven't said how your family is doing as of late given all the madness", you said.
Vaeron sighed. "Raenyra is...well, you know that she was good Friends with Elaenors Wife. She tries to keep up a smile, but..." He shook his Head. "I worry about her."
You put a hand on his shoulder. "...Is there anything I can do?"
"Well, you could come over to our Estate and talk with her. She could use the Company of another Friend. And so could my Children, for that matter. They were rather quiet these last few days. Seeing their Uncle Tae again should cheer them up a bit."
You smiled. "I would like to see them as well."
Vaeron chuckled. "I know. You were always fond of them." He looked down at the 'Debate' around them and sighed as his face becomes more serious. "...What worries me more is the upcoming War. We both know it's going to happen." He snorted. "And those Morons in the Glory-Faction expects it to be a quick Success. Do you know what that old fool Maekar told me yesterday? That he expects the Ghiscari 'to last a week at most'...without a hint of Irony!"
"A war that lasts a Week, that will be the day." You said. "If our soldiers can loot and pillage the hell out of the cities for the wages they were promised to inspire them to win."
"Hah, mayhaps we can hire some Freemen from the West. That's always an option, they are cheaper then the Army at this rate...or at least that's what the Glory Faction says", Vae muttered.
"Damn fools... Those men have never been in a Real War in years, and some of them at all. They think its all a game", you said.
"Folly will follow, as all things do... How is your family?", he asked.
"We just had our third daughter...and with two sons and three daughters, that makes five little hatchlings...I swear they eat more than the dragons sometimes...Visaya is very happy with that, though she wants to wait a little longer before having another one, wants to fly more." You said.
"And you should let her...its unwise to leave a wife like that." He said. "Then again, few things are more dangerous."
"HA...well at least we know they are happy." You said. "I'll make the time...so I was thinking of investing in a few things, want to compare notes... You have a few properties and businesses in Volantis. So, any suggestions?"
"I wouldn't call my investments in the colony "Business" as of late. It's just some assets to have in the west, you know, to say you have it, not to actually use it." Vae said.
You nodded. "Understandable... Still, do you think I should make some investments?"
"I believe it would be a wise course of Action to buy a few Estates Assets there... After all, it's better to have it and not need it then to need it and not have it. And with this new War on the Horizon, we might need all that we can get."
You looked at your old Friend. "...I didn't think you'd be this worried about the Ghiscari."
He looked at you with seriousness. "From what I've heard, they have a new General...and a good one at that. A Genius, some even claim. He put down some of the largest Slave-Revolts and political Uprisings in their History without any Trouble. And he HATES the Freehold...literally swore an Oath to see our Lands razed to the Ground." He shook his head. "Combine this with the Overconfidence of our Military Leaders and the Fact that the Ghiscari know that they NEED to win this War if they want to survive...yes, I am worried. Not to mention my personal Reasons..."
Your eyes softened as you remembered. "...Aerion will be old enough to enlist next Year, right?"
Vaeron shook his head. "He's young. Patriotic, just like the two of us were. He wants to defend Valyria at all cost, no matter what I and Raenyra say to try and dissuade him. And with the current Situation...I fear that my oldest Son will only march off to find a Grave, dug by some Fool from the Glory-Faction not just for him but for an entire Army out of sheer Arrogance and Pride."
"Alas, maybe we could be called to serve if only to get out of this damn hall", you said.
He nodded. "I'd like that, but we're getting old as it is. War is a young man's game."
"That it is, but Dragon's make it easier to you know keep up with the young ones", you said.
"That it does...that it does", he sighed.
You then turned to the debate and saw that it was winding down. "Hmm, the senate is ending soon, so I'll have to contract a few people in Volantis to invest."
"That is a wise course of action... Anything else?", he asked.
"Have you thought about getting some trade posts in Westeros, It's an entire market ripe for the taking, and I don't need to be a master of trade or a Political Genius to know that...I'm thinking...a deal in White Harbor, the Ironwood doesn't burn very easily", you said.
Vaeron looked at you with surprise. "The meeting's not even over and you already plan something supposedly beneath men like the Forty? What are you thinking?"
"I'm thinking of a few things...namely trade ships and Western Goods", you said. "I think that some business trips are in order."
Vaeron smiled weakly. "To be honest...I think I might join you then. Anything to get out of the Freehold for a while. Who knows, maybe some cooler Heads will have prevailed when we return." He snorted. "Though I'm not counting on it."
"Such is life...and we get into the Market before everyone else...well we get to dictate better terms", you said.
And so you left the Senate with plans, ideas and prayers for happier days ahead...
AN: Thank you
@Alexander Sturnn for your input.
The Senate...is not created equal...and these guys are proof enough to that.
Enjoy.
