Taormina, April 15th, 1282
A Messinese army under William Chiriolo, took control of the city lest it join the Sicilian rebellion. Messina despite rumblings among the commoners remained loyal to the house of Anjou, aside from the army under Chiriolo a fleet of 7 galleys under Richard Riso would be sent to attack Palermo, only for its crews to refuse attacking their fellow Sicilians.
Messina, April 28th, 1282
The city rose in revolt against the French. While the French garrison retreated to the fortress of Mategriffon, the Messinese killed any French they could get their hands on and more imprtantly burned the Angevin fleet that had been gathered in the port of the city. Messina would declare itself a commune and elect Baldwin Mussone, captain of its militia who would arrange the surrender of Mategriffon under terms. The Messinese would then decide to send a Genoese merchant, Alafranco Cassano as an envoy to Constantinople, to inform emperor Michael of the revolt.
Orvieto, May 7th, 1282
A Palermitan embassy had gone to the pope seeking to place themselves as free commune under papal protection. Pope Martin IV had given his answer in Ascension day excommunicating the Sicilian rebels, anyone who might help them and "the so called emperor of the Greeks" Michael VIII for good measure. Neither the Sicilians or Michael would be much impressed by the news...
Catania, May 11th, 1282
Two Sicilian forces had approached the city. From the south had come Alexandros Doukas Vatatzes and his army. Over the previous weeks volunteers had flocked to his banners as his forces had spread out of Syracuse first securing the ground between Syracuse and Augusta, then Lentini before he had turned his eyes towards Catania. It had not been the easiest of things. Neither the Latin bishop of Syracuse nor many of the barons of eastern Sicily were particularly happy to submit themselves to a schismatic Greek Hohenstauffen, that had appeared out of the blue. But fortunately for him Sicily since the time of his Norman ancestors had been for the most part a royal demesne with fewer feudal lords than other parts of western Europe. If the barons wanted to rule the land for themselves the commoners, gentry and minor nobles did not, better a prince than a baron. And if for the bishop of Syracuse, who had succeeded Simon de Lentini two years, being a Hohenstauffen Greek schismatic was a bad thing, for the commoners and peasantry many if not most of them Greeks themselves it was not, particularly when their bishop was thought of as a French creature. Someone who was the son of John III and brother of Theodore II did not need much instruction of what to do with such a situation. He had immediately sided with the commoners as his father and brother had done back in the east. It was perhaps too early but for now he had their loyalty.
From the north had come Macalda di Scaletta, the wife of Alaimo da Lentini, of of the three barons that had been the main conspirators of the vespers revolts. The French garrison had reasons to negotiate with Macalda instead of Alexandros, she had been raised to her position by Charles of Anjou after all who had also arranged her marriage to Alaimo. Macalda was all to happy to negotiate planning to ransom the French and then betray them to the locals [1]. But the Catanians had not waited for her negotiation to bear fruit. Rebels had contacted Alexandros and secured a gate in the middle of night. His troops had poured into the city as it rose up against the hated French. Macalda had been enraged, for a little while it was threatened the two rebel armies would come to blows. How Macalda was placated would remain unknown. Later Sicilian oral traditions would fancy that there had been an affair between her and Alexandros. But given Macalda's place in Sicilian folklore it is not known whether this had been true or not.
Constantinople, May 30, 1282
Michael VIII, had every reason to be happy with himself over the news he had just received from Sicily. The island was in revolt and Charles fleet destroyed making an invasion of the empire impossible. The only complication, so young Alexandros Vatatzes had taken his ships west and somehow had managed to seize Syracuse from under the nose of its French garrison, like Stratigopoulos had done in Constantinople? Not bad, the youngster was a good commander. What the hell was he doing in Sicily in the first place? Seized the initiative at rumours of the revolt his letter said, a somewhat plausible story, after all imperial ships had not been shy about raiding the Italian coast the past few years. Just as likely feared Michael had gone suspicious of him and put himself suitably far away. Either way he was not a danger in Sicily if anything he was useful there. Michael ordered his secretary to draft a letter, congratulating despot Alexandros Doukas Vatatzes of his successes, wishing him further success and telling him not to worry about his family and mother who were secure from the enemy here in Constantinople. He smiled to himself. Theodore had made Alexadros despot when he was born, he was giving nothing from using the title. And Alexandros was a clever young man. He certainly could read between the lines...
[1] That's what she did OTL.
