Chapter I - Holy and Roman : 822AD
[video=youtube;VAZsf8mTfyk]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VAZsf8mTfyk[/video]
The hull of the boat creaked and lurched as the seas proved rougher than originally anticipated. The King cursing his misfortune, to receive an irrefusable message from the Pope at such a time. It was almost enough to make him lurch with anger. If he had it his way, he would have remained on the shore's of Hispania the will of the Pope be damned. But, alas, that was not an option for Adelchis. No, one had to keep appearances up for the common folk. His faith was more lipservice than true devotion, having been sullied from years of fighting the heretics and the Muslims -- what God could there possibly be? He had hoped his pilgrimage to Jerusalem would temper his faith, but he felt no awe inspiring moment of divinity. No, he felt only disappointed. He would have chosen the warm comfort of being able to blindly follow the lamb of god, unfortunately, that was not a luxury he was afforded.
"Bishop--" Adelchis began, his stomach lurching
"Why could we not just march to Rome!?" He had hated these pointlessly long rides across the ocean which more oft than not only served to upset his stomach. The Bishop Bernard, who had been deep in prayer, simply lifted his head to stare before his king and offer a solemn shake of his head. To think that the man before him were a King, one would hardly believe it with as lazy and whiney as the King could be.
"My liege, surely you jest. His Holiness Pope Marcellus the Second has called for an immediate audience with you in Rome. It seems there has been trouble once more between the Papacy and the Greeks. Words were exchanged, and the Church is in crisis."
"Damn the church." Adelchis spat back, to which the Bishop lifted a finger "You blaspheme!" He shouted, though the King simply rolled his eyes. To be stuck in a ship with so pious a man as Bernard was an ardous task in and of itself. The King bit his tongue, though. There was no point in engaging the cur in an argument, it'd only serve the man's desires and Bernard was, afterall, his court chaplain.
"My apologies your grace. I'll go say ten our fathers in penance."
---
The Eternal city was always something of beauty. It wasn't often that Adelchis actually entered the walls of the city. The first time he had done so it was as a conqueror, deposing a vile and corrupt pope who exuded a greed the likes of which would make Saint Peter himself turn in his grave. This time? This time Adelchis arrived to the triumphant sound of trumpets and to uproarious applause from the Roman mob. He entered the city not as an enemy, but as the hero of Christendom -- as Adelchis the Blessed, the King who heard the anguished cries of the Catholic souls in Hispania and who mounted a singular effort to save them. That was what the Pope had evidently told his faithful flock, anyways.
He had to admit he felt rather akin to the Roman general's of old in that parade, marching through the streets of Rome with the Papal Guard and his own retinue flocking him, celebrator screams ringing out from the crowd as they continued their slow advance toward Saint Peter's basilica. The parade, however, was swift to end at that spot. The king dismounted his horse and the guards of the pope, for the most part, dispersed. His own guard were allowed to remain at his side, though unarmed. A cardinal was the first to approach Adelchis, leading him and his retinue into St. Peter's proper for a small brief.
"You are to meet with His Holiness Pope Marcellus the Second. Relations with the Ecumencial Patriarch continue to deteriorate, and the Basilissa refuses to initiate an effort to drive the Muslim's from Jerusalem. Likewise, His Holiness refuses to acknowledge the supremacy of the Ecumenical Patriarch. His Holiness claims to have been touched by the hand of Christ almighty himself, and affirms that he alone speaks on behalf of God and that the Ecumenical Patriarch should, infact, recognize the primacy of Rome."
[The Pope, Possessed and Voice of Jesus.]
"So, Church politics?"
"Quite. Because of the growing divide between His Holiness and the Basilissa, his holiness has refused to acknowledge the Basilissa as the legitimate heir to the Empire of Rome."
"What does this have to do with me?" Adelchis asked, the boredom practically seeping from his voice as they continued their slow march through St. Peter's, stopping just short of the Papal throne room to allow Cardinal Alo to face him.
"His Holiness, your majesty, wishes to crown you as Emperor in the West in recognition of your victories over the Muslim's in Hispania--"
"What does he want?" Adelchis interrupted, feeling no desire to engage in pleasantries with the Cardinal any longer than was required.
"A swath of territory across the peninsula to go to the Papal States, in exchange, His Holiness will crown you as the legitimate heir to the Empire of the West, as divinely mandated by Holy Mother Church and by our Lord God himself."
"So his holiness wishes land from me in exchange for a trinket crown? What is to stop me from simply deposing this Pope and crowning myself as Emperor anyways?"
"Legitimacy."
The Cardinal snapped back almost instantly. Adelchis, for his shortcomings, was not above admitting that the legitimacy that came with the Papal Decree would be a boon to him. Likewise, territory ceded to the Papal States was not territory beyond reclamation. Afterall, he had deposed a Pope once before -- heck, his entire line was known for their conflicts with the Papal States. This crowning was as much appeasement to his family as it was insult to the Greeks.
"Fine." And so, Adelchis relented to the ceremonious position offered him. He would not only become Emperor, but he would become the Holy Roman Emperor in recognition for his service to Christ.
When the Ceremony was over and the crowds dispersed, Adelchis found himself alone in the presence of the Holy Father.
"We have a task for you, Emperor Adelchis. You are to go forth and re-assert the dominance of Christendom upon the heathens. The poor souls of Europe cry out to us for a strong leadership, our brother's in Hispania continue to languish beneath the rule of the Muslim's and still the Basilissa does nothing to help. Christendom itself is under attack, and in this hour we must be strong or all we have fought for will be for naught. Emperor Adelchis, we speak with the voice of Christ, it is your divine mission to drive the heathens from these lands to return to us our lost flock. Go with haste to enact our will on Earth."
The Emperor would have almost been convinced if he weren't so certain that it was all bullshit. The Pope was just like any other man, he was greedy and cared more for the taxes he would receive from the Bishop's installed in the conquered lands than he did for the souls of the lost. Likewise, Adelchis didn't need a divine mandate to know what it was he wanted. His uncle Karloman died and left his realm in shatters, the Muslims ravaged the lands of Christendom, and he didn't need a pope to tell him what it was that he had to do.
Overnight he had gone from the King of the Lombards to the Holy Roman Emperor -- it was an ambition he had not even strove for, and yet he would already feel the burden of responsibility upon his shoulders as he stood in his palace in Pavia not even a week later, surveying the map of his realm. True to his word, Adelchis released a swath of Italia to be governed by the Papal States, a generosity which the Emperor was certain he would withdraw upon the death of Marcellus.
As was so often the case, his family were the first to benefit from his sudden increase in station, Adelchis quick crowning his Nephew as the King of Aragon.
The only issue that remained for Emperor Adelchis was time. He had always been a sort of a procrastinator and he could feel the pains of age creeping up in his bones. How many campaigns did his body have left in it? What would would he leave for his children? These were questions which haunted him, and only grew to haunt him moreso following the death of his beloved wife. He would have remained unwed had appearance not dictated that he remarry -- she was his love, and he would never forget the smell of her hair or the feeling of her soft skin, no matter to whom he was now wed.
The only question that remained in his mind was whether he should expand north beyond the alps in an attempt to restore order on his Uncle's realm or to return his focus once more to the Muslim horde in order to reestablish Christian rule in Hispania and Africa. Either option seemed daunting, and the Emperor decided he would take a nap before making any true decision. He had, afterall, earned it.
Interesting Facts of the World:
-The Republic of Venice has ceased to exist and is now a Dukedom ruled by the Fraticelli Heresy.
-Cornwall has completely embraced the Cathar Heresy.
-Slavic Serbia has bitten a large chunk out of the Byzantine Empire
-Orthodoxy has fallen to Iconoclasm only to be restored back to its original format.
-Denmark seems to have conquered all of Norway.
