Synopsis:
The duchy of Polotsk is in the midst of war, finally striking out against the pagan barbarians that have raided their lands for so long. While the Duke and Prince of Polotsk, Vseslav Briachislavovich Rurik, rides to war, he remains apparently oblivious of the plots and intrigues taking place amongst his subordinates and heirs. His court has become neatly divided between those who support his second son, Roman Vseslavovich, and those who support his eldest and rightful heir, Gleb Vseslavovich, as the future Prince of Polotsk.
Roman is a boy who lives in the shadows, having been raised and educated by the court spymaster, Yaropolk, in the ways of the spider. He considers himself to be far more gifted and apt than Gleb, who for much of his early life was considered to be stupid, but is just now proving his skills in numbers and stewardship, and his belief may be true, as it will take a man gifted in intrigue to carve out a niche in the Rurikovich-dominated Rus'.
In the past two years, this division in the court has become even deeper. This deepening of the ravine can be laid at the feet of Yaropolk, who seeks to gain personal power through his manipulations of Roman and the court. He has become the political 'champion' of Roman in the vicious arena that is feudal politics, and on Roman's behalf has made many allies; Duchess Sophia, wife to Vseslav himself, and mother of his five children; Bishop Vseslav of Maladzyechna, chaplain of the court; as well as many other, less prominent courtiers, merchants and smallfolk. In an attempt to preserve Gleb, who is seen as the rightful heir, the young Bishop Trifon, a personal friend of Prince Vseslav, has taken it upon himself to build a rival network of contacts, friends and spies, to counter Yaropolk's plotting. He, however, has no idea of the true extent of Yaropolk's corruption.
Vseslav, too, has his own plots to achieve. Feeling his old age, he still wishes to create a legacy that will be passed onto his sons. For this reason, he has begun a campaign of conquest, desperate to gain more lands for the Principality, so as to compete with the far richer Rus' princes to the east. He is ambitious, and a strong warlord, with aims to help restore the Rus' to its former, more unified glory, a task that will be difficult to achieve, considering his status as a pariah amongst his dynastic brethren, and a personal feud with the current Grand Prince of Kiev, a strutting weakling by the name of Iziaslav Yaraslavovich.
The war upon the pagan tribes of Tartu progresses poorly, with a narrow victory over the major pagan army on the banks of the Dvina followed by a long, hard march through hostile territory, culminating in a siege upon the castle of Fellin. The mercenaries hired by Vseslav on his visit to Kiev to entreat Iziaslav for his aid in Vseslav's campaign upon the pagans, the Bulgarian Band, have been sabotaged by spies and treachery, only recently discovered, and the person behind this sabotage remains unknown... although some suspect Yaropolk, the court spymaster, of being the man behind it, attempting to speed up the demise of Vseslav after the failure of several of his plots; such as the attempt to influence Vseslav in the creation of another Duchy, that would be granted to Roman upon Vseslav's death as per the rules of gavelkind succession.
Currently, Trifon reigns as steward over the duchy and city of Polotsk in Vseslav's absence, taking the opportunity to pursue his enmity against Yaropolk, while Yaropolk plots to marry Gleb to an ineffectual and politically-useless bride, in an attempt to weaken his position. Vseslav's position, without the long-awaited reinforcements that now have a four-month journey ahead of them to join up with his forces, is precarious... and possibly deadly. Events appear to be coming to a head, and Yaropolk will do anything he can to hasten matters along...