She found strength in that symbol, even more than the majesty of the mountains, and turned her eyes back to the circle of advisers.
Small, yes. But rich otherwise.
Garmat was there, after all. And all of the regimental commanders except the three who had been stationed in Yemen. And—most important of all, Antonina suspected—Ousanas was there.
Her gaze came to rest on Ousanas. In times past, the former dawazz would have squatted on a stool behind the prince. Ready to chastise him, when necessary, but otherwise keeping his place.
Ousanas was no longer a slave, however. He had no title, now. But Antonina did not miss the significance of his position in the circle. Axumites, like Romans, reserved the place by a monarch’s right hand as the place of ultimate respect. And there Ousanas sat—on a cushion, not a stool, in that peculiar cross-legged position which he had learned in India. “The lotus,” he called it, claiming that it was an aid to meditation.
A bizarre man, in so many ways, given to fancies and philosophies. But Antonina was reassured by his presence.
Eon cleared his throat, indicating a resumption of the discussion. The young king squared his shoulders against the wooden back of the massive chair which was serving him as a throne, and turned to Antonina.
“We will have to deal with this rebellion first,” he stated. “You know I agree with Rome’s proposals, but I cannot—”
Eon spoke in Ge’ez, but Antonina did not wait for Menander’s interpretation. She understood enough of the words, and she had been expecting the sense of them anyway.
Waving her hand in a gesture of agreement, she said: “Of course, Your Majesty. Axum must set its own house in order, before it can even think of striking at Malwa. Besides, this rebellion was certainly inspired and organized by the Malwa espionage service. It is no accident that the rebellion broke out the very same day that the Ta’akha Maryam was destroyed. There is no way the rebels in Yemen could have known about the bombing, unless they had been told in advance. It takes at least a week to travel from Axum to Sana, using the fastest horses and ships.”
After Menander interpreted, she continued. “I do not think the Malwa suspect my husband’s strategy. But they had good reason to strike at Axum, anyway. Ethiopians played a key role in rescuing the Empress Shakuntala and setting in motion the rebellion in the Deccan. The Malwa obviously decided to pay Axum back in the same coin—and throw in regicide for good measure.”
She nodded at Eon. “So far as I am concerned, crushing the rebellion in Yemen is part of the war against Malwa. My own army is therefore at your disposal, for that purpose.”
One of the officers—Gabra, commander of the Damawa regiment—began to protest. “This is an internal affair. I am not sure that using foreign troops wouldn’t make the problem worse. The Halen regiment has stayed neutral, this far. If we use—”
Ousanas interrupted him. “Be damned to all that! Abreha and his rebels are using foreign troops, aren’t they? According to our spy”—he glanced to a corner of the room, where the man recently arrived from Sana was standing—”Abreha is surrounded by half a dozen Malwa agents, everywhere he goes. He is publicly boasting that Malwa military units will soon be arriving in Yemen.”
The hunter slapped the floor. “And most of his forces now are not Axumite! Abreha’s regiment and the Falha—put together—are less than two thousand men.” His eyes swept the room, scanning the row of regimental commanders seated before the negusa nagast. “On their own, they would stand no chance. So—according to our spy—most of Abreha’s forces consist of Arabs. Bedouin tribesmen from the interior.”
Again, he looked in the corner. The regimental commanders twisted their heads, following his gaze. Seeing all eyes upon him, the spy stepped forward a few paces.
“Most of them,” the man stated. “Some of the Arabs of the towns have declared for Abreha. But most of his support comes from the bedouin.”
Garmat levered himself up. “What about the Quraysh?” he asked.
The spy made a fluttering motion with his hand. “So far, Mecca has remained loyal. That could change, of course—will change, soon enough—if the rebellion is not crushed.”