Justinian

MYAKES

Did I think they'd kill me, Brother Elpidios? Let's put it this way: I hoped they wouldn't. If Leontios hadn't killed me back at the Praitorion, back before he knew whether he could steal the throne, I didn't think he'd order it now in cold blood. But was I sure? Kyrie eleison, no! He might have figured the crowd hadn't seen enough blood to satisfy it from watching Justinian get mutilated, and decided to spice up the show with my head.

I didn't mind a bit when my bearers picked me up and slung me on their shoulders again. They weren't taking me to be slaughtered. When that's what your choice is, everything else looks good.

And Justinian, he'd need all the help he could get. Up till then, life had been easy for him. Oh, he'd had family die, but who doesn't? Life's a chancy business. But he'd always had plenty to eat, he'd always been healthy, he'd always been handsome, he'd always had people hop when he told them to hop. Now he didn't have any of that. I wondered if not having it would break him. Emperor to mutilated exile was a long, long step, and here he was with no choice but to make it all at once. Could he? I was glad I was alive to find out.