The Spring of the Ram - Dorothy Dunnett [254]
“They have left Sinope,” said Nicholas.
“They have taken Koyulhisar,” said the Emperor. “They are devils, not men. They have completed a march which no men before them have managed so quickly; and scaled the heights of the Turcoman’s western frontier, and taken its fortress. If they have the energy to continue towards us, the hills and passes and forts of the White Sheep are all that lie between them and us.”
No one spoke. There was no way of telling what had already been said; what views the commanders had already expressed.
Nicholas said, “Magnificence: it has always been known that this was possible. The loss of the frontier fortress is great, but it must have taken its toll. Now Hasan Bey is prepared, the Sultan will have to fight every inch of the ground, over mountains where the White Sheep are at home. And by the time they are done, the season for war will have ended. I see no need for alarm.”
“Do you not?” said the Emperor. “Do you not? Some here have expressed the same view. But hear, then, the next piece of news. Erzerum has been vacated. The lord Uzum Hasan and the core of his army have not come forward to push back the Turk. They have retreated into the mountains, leaving garrisons to do what they can to hinder the Turkish advance.”
“But do you not think, magnificence, that this too will serve?” Nicholas said. “In direct conflict, the army of my lord Hasan Bey would succumb, now he has no help from Sinope or Georgia. But a war of attrition, carried on against tiring men in the mountains, will keep the Sultan from his door just as well, until the autumn storms come. The Sultan may occupy Erzerum, but he can hardly hold it. And with all that to deal with, he can have no thought of attacking this empire.”
The Emperor turned his head, and the Treasurer answered. Before he spoke, Nicholas knew what he was going to say. “The third piece of news,” said George Amiroutzes, “is that my lord Uzum Hasan is not preparing to defend his land to the death, or even resist until the season has closed. It is said that he has brought his mother, the Syrian Sara Khatun, to the field. It is said that he has sent this lady to meet the Sultan, and ask for lenience in return for neutrality.”
There was a rustle and a shifting of feet. Nicholas said, “How trustworthy is such news?”
The dark eyes were watching him. “From a source, Messer Niccolò, which has never failed.”
Nicholas said, “And that is all?”
“All?” said the Emperor. “With the Turk at our gates?”
“Is he at your gates, magnificence?” Nicholas said. “Forgive me. I thought he was at Koyulhisar, in July.”
“Then your advice is, that we have no cause for concern?” said the Great Chancellor. “You do not think it likely that this seaborne army burning our suburbs is merely waiting for the land army to march through empty mountains and take us between them?”
“My lord: how could they?” said Nicholas. “How could ten times the number take Trebizond?”
“How could Constantinople fall and her emperor perish?” said the Treasurer wearily. “God is just, Messer Niccolò; but there are weights in His scales that mortal men cannot know.”
“But we may guess,” Nicholas said. “By sea or by land, there are no guns coming here of the kind that felled Constantinople. The fleet, we know, have not brought even the tools that would cast them. Holy fount of the Church as Trebizond is, it is not the sacred heart of the Eastern Empire, to take which no price was too much to pay. It has not the riches that Byzantium had. Its merchants can serve the Turk just as well from Bursa and Pera. And facing this enemy is a city renowned for its courage; blessed by Nature with barriers no one can storm; blessed by God with our Basileus to uplift and to lead. I say, be at rest. We cannot fail. There is nothing here in this news to disturb the sleep of the men and women and children who trust their lord here in the City today.”
There was, at least, a pause before the Treasurer gave his wry smile. “An eloquent answer, in praiseworthy Greek, Messer Niccolò. You have a good grasp