A/N: Hello all, I am back again with another Chapter of Roma Renovata est! It has been a bit, as I have been focusing on my series 'Through Light and Ashes'. But I'm now here with another Chapter of Roma Renovata est! We continue into the year of 472, as peace is restored, for now at least...
Peace, for now
472 AD
With the War of 471 done with, reletive peace returned to Western Europe, as the different countries intergrated into their new positions within Europe.
Baromar was brought over to the WRE by Majorian upon his return to Ravenna, as agreed by Majorian and Barodur. It wasn't long before Baromar and Honorius became friends, havings similar visions and dreams of grandeur. Theoderic and Barodur weren't as close, but they were close enought to be considered acquaintances. Majorian had Barodur taught in the same way he had taught his own children, teaching him matters of combat, administration, philosophy, theology and literature.
Several soldiers would be called in to help in training the young heirs. Among these was none other than Ballio Luccius, who was called in to assist in the training. These interactions would prove to have the most impact on the young heirs, especially that of Honorius. Honorius and Baromar would often try to play with the new legionary, however Luccius had a reputation of being cold to people, especially towards non-soldiers. As a result, they usually ended up playing with Gaudentius and the 2 year old Aetius. Regardless of this, Honorius was determined to make a friend out of Luccius.
As for the army, the War of 471 would be the last war for them, with Majorian allowing the veterans to retire to their farms, giving them the money needed to live out the rest of their days. Some of the soldiers recruited from the farms would also be returned to serve under their lords. This left Majorian's army reduced by a third by the end. As a result Majorian set ablout recruiting more soldiers to the army, raising them from several different walks of life into service of the empire. He offered chances to rise in status in exchange for work in the military, though somewhat limited. By doing this, the soldiers now had a stake in the army, as it was a means of advancement or higher pay. This law of advancement through the military would be officialised in Novella Maioriani 17: On Advancement in the Military.
He also began to pressure the senate into providing some military service, as they had done during the times of the Republic. Senators of course resisted this, not wanting to change from the life they had become accustomed to. The senate could not do much to stop this change however. They had little power in the system at this point, if any at all. They also couldn't rebel, not whilst Majorian was still alive, as he had already crushed their attempts to get rid of him, as he was happy to point out. They knew they would only have to wait however for Majorian to die, only a matter of time.
Indeed, this was something Majorian knew all too well. He was now in his 50s, and to make things worse were the migranes and seizures. He had been suffering bouts of seizure and migranes since his coma in the Grand Civil War. Since then they had been growing in frequency, as well as potency. Majorian knew he did not have that much time left, maybe a decade at most.
He knew that he needed to make sure his successors were as well prepared as possible. From 472 onward his main concern was in training his successors, leaving the defense of the provinces to his Magister Militum, though he would still routinely journey to the provinces with his children to learn the status of the provinces, as well as to teach his children.
Majorian still held a respectable presence in public. In private though, the emperor had grown melancholic. As his reign went on, he had to see more and more of those who he considered to be friends die. Aegidius, Marcellinus, and yes, even Ricimer haunted his mind. At night he would ask himself what he could have done to stop such a fate? Could they have still been around were it not for his mistakes. It was funny to him that he now understood where Geiseric was coming from.
He would not fall to despair like the Vandal King had though, he still had to fight on. Fight on to make sure that his successors had the best chance they could once he left the mortal realm. His generation had settled into the background, replaced by that of Syagrius and Nepos, with the generation of Theodosius, Honorius, Regalius and Aetius soon to arrive to the spotlight. He knew that it would soon fall upon their shoulder to carry the burden of upholding the ancient legacy of Rome.
A/N: That is all for now! It's a bit of a more subdued Chapter compared to the War of 471, as we go into the latter part of Majorian's rule. The years will go by a bit quicker over the next few Chapters, as we begin to draw near to the end of Part 1. Thank you all for reading, the feedback is much appreciated. See you next Chapter!
