Tyranny of Steel

Berengar sat within the confines of a room, gathered around him were men of prestigious standing. Sitting before him was an Arab man, though it was not the German Emperor's friend and ally Hasan, rather the mighty Sultan of the Timurid Empire.

As Berengar's war for the restoration of Al-Andalus was ongoing, he had made the tough decision to attend to the Timurid-Byzantine Peace Accords rather than lead his men to victory in Iberia. The reason for this was complicated, and ultimately would diverge into two paths he could have followed.

By leading his soldiers in Iberia Berengar would be remembered as a conquering warlord who used the sword to bring Iberia under the heel of his Granadan allies, he would be revered as the savior of a dying people within the future Nation of Al-Andalus, allowing his plan to place his son with Yasmin on the throne, and slowly converting the Muslim people of the region into a reformed version of their religion.

Such a plan would have long-term effects on the Muslim world, and perhaps even prevent the rise of fundamentalist extremism that was so present across the earth in his past life. However, despite this potential reality, Berengar elected to personally visit the city of Constantinople to attend to the negotiations between Byzantium and the Muslim world.

Why would he give up such an opportunity for personal glory in Iberia? Because a better option existed with the Timurid Empire, that if done right would lead to the same result of a peaceful existence between Christendom and the Islamic world.

Berengar had already proven himself to be an exceptional conqueror with his various wars across Central Europe, which ultimately resulted in uniting his Empire by the tip of the spear. If he were to personally lead the charge in Iberia, it would no doubt further cement that legacy.

However, rather than be known solely as a man who solved his disputes via bloodshed, Berengar had taken the opportunity to prove to history that he was equally capable in the art of diplomacy as he was in the art of war. Thus, he sat alongside orthodox leaders such as Emperor Vetranis of the Byzantine Empire and King Besarion of the Kingdom of Georgia as he quietly watched and waited for the appropriate time to speak.

Salan gazed at Berengar curiously. The German Emperor was much more regal and refined than he had envisioned. However, this princely appearance was contrasted with an obvious battle wound across the man's right eye, proving that Berengar was a man who led from the front lines. Such a thing was reckless, but admirable in the eyes of the Sultan, as most Generals would not have the resolve to fight alongside their troops.

As Salan observed Berengar, the German Emperor too examined the Sultan from the east. He was quite obviously a man of turko-Persian descent. The man had tanned skin, emerald green eyes, and dark hair, as well as a thick beard. He also had swarthy features which complimented him well. However, the most noticeable thing that Berengar took note of was the thick callouses on the man's hands.

Evidently, Salan was a man who got his hands dirty. Even if he didn't lead from the front lines of war, there were other physical matters that he personally attended to. As the two men were sizing each other up, Vetranis and the Sultan in charge of the Mamluk sultanate were in a heated discussion. With the Sultan practically on the edge of violence.

"How dare you call me a heretic? You filthy kafir! By Allah I will have your head, and the holy land will be returned to its proper masters!"

Vetranis sprang up into a shouting match with the Mamluk sultan as he raised his voice and curled his fists, practically ready to pounce on his rival from the east.

"Over my dead body! I would rather burn the Holy Land to the ground in its entirety, your holy places and ours, before I surrender it to your possession."

The Sultan sneered in disdain as he spat out his venomous words.

"That can be arranged!"

It was at this moment that both Berengar and Salan sighed heavily and rested their weary heads into the palm of their free hands. At the same time, they both yelled at their allies to cease hostilities.

"Silence!"

When the two men voiced their commands, the entire room became tranquil as the various parties gazed at the leaders of the two alliances with shocked expressions. Berengar looked upon his Muslim counterpart with surprise as he gave the man the floor.

"Would you like to state your conditions first? After all, you are the one who requested my presence at these peace accords."

A stern expression filled the Sultan's face as he listed the first of his demands.

"My first condition is simple. Vetranis must allow the Muslims who still live in the Byzantine Empire's borders to practice their religion freely, and without the heavy taxation that they suffer just to worship Allah and his holiest of prophets."

Berengar shook his head and made a counterargument to the Timurid Emperor, meeting his stern gaze with an expression that exuded authority.

"Would you do the same? I understand that the Christians who live in your lands suffer the same penalty, even though the Holy Land is not under my control. I believe I speak for my ally when I say that we will not accept such a double standard. Get rid of the jizya, and we will do the same..."

Both Vetranis and the Mamluk Sultan both raised from their seated position and were about to curse once more, that is, until Berengar and Salan raised their hands signalling for them to remain silent. The two religious monarchs both bit their tongues and begrudgingly sat back down.

Salan stared deeply into Berengar's deep blue eye as he tried to get an understanding of the man in front of him. The only thing he could see was utter confidence. In the end, he resorted to a religious argument, unaware that Berengar was a completely secular man.

"The Quran explicitly states for us to fight against kafir until they give the jizya willingly while they are humbled. As far as I am aware, there is no religious demand of your faith for nonbelievers to pay taxes."

Berengar's response to this argument was shocking to the religious leaders. He broke out into a brief fit of laughter before completely spitting on their beliefs.

"You have me mistaken Sultan, I do not give a damn what your religious beliefs are, or theirs for that matter. As far as I am concerned, there can be no peace in this world, so long as men are willing to behave in irrational behavior like killing in the name of God.

I do not ask what your deity would permit, but what you, as a man, are willing to concede in order to achieve this peace. I promise you this, As long as I am in charge of negotiations at this table, I will not accept any terms that will put my allies in an unfavorable position. Make no mistake, I can afford a war with the Muslim world. Can you say the same, sultan?"

Salan was slightly taken aback, though he did not let it show. He thought for sure that Berengar would be a religious man. After all, he had started the German Reformation supposedly in response to the Catholic Church's corruption. The sultan did not know that religion was a means to control the populace as far as Berengar was concerned. Nothing more, nothing less.

To make a religious argument on why you should not be held to the same standard in a negotiation was invalid by the German Emperor's standards, and he would not concede on this point. If Salan wanted to adhere to his faith's beliefs, he would need a rational argument, and not one based on faith. Something he quickly thought of and responded with.

"Even if I was willing to abolish the Jizya in exchange for your demands, my people would never accept it, nor would my allies. In the end, it would only invite chaos and disorder within my borders. Surely you can understand this?"

Once more, Berengar shocked the man with his response. With a simple raise of his brow, the German Emperor blew the Timurid Sultan's mind.

"And how is that my problem? We are here to discuss a peace agreement, not an alliance. What happens within your borders is none of my concern."

Salan finally understood why Berengar was unwilling to concede to this point as he gazed upon the confident expression on the man's face. The German Emperor was in a position where he did not care whether war broke out, because they both knew that there was only one possible result: total German victory.

Berengar was negotiating from a position of power, as he often did, and because he knew the Timurids were afraid of his power, he could use that as leverage to get what he wanted. He did not even need to make an overt threat. He could simply reject any terms he found unfavorable and respond with a witty retort about how it was the Timurids who opened negotiations and demanded his presence.

The German Emperor refused to accept any peace that was not long term. To do this, he realized he would need to make both parties come to an equal understanding, and not favor one over the other in the treaty. Thus, negotiations for peace between Christendom and the Muslim world were off to a slow start.