133 132 Bane of Kings
(Pope Urban VIII / Cardinal Francesco Barberini POV)
"Holy Father, I received a letter from Prince Jazłowiecki, do you remember him?... This is the Pole who captured the King of Denmark and the King of Sweden." (Cardinal Barberini)
"I remember... and I think the Emperor called him "Bane of Kings" after the fall of Moscow, what does this Pole write?" (Pope Urban VIII)
"The Kingdom of Poland declares war on the Ottoman Empire and is counting on some support." (Cardinal Barberini)
"Only problems with them... what are you advising?" (Pope Urban VIII)
"As a Cardinal, I advise that we help them, it is our duty to fight the infidels and defend Christianity... As your nephew, I advise you to help them even more. It was Prince Jazłowiecki who advised us how to get rid of Cardinal Gaspar de Borja Velasco from Rome, it was he who informed us about the alliance of the Duchy of Castro with the French. We can also gain prestige in this war, without risking much ourselves, it will close the mouths of those who say that you have betrayed the Christian faith." (Cardinal Barberini)
"How can I help them?" (Pope Urban VIII)
"We cannot weaken ourselves militarily, so military aid is not available, but we can give them gold ... special masses will be held, during which we will collect donations that we will then transfer to the Kingdom of Poland for the war with the Ottoman Empire." (Cardinal Barberini)
(End POV)
I entered the room, and as soon the Ataman saw me, he signaled the rest of the Cossack to leave us alone.
"Praised be Jesus Christ." (MC)
"Forever, ever. Rest on chair... I will tell the servants to give us wine and mead." (Ataman Koszowy)
A few minutes later a young Cossack appeared with two jugs and two cups, bowed and left the room quickly. The Ataman poured wine for me... it wasn't the best wine, but I drank worse too.
"We haven't seen each other for a long time... I hope you and the Cossack elders were satisfied with the gold you received." (MC)
"Not everyone was happy that it was a war with Moscow, there were those who wanted to serve the Tsar, not the Polish King." (Ataman Koszowy)
Of course, I knew about the existence of such a division between the Cossacks, but at the moment they had a choice to serve the rather strong Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth or weak Moscow... without strong support from the east, some bigger revolt against Poland and Lithuania was doomed to failure.
"Fortunately, Tsar is no longer alive, nor any of his family... but let's talk about more important things. King Władysław officially recognized the Orthodox faith, it is a step in the right direction, but still a long way ahead of us." (MC)
"So our bishops will not participate in the Seyms?" (Ataman Koszowy)
"Not yet, but who knows, maybe after this war. Metropolitan of Kiev, Mohyła, has a good chance, the King likes him, I also supported the reconstruction of the temple in Kiev with gold... a wise man, looking for reconciliation, not conflict." (MC)
"May it be as soon as possible, because it is becoming more and more difficult to control the young." (Ataman Koszowy)
I tilted the cup, but it was already empty. I reached for the jug and refilled my goblet... and felt the sweet fruity scent of the wine.
"I do what I can, but I am not a miracle worker, and since I became Hetman, the tensions have also decreased, the Tatars do not attack, the register has been increased, if the Cossacks do not break the law, no one is involved in Sich affairs... How many people have you gathered?" (MC)
"Fifty thousand cavalry, but without horses as an infantry, they'll be fine too. When are we leaving?" (Ataman Koszowy)
"As soon as possible, Khan promised to set off with two hundred thousand Tatars..." (MC)
"I guess he got bored with the Sultan's care?" (Ataman Koszowy)
"You would also get bored, Abaza Pasha, the one who attacked us, was executed by the Sultan's orders, supposedly for taking bribes, but in fact for the failure and to calm us down. Khan Mehmed is afraid that one day, his head will be next." (MC)
"What's the plan?" (Ataman Koszowy)
"We will strike the Ottoman Empire from the east, we will not besiege cities or fortresses, it is a waste of our time... we will pass through their land like locusts. What is useful we will take, what will be unnecessary we will destroy. If the civilian population is Christians, then we spare them..." (MC)
"Jews, Arabs and others?" (Ataman Koszowy)
"We will put a special tax on all of them, if they want to keep breathing, they have to pay for the air they use." (MC)
Wars can be expensive, and that was a good way to earn extra gold... they are lucky anyway, we will not treat them as enemies, even though they live in a hostile country.
"One more thing... Do not overload the horses, mobility will be our greatest asset in this war." (MC)
I drank the wine that was left in my cup and together with Ataman we went out to his quarters.
Koszowy drew his pistol by his belt and fired into the air to attract the attention of the Cossacks in the courtyard... when all eyes were on him.
"Military discipline, destroy the barrels!" (Ataman Koszowy)
It was one of the Cossack laws or customs, just before going to war, all the barrels of alcohol were destroyed, and if in the next few days or weeks someone was caught drunk... it could even cost him his life. I went back to my people and called Ilya and Ivan to my tent.
"Blend in with the rest of the Cossacks and listen to what they say, you can also spread rumors that we will free Christians from Turkish captivity." (MC)
"And we will do it?" (Iwan)
"It's not the main goal of this war, but something we can do in addition." (MC)
Especially since it will allow me to increase the population with loyal people... It's hard not to love someone who freed you from captivity, fed you, and ensured a safe future.
(King Philip IV of Habsburg / Emissary Fernando de Monroy POV)
"In the current situation, my concern is Paris, not Constantinople. The Ottomans are building a canal that may harm our trade route, but it may be years before they do so..." (King Philip IV)
"I understand, Your Majesty, but even if it takes years, France may form an alliance with the Turks and gain access to the Far East. Maybe it is better crush this problem while it's small and don't wait until it becomes a serious threat?" (Fernando de Monroy)
"Unfortunately, we do not have the strength for this. Colonies and France are our most important concerns, there is also this treacherous Pope." (King Philip IV)
"Your Highness, if we capture the Duchy of Castro and give it to the Pope, he will probably abandon the French." (Fernando de Monroy)
"Although we did not manage to conclude an alliance with the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, at least we know that we have one ally there." (King Philip IV)
"Yes, the information that Prince Jazłowiecki gave us was confirmed, the Duchy of Castro signed an alliance with the French aimed at us." (Fernando de Monroy)
"Yes... Maybe he needs to be rewarded, good friends are hard to find, especially in hard times. Especially since the Emperor has a good opinion of him... "Bane of Kings". Do you know anything more about him?" (King Philip IV)
"Just rumors... he certainly doesn't care about the gold. I myself saw him scatter chest full of gold coins into a crowd of people." (Fernando de Monroy)
(End POV)
