Chapter 606: Kniefall von Edirne
Abdullah and the Sultan rode together, manes to manes, with Mauro and Cerberus following closely behind them, without any weapons, this is specially requested by Abdullah, for this is the style of his diplomacy; to show the partner his truthfulness by deliberately exposing the fact that he is powerless if the opponent decided to adapt force against him. He has thrown his life in as a bet for the success of the mission, and when asked if Mauro and Cerberus are willing to follow his example, they accepted.
However, far away behind them, Antonius has already readied his troops for combat. Eight hundred cavalries are already spread out on the highlands in the flanks, infantries sat down on the ground with their armours and their blades, saving their energy for a possible charge. Archers checking if the fletching of their arrows making sure that they are intact, while the artillery men are busy filling up the gunpowder to be ignited later.
The tension between both sides has maximised at this day, one wrong action from either side might spark a round of total conflict. Which is why Abdullah insisted that he should not bring any armed guards, in fact, the less the better. But it is clear that Antonius would not let his old friend venture into such grave danger, thus he ordered Mauro and Cerberus to carry something else; one carrying the royal standard of the scarlet lion and Roman crown that was sewed by Anna herself a decade ago, and the true cross of Chi Rho from the church of Thessaloniki that was rescued from the hands of the Saracens when they stormed the city of Antioch.
The meaning of this is clear, to send a clear message to that woman of Edirne that despite the fact that she is only seeing three men over here, they are being backed by the entire Roman empire, and the whole of the Christianity, forcing the woman to think twice if she wants to perform any tricks or smash the negotiations.
Khalid and Julian stood watching, with two totally different kind of mindset. Khalid is preparing anxiously for the worst, as he knows that his cavalries are the only little hope that the three men out there have if the Sultana Dowager decided to take the risk. He had his eyes on the three men throughout, with his hands tightly gripping onto the kneels of his horse, ready to bolt out at any second if there shows signs of unrest.
Julian did not make any noise.
Under the watch of tens of thousands of men, Abdullah and the Sultana Dowager met.
However, upon meeting with the Sultan and Abdullah, instead of showing her care and love immediately for her son and checking the status of her throat, the Sultana Dowager gave the Sultan a slap on the face first, and then she hugged her son tightly in her chest, with a line of tear flowing down her checks dropping onto the shoulders of the Sultan. Abdullah stood watching on the side, without making a noise.
"Abdullah Miralai, court Itch-oghlan in charge of importing herbs for the Sultan’s Harem from Aegyptus." finally spoke the Sultana Dowager. Her age was much more apparent than the image Abdullah had of her from a decade prior, with wrinkles growing on that silk like textured skin, and the ashen hairs telling people the ages that she has been through. She began addressing her prime target for negotiation after a tense five minute silence. "You must understand, Jannah has no place for traitors or sinners like you, especially those who lend their aid to infidels when our Sultanate needs you the most, you failed us, Abdullah Miralai, I do not see any purpose in negotiating any form of things with you."
Abdullah offered a respectful bow. "Your Majesty, I believe Jannah might have a place for me, but perhaps not for both of us, and, no matter what happens, you will still need to negotiate with me, if not you would not even appear here today."
"You little..."
"I owe nothing to Allah, I owe nothing to you, I owe nothing to the vast population of Ottoman Turks and Rumelians, for I’ve made certain that all Ottoman communities under my governance coexist peacefully and harmoniously with Christians, with the four hundred thousand Ottoman Turks sharing an equitable kingdom. It’s only in Thessaloniki that you’ll see a mosque and a church sitting side by side, mutually respecting each other’s traditions. I can guarantee a much better life for all Turks who choose to be citizens of Thessaloniki than the life of those who are still under your domain, the Sultana Dowager, provide your subjects. I’ve improved the living conditions of Muslims, supported their businesses, distributed seeds for their crops, subsidised their healthcare, and encouraged cohabitation in Christian communities."
"And what exactly are you implying?" The Sultana Dowager inquired, her gaze cold and unwavering.
"I’m suggesting that you, your Majesty, to stop strangling your people with your iron grip. Look at the ’soldiers’ you’ve rallied," Abdullah pointed his whip towards the formations behind the Sultana Dowager’s guards. They were composed of frail, old men with grey beards, young boys barely taller than the spears they held, and middle-aged housewives visibly shaking in their unfamiliar leather armour. Each face bore the gaunt expression of hunger, with a clear shortage of weaponry, as Abdullah can clearly see that some archers have no arrows in their quivers, only one to ten of the supposed army is equipped with basic leather armours, with many holding a simply made spear of an iron piece on a wooden stick.
"Take a good look at those under your care, Sultana Dowager. Are you intent on draining the last ounce of strength, the last drop of blood from the Ottoman people? Are you striving to crush the future of the Ottoman race?"
"What right do you, a traitor to the Sultanate, have to comment on the Sultanate’s future?" The Sultana Dowager spat out the words, her teeth grinding together. "You, who played a leading role in the Sultanate’s downfall, deserve to be obliterated by Allah’s lightning, leaving not even ashes behind!"
The Sultan remained silent, unable to interrupt the heated debate that had erupted between the two – for he cannot speak.
"The ambitions of the Ottoman Sultanate will never be realized, Sultana Dowager! Take a look around you, even at your conscripted soldiers, can they really, by definition, be called a soldier?. Take a look at the Sultanate, for hundreds of diverse cultures coexist in this region. The Ottomans, newcomers who arrived a few centuries ago, must learn to live equally with the locals in order to continue living in the lands of Europe. Continuous warfare and isolationism will only reduce these once flourishing lands to a state of prehistoric barrenness..."
"If the Ottomans maintain their self-imposed isolation and racial segregation, they’ll suffocate themselves amidst growing internal divisions. They will be reduced to dust, trampled underfoot and surrounded by the diverse races they once dominated, do you, Sultana Dowager, want to see all the nations that we Ottomans once invaded and conquered, immediately coming back to us eating us alive when we showed a little sign of weakness and decline? The only hope for salvation would be a divine miracle where a heroic pasha descends from the heavens to vanquish all surrounding powers. But you, are you prepared to gamble everything on such a miracle?"
"I don’t believe in a word that you have just said." The Sultana Dowager gave a cold humph. "For I only know one simple rule that my husband, my son, my forefathers, and my people believes, that is to pay blood by blood, tears by tears, revenge by revenge."
Abdullah bursted out in laughter. "Your Majesty! If that is the ideal that you used to run the state, then I ought to see the destruction of the Sultanate a lot sooner than now, come, your Majesty, we all know each other pretty well since fifteen years ago, you know who I am, I know who I am, let us just skip all these trivial pre negotiations, and carry on to the actual talking, shall we?"
"Then let me cut this straight, I shall not approve of the current terms, for you are the offenders, invading our lands without any forms of excuse, when we, the Ottoman court, has almost been a subject of Thessaloniki for the past few years. We demand that we shall keep Edirne, our titles, and be an autonomous state within your borders. Furthermore, Lord Miralai, I do not believe your common Roman ideal, tell me, what are you people planning to do with the two rivers? Why are your men trying to flood my city? Please, refrain from talking such bullshit attempting to take a morale high ground, if you are preparing to be a mass killer, killing off the entire population of the city! I.. I, as a woman, as a mother, despise your words and actions!"
Abdullah sighed upon hearing this, as he came down his mount,
and kneeled onto the ground, right in front of the Sultan.
