Vetranis sat in his office with a haggard look on his weary face. The years had not been kind to him, and if Berengar were to gaze upon the man, it would appear as if he had aged over a decade since the last time he saw him.
Not only was the Byzantine Empire struggling to prop up its failing economy, it was now facing an invasion from the north. The Golden Horde had broken through the Caucasus and was now raiding Anatolia with impunity.
Whatever paltry force could be mustered to defend the region was quickly slaughtered by the enemy. The only force that Vetranis had to call upon in this war that was remotely intact was those that belonged to the Strategos of the Balkans.
As a result, Palladius was standing here in the Byzantine Emperor's office, awaiting his orders. Despite this, Vetranis did not immediately make a move, and instead gazed upon the photograph that sat on his desk, which was of his only daughter and her young children.
