Chapter 17 - The Wishes of the People
OOC: Before this begins, I would like to say thank you to everyone who posts on this AAR. Remember, just knowing that you read it, even if you didn't think it was great, is encouragement for me!
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Dimosthenes was now completely cemented in power over the Council. His brother, Theophlyaktos, and the de facto head of the noble coalition, Theodoros, were now dead. This removed almost all strong opposition to Dimosthenes' actions for the populist faction of Athens completely. Adeipho had almost no allegiance, and really only checked Dimosthenes' progression when he did something that was completely ridiculous.
In his increasingly liberal and populist reforms, Dimosthenes began to privatize the colonies. Of course, since the only group of people wealthy enough to take large plots of the colonies in Athens was Dimosthenes' own colonial company, these actions were lucrative for him. Indeed, many said he now had a personal wealth greater than the entire state treasury of Athens.
However, the rapid decline of the power of the Crown of Athens began to destabilize the government. In reality, the office became more of a second Council than the highest authority internally in the land. Nero Doria simply ignored Dimosthenes' actions, preferring to bring the military and navy up to date. This only fueled the fire, though, because now Dimosthenes could begin encroaching on other small nations' colonial ambitions without fear.
He realized what he was doing to the efficiency of the government, though, and began to pour some of his own treasury into stabilizing the Crown and putting the people at ease once again. Who would have ever thought that the citizens would revolt at being given more power?
Nero began arranging diplomatic treaties with other countries, preparing to buffer his lands against warfare in the Balkans. The most spectacular of these was a military alliance with the King of Burgundy, though it was actually offered to Nero, not created because of him.
Meanwhile, as his colonial company became slowly the richest entity in the realm from exploitation of the colonies, South America began to see the Blue Lion flying in many more places than just the original landing spot. It was clear to many foreigners that Athens was preparing to completely dominate the colonization of South America. In truth, the other nations had only colonized the islands as of yet, they hadn't yet moved onto the mainland of either continent.
Although the general sentiment of the people was that Nero Doria hadn't been doing enough to check the rapid growth of power in the Crispo family, it was true that he made the people feel
safer. Safety was a precious commodity in these times, where wars were frequent and merciless. People would be slaughtered for no reason, just to increase the chance of revolt in another country. To feel safe from attack, to have peace of mind, that was the reason the people flocked to the ballots that year to re-elect Nero.
It had been years since Theodoros died. The Konstantinos household was a quiet place, looked after by the now widowed Anastasia. She never would have thought she would end up here, taking care of four children alone. Adron, her only son, seemed to be completely disinterested in Athens itself. Instead, as a fourteen year old boy, he ignored his motherland for the pursuit of.. nothing, really.
A knock came at the door. It was now close to the last hour of the night. Darkness had already befallen Athens for quite some time. Who would possibly come knocking at this hour? Opening the huge door, Anastasia was immediately taken aback. She knew the face that presented itself. He was one of the few remnants of the golden age of the country. A time when the government was safely checked and no one person ran supreme.
The face of Adeipho, councilor of Athens, was in her doorway. "Greetings, Councilor..." Anastasia managed, nodding toward the young man who wasn't so young anymore. For the most part, he ignored her. He simply rose an eyebrow questioningly, wordlessly asking to come in. Anastasia stepped aside, and the dark figure swept into the household with grace that she wouldn't expect from a Councilor.
"Where is Adron?" he asked in a hushed voice, only a notch above inaudible. The woman, still shocked by the man she hadn't seen in so long coming into her house, quietly gestured to the living room without moving her legs at all. He walked over to the boy, who was seated by the window, looking out at the sky.
Adeipho sat down beside him, silent for a minute, until Adron finally looked up from the window and noticed the person who had appeared next to him seemingly without warning. "Who.. who are you?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. With no male parent to get him access to the ballot area or the like, Adron had never been able to take an interest in politics. Adeipho was a completely mysterious face to him.
Shaking his head, the councilor merely looked at the boy, almost with distaste. Pulling a letter out of his coat pocket, he stood up, handed it to the boy, and turned around. He walked for a little, then stopped, and spoke without turning. "Don't open it until you're ready to change the world. Once it's done, there's no going back. Hold on to your childhood." With that, he walked out briskly, not sparing another second for the family that had fallen on hard times, both financially and in esteem.