What If Linear B was the basis for the Roman Alphabet?

Guest post by Daniel Bensen.

The Roman Syllabary, still often called the Traditional European Syllabary, is ultimately derived from Cretan glyphs, spread by the civilization ofacross the northern. Thesimplified the syllabary for their own use, which the people ofimported more or less wholesale. Theempire spread the syllabary across, where it is still used today for sacred or traditional texts, from to, to as well of course indocuments around the world.


Everybody else mostly writes in Hebrew nowadays, though. It’s much easier that way.

[Author's Note: Thanks to Brandon Koller for creating the font.]

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Daniel M. Bensen is an English teacher and writer in Sofia, Bulgaria. He is currently preparing for publication his time-travel adventure/romance Groom of the Tyrannosaur Queen.

Map Monday: Imperio Terra by Rebecca "Upvoteanthology" Stirling and AnachronistRocketeer

Sorry for not posting a Weekly Update this week. My wife and I hosted Easter for her family at our house and I just did not have the time to string something together. I didn't, however, want to miss another Map Monday and I think you are going to like what I found for you today:

The above is "Imperio Terra" (full sized version here) and it is a collaboration between the always talented Rebecca "Upvoteanthology" Stirling and the awesomely named AnachronistRocketeer. This had been submitted to MotF 133: And Then There Were Few which required a map with the least nations as realistically possible. They must have done a good job because they actually won the contest by just one vote.

The map is good and certainly less cliched then another map of Rebecca's I featured last week (although I think the cliches were intentional). It has the light colors that she is known for and the place names are not anachronistic. It is just an all-around great map that doesn't fall into a lot of the same traps other Rome never falls timelines do.

Honorable mentions this week go out to "Democratic People's Republic of Japan" by PizzaMolecule, Bruce Munro's cover of Goliath-Maps' "Jefferson territory in the Oligocene" (description here), "The Partition of British India - 1950" by Zrew33, "Terrestrial Domains, Provinces and Protectorates of The Solar Empire" by Serafim and "Decision Time: Japan" by Krall.

Phew...what a lot of honorable mentions. Lets finish this Map Monday with a look at Mexico's proposed route for Trump's wall.

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Matt Mitrovich is the founder and editor of Alternate History Weekly Update, a blogger for Amazing Stories, a volunteer interviewer for SFFWorld and a Sidewise Awards for Alternate History judge. When not exploring alternate timelines he enjoys life with his beautiful wife Alana and prepares for the day when travel between parallel universes becomes a reality. You can follow him on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. Learn how you can support his alternate history projects on Patreon.

Map Monday: Western Rump (or The Roman World in 771 AD) by Bruce Munro

When alternate historians talk about the Roman Empire never falling, they are actually talking about the Western Roman Empire, which "fell" in 476. The Eastern Roman Empire, or Byzantine Empire, actually fell in 1453 to the Ottomans, so that should be considered the actual date the Roman Empire fell (although some would argue that Rome fell in 1204 when Constantinople fell to the Crusaders, since the Empire of Nicaea should not be considered a continuation of the Roman Empire).

What I am trying to say is that the "Rome Never Falls" cliche (I should remember this topic for Trope Talk) focuses more on both halves of the Roman Empire staying united and never falling. That being said, what if the Western Roman Empire managed to stick it out alone? You get a scenario and map like the one below by Bruce Munro called "Western Rump (or The Roman World in 771 AD)":

From what I could gather, in this world the Vandal invasion of North Africa failed and thus the Westerns Romans managed to hold off the barbarians long enough to reestablish themselves in Carthage in a bit of historical irony. Today Western Rome's greatest strength is its navy and while they have friendly relations for the time being with the Eastern Romans, no one is interested at the moment in bringing the band back together.

I like this scenario because it keeps the Western Romans around without turning the timeline into another Roman Wank. Rome is a powerful force, but its not the only player in the region. Bruce also didn't ignore the butterflies and I like what he did with the Arabs, Khazars and Roman Britain. As for the map itself, well if you don't like the Munroist style by now there is nothing else I can really say to change your mind.

Honorable mention this week goes out to "The Upper Country" by False Dmitri.

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Matt Mitrovich is the founder and editor of Alternate History Weekly Update, a blogger on Amazing Stories and a Sidewise Awards for Alternate History judge. When not writing he works as an attorney, enjoys life with his beautiful wife Alana and prepares for the day when travel between parallel universes becomes a reality. You can follow him on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. Learn how you can support his alternate history projects on Patreon.

Book Review: The IX by Andrew P. Weston

I really wanted to enjoy The IX by Andrew P. Weston. It had a really cool concept. Humans on the verge of death are pulled from different eras of the past by a powerful alien entity to fight an army of seemingly endless murder machines, all the while having to overcome the cultural and language barriers to become an effective fighting force. Sounds like a fun action romp with a level of sophistication. Its in the execution, however, that the book lost me.

We learn that an alien race, called the Ardenese, which are described as really tall humanoids with large foreheards (sort of like the aliens from This Island Earth) are on the verge of extinction. Another alien race of energy beings who feed off the bio-electrical fields generated by other organic beings (sort of like the aliens from Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within), known as the Horde, are winning their war against the Ardenese, who are holed up in their last city. The Ardenese, however, have a plan. They will upload their minds into an incredibly advanced super-computer, called the Architect, that will scour space and time to discover an alien race that can fight for them until the Horde is defeated and they can repopulate their plant.

Of course, that race is humanity, and at first the Architect only pulls humans from our distant future, but their advanced energy weapons have no effect on the Horde. A lucky break happens, however, when it is discovered that the Horde are obliterated by contact with iron. Thus when the ninth wave of human draftees are brought in, they come from eras of time where iron is still used in their weapons. These include, the Ninth Legion of Rome from 120 AD, a US Calvary Regiment from 1860 and a special forces squad from the mid-21st century.

Even with the time travel, alternate history content is minimal or non-existent depending on how you perceive the history being presented by Weston. Let me explain: the characters from 1860 include a US Cavalry company and several Native Americans on their way to negotiate a peace treaty for Senator Lincoln with an alliance of the Cree, Lakota, Sioux and Apache. They are prevented from doing so after rogue members of the company lead them into a trap because there is grand conspiracy involving the aforementioned tribes and several southern states (due to Sam Houston's involvement) who want to overthrow the US government.

Where do I begin? First off, Lincoln was never a senator. Second, those tribes are scattered between Canada and Northern Mexico and all speak different languages, so the chances of them forming some alliance like the one described in the book is implausible. Plus, the Lakota are actually a sub-group of the Sioux, but the author makes it very clear throughout the book that they are a separate tribe. Third, Sam Houston as governor of Texas actually opposed his state's secession from the Union during the American Civil War so the idea of him being part of some coup attempt seems far-fetched. Finally, Weston seems to imply to real reason the Civil War began was because the Southerners and Great Plains Indians were just trying to overthrow a central government they didn't believe in anymore, which is a troublesome theory about that period of history for someone to have in my opinion.

Now this may be the alternate history, but there really is no clear point of divergence and they do come from the same timeline as the Ninth Legion. To be fair Weston did a better job of presenting the history of the Legion. There are some historians who believe they disappeared in modern-day Scotland, even if there is evidence that the whole or portions of the legion survived on the continent. Problems occur with his description of the Caledonians they were fighting before being taken to Arden. One tribe is called the Iceni, which is actually the name of tribe that inhabited modern-day Norfolk during the Roman occupation of England, and while my preliminary research does show they occasionally practiced cannibalism, the description in the book of groups of them stopping to feast on wounded Roman soldiers like zombies from The Walking Dead was just too silly to take seriously. They also referred to themselves as Caledonians, which is wrong since "Caledonia" was the name the Greeks/Romans gave to modern-day Scotland and the native inhabitants would have called themselves something else.

Besides the bad history, how was the rest of the book? Well, not good. The book is poorly written with too much tell and not enough show. There was also a lot of "As You Know, Bob" moments where one character explains to another character some aspect of the story that both should already know. This is done to provide important exposition to the reader, but it is also not how people normally talk to each other. In fact, most of the dialogue is stilted. This wouldn't be so bad if the book was heavier on the action, which Weston writes pretty well, but most of The IX is just talking about things that are just boring. Even the inner thoughts of the characters are uninteresting and, to be frank, it was hard to tell when they were doing that. Sometimes the inner monologues were in italics, as is traditional in most books, but other times they weren't in italics or highlighted in any way to differentiate them from the rest of the text.

The characters from the future are bland and indistinguishable from each other, despite many coming from time periods centuries apart. Even the characters from the past come off more like stereotypes instead of well researched characters, although they are amazingly smart and are somehow able to point out obvious things about the enemy that the future humans, who have been fighting them for much longer than the new arrivals. Also everyone seemed to have taken the fact that they will never see their homes or loved ones again fairly well and drop old animosities almost instantly so they can fight in a war they've never asked for. Ignoring the psychological impact of what the Ardenese did to the humans it dragged into their war was a grave omission in my opinion. Instead what we do get is overused tropes like ancient aliens and hand-waving issues such as language barriers thanks to magical technology.

To be completely honest, I didn't finish this book. I gave up on it after I was more than halfway done. What was the last straw for me was when I was forced to read a five page memo on how an iron ore mining operation was going. From the context of the book, the memo was being proofread by a character before he sent it to his superiors. I'm sorry, but that is just lame. I know background info is both important and difficult to express to readers in an entertaining way, but their are ways to do it. Take a “Hot Night at the Hopping Toad" by SM Stirling. Although not my favorite story in The Change, it still presented what life was like in a post-apocalyptic college town through the eyes of two likable and interesting characters who were catching up with each other over dinner and drinks at a local bar. Then, just to keep things interesting, there is bar fight, someone dies and a murderer needs to be uncovered. Stirling added conflict to make his story interesting and I never saw the conflict in The IX. The Horde never seemed like a real threat and from what I did read, I never even saw them kill a single human. Without real conflict, it is hard to have a good story.

Despite what I said above, I'm once again the lone voice of dissent in a sea of praise. The IX has a ton of good reviews on both Amazon and Goodreads that I just don't understand. Maybe the book picks up in the second half, but if a book can't hold my attention after 300 pages, I don't see any reason to continue with it. I will admit that when there is action happening the book can be enjoyable and Weston certainly praises the work of soldiers in this novel, so if you like that then go ahead and pick up a copy. Otherwise, I can't recommend The IX. I can, recommend, The Misplaced Legion and its sequels by Harry Turtledove, which has similar themes to The IX and is better written.

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Matt Mitrovich is the founder and editor of Alternate History Weekly Update, a blogger on Amazing Stories and a Sidewise Awards for Alternate History judge. When not writing he works as an attorney, enjoys life with his beautiful wife Alana and prepares for the day when travel between parallel universes becomes a reality. You can follow him on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. Learn how you can support his alternate history projects on Patreon.

Maps of Twilight Histories

With the permission of Sam McDonald and Jordan Harbour, the voice behind Twilight Histories, I present these three maps and descriptions made by Sam. They are inspired by episodes of Twilight Histories, which I will link to. Enjoy!

Rome Industrial

Persia conquered Greece, but this did not lead to the collapse of Greek civilization (although Athens was burned to the ground). As long as the Greeks pay tribute and acknowledge the emperor as their ruler the Persians leave them alone. The Greek colonies in Italy and elsewhere, however, managed to avoid the Persian conquest. These colonies, along with the Etruscan and Latin cultures, gave rise to Rome. Like in our world Rome went from Kingdom, to Republic to Empire. Rome, however, managed to subdue Germania and Scandinavia, while Persia expanded into Eastern Europe. 

Rome still mainly follows the traditional gods, though in a bit more of an organized religion akin to Hinduism. Due to the greater influence of the Etruscans on their culture, the Romans have a somewhat more gender equal society. Persia, on the other hand, mainly practices Zoroastrianism, but Buddhism is becoming increasingly popular both there and in Rome. Due to the differing cultural conditions, Christianity and Islam were never formed. Buddhism has filled the niche and due to its flexible nature and willingness to incorporate local gods and customs, Buddhists don't face persecution like Christians did.

In China, the An Lushan rebellion never happened due to An Lushan's plot being discovered by imperial officials and reforms being put in place to prevent similar rebellions. China has also managed to subdue northern barbarians such as the Mongols and the Jurchens due to a combination of more research being put into gunpowder and mechanical weapons sparking an industrial revolution.

This has spread to India, Persia and Rome (in that order). Persia and India lead the way in developing the scientific method. China was a bit stubborn at first, but eventually conceded that the scientific method was the way to go. Rome still hasn't quite come around, seeing it as Eastern rubbish. Most of their innovations tend to be copied from the other powers (not that they ever admit this) or discovered by accident.

The minor powers of Axum and Srivijaya haven't industrialized yet, but they are in the process. Srivijaya has discovered Australia, but there isn't much there to interest them yet. They have also made voyages to East Africa and Madagascar and sailed around the Cape of Good Hope.

Rome and China have both made voyages to the Americas and have begun the process of colonization. This has lead to disease breaking out among the native population, but because of the slower rate of colonization (compared to our world) the native population have a chance to recover and build up immunity.

The Mayans are still on good relations with the Romans, but they are keenly aware that it might only be a matter of time before they're conquered. They have united into a somewhat loose confederation of city-states akin to the Delian League. In fact the Delian League, which they learned of via the Romans, was their inspiration (though many have pointed out how things didn't quite workout for the Greeks in their resistance to the Persians).

An Aztec-ish culture is forming in the central valley of Mexico while the Incas are building their empire in the Andes, but European diseases have set back their progress a bit. Japan is still independent, but due to China being stronger, they're very much a vassal state to the Chinese. Things aren't exactly helped by the fact that they can't industrialize without raising China's suspicions.

Roma Islamica

The Byzantine Empire fell in the 8th century rather than the 15th century. Without a powerful Christian buffer state to oppose it, Islam quickly spread throughout Eastern Europe. Constantinople became both the capital of the Umayyads and a major pilgrimage site that rivaled even Mecca and Medina.

The Abbasids, feeling the Umayyads had grown too decadent and forgetful of the teachings of Islam (and angered over how much money Mecca and Medina were losing to Constantinople) would go on to overthrow the Umayyads as they did in our world.

The Frankish emperor Charlemagne converted to Islam, both due to having several Muslim tutors in his youth and seeing that Islam would most likely become the next major religion. Charlemagne went on to declare Jihad against the Umayyads and anyone he perceived to be an enemy of Islam. After helping establish Abbasid power in the Middle East he went on to conquer the Italian Peninsula.

The Abbasids, realizing they'd inadvertently created a monster, had Charlemagne poisoned. The noble families of Rome, lacking a clear leader, established something similar to the senate of their ancestors. This led to the establishment of an Islamic Roman Empire stretching from the Pillars of Hercules to the River Ganges. Several Romans unwilling to convert to Islam, including the Pope, and several Umayyads, fled to Ireland. The Umayyads converted to Christianity and became the new ruling class of the island nation.

The Mongol Empire managed to last considerably longer than in our world due to the greater emphasis on central government. Although Tengrism is still the dominate religion, Buddhism is winning more coverts by the day. Missionaries from Ireland have ensured that Christians are also a small but growing presence in the empire.

The Mongols were able to successfully conquer Japan. Several Japanese fled prior to the invasion in hopes of establish a new Japanese homeland free of Mongol rule. They arrived in Mexico and quickly conquered several native peoples and establish a new empire combining Japanese and native culture and traditions.

Northern Europe (the parts not under Roman rule) is still pagan. The no alcohol aspect of Islam is somewhat hard to sell. This has prompted many Imans within the empire to reinterpret the rule that "no Muslim shall drink alcohol" to be "no Muslim shall drink alcohol to excess" to encourage the conversion of those territories. This has created considerable controversy within the empire.

Russia was established by Viking princes as in our world, and has served as a (somewhat redundant) buffer state between the Romans and Mongols after many years of passing back and forth between the two empires.

Britain has been balkanized (the in-universe term is "anglicized") between Rome, Ireland, Scotland and the Danish. The Midlands is more of less neutral territory and is the site of much cultural blending. Scotland is a mixture of Christians and pagans due to the work of Irish missionaries.

Several nations have experienced Industrial Revolutions including Rome, the Mongols, Mali and India. Srivijaya and Ireland are currently in the process of industrializing. Mali has remained strong and continues to expand. Though Rome initially wanted to conquer Mali they are now more than happy to have a fellow Islamic empire as an ally.

Srivijaya has become a major power in the South Pacific and Indian Ocean. Their empire has expanded and their trading fleets are found in ports in all corners of the world. The fact that they are primarily Hindu and Buddhist has caused some issues when trading with Rome and has lead to their alliance with Hindu India. They are also the primary trading partner (besides Japan-in-exile) with the Inca Empire.

Several powers are beginning to colonize the New World. The Vikings are expanding there colonies along the northeast coast of what would be North America. The Irish established a colony just in case Rome ever conquers them and to spread Christianity to the natives. They originally intended to settle around Massachusetts, but after discovering the Vikings were already there moved to Virginia and the Chesapeake Bay. Rome has also established a colony at the mouth of the Mississippi with its capital at New Alexandria (roughly where New Orleans in OTL).

The Kaiser’s Assassin and Operation Wotan

Germany won World War I, or the Imperial War as it is known in this world. The war lasted from 1914-1915 just as many had hoped it would in our world. After the war Germany allowed the conquered nations to keep their own autonomous governments. In practice, however, these were mostly puppet governments with the real power residing with the Kaiser. Berlin and London are the financial and cultural hearts of the world. The many scientists, artists, musicians and architects who would have died in World War I have transformed German cities. Berlin has numerous Neo-Gothic and Romantic skyscrapers that are taller than those in New York.

All of Russia west of the Urals came under German occupation, but everything east remained nominally independent. The Czar still rules the puppet government of German occupied Russia. Free Russia, or the Republic of Siberia as some call it, briefly dabbled in communism, but a few failed crops later and the revolutionary government was replaced by a democracy.

The German Empire's runaway success took everyone by surprise, but especially the United States. Many Americans had hoped their nation would establish colonies to compete with the other Imperial powers. Germany's post-war success motivated the desire the spread a little bit of America throughout the world. Eventually, war was declared on Mexico, albeit on some very suspect reasons. The United States also invaded several nations in the Caribbean and Central America, but in those cases claimed they did so out of a desire to protect those nations from Britain and Germany.

The Austria-Hungary has successfully become more federated and is now known as the United States of Austria and Hungry. Austria-Hungry bought Italy's former colonies from Germany following the war. The colonies were supposed to be a stepping stone towards a greater overseas empire, but managing colonies turned out to be more difficult than Austria-Hungry had originally considered.

The Ottomans have also reformed themselves and have spent the last couple decades reversing their sick man status. The empire has embraced its multicultural nature thanks to the calls for reform and is far more diverse than in our world. As a result the empire protects the rights of all minorities within its borders.

China has once again become an empire under the Zhang Dynasty following a coup against the republican government by opportunistic politicians. The resorted Chinese Empire has also spent the last few decades reversing its decline and has quickly become something of a regional power.

Japan is also a rising power. Following the war Germany sold them Indochina and several islands of Indonesia. They have further expanded their empire by invading Thailand. Japan has recently been inching closer to war with the United States over disputed claims to Borneo and the Philippines. Foreign policy experts concur America could reasonably form an alliance with China, while Japan might be able to convince Germany or Britain to come to their aid. Either a cold war is forming or else this may become another flash point for a future war.

Although Britain stayed out of the Imperial War, several French resistance/terrorist groups were funded by members of the British government hoping to regain the economic benefits of an independent France. Ironically, when the Kaiser was killed at the Imperial Musical Gala it was by members of his own government eager for a war with Britain. The two nations went to war, but fortunately it didn't last any longer than the Imperial War had. There were still loses and those killed in the Anglo-Germanic War included JRR Tolkien, CS Lewis and Ernest Hemingway.

Culturally, the world is somewhat more conservative than our world. Without the horrors of the First World War the Romantic era never really ended in Europe. Jazz is very popular in America, but has only recently found an audience across the Atlantic. Jews are still viewed rather unfavorably and face discrimination, but nowhere near what they would have under the Nazis.

Speaking of which, Hitler is currently working at a coat hanger factory after having flunked out of art school. Meanwhile, Joseph Jugashvili is a priest of the Georgian Orthodox Church.

Editor's Note: Did you like what you saw? Would you like to see more Twilight Histories inspired maps? Let us know in the comments.

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Sam McDonald is a college student from Shreveport, LA.  When not involved with his studies he can be found making and posting maps across the web and working on short stories that he hopes to have published in magazines such as Lightspeed, Strange Horizons, and the Escape Artists Podcasts. 

SyFy Adapting Pax Romana and Other SF&F Properties

Deadline Hollywood is reporting that the SyFy channel, notorious for their B-movies starring Tara Reid, has made an announcement that has redeemed them a bit in this blogger's eyes. They will be creating a mini-series based on Pax Romana by Jonathan Hickman, along with other adaptions of famous SF&F comics and books.

For those who don't know, Pax Romana is a politically charged graphic novel where the Vatican develops time travel in a future where Islam dominates Europe and the West has rejected monotheism. They decide to send an army of Cardinals and special forces soldiers to 312 AD, during the reign of Constantine, to change past and save the future. Things, however, don't go as planned as different factions vie for control over how to fix the timeline.

Pax Romana is being adapted by writers Matthew Federman and Stephen Scaia (Warehouse 13), with David Alpert of Circle of Confusion (The Walking Dead) acting as executive producer, along with Federman, Scaia and Hickman. I have to say its a good sign when the creator is involved in the adaption (it works for Game of Thrones).

More importantly, we may get a chance to see some alternate history on the small screen. Casey Douglas at Geek Syndicate, however, summed exactly what we should all be thinking: will the end product live up to the original work? Only time will tell, but I will be praying for a successful production.

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Matt Mitrovich is the founder and editor of Alternate History Weekly Update and a blogger on Amazing Stories. Check out his short fiction. When not writing he works as an attorney, enjoys life with his beautiful wife Alana and prepares for the inevitable zombie apocalypse. You can follow him on Facebook or Twitter.

What If Wednesday: The Roman Empire Never Falls

Timelines about the Roman Empire never falling are almost as popular as American Civil War or World War II alternate histories. That being said, I always found the reasons for why Rome never fell to be lacking and hope to throw my own scenario in the ring and see if it generates any discussion.

To clarify, when I say "Roman Empire" I mean the Western Roman Empire which fell in 476 to Odoacer. I realize that the eastern half of the Empire continued to exist as the Byzantine Empire, but popular history usually does not label them as Roman, so for the sake of this article I won't either.

With that out of the way, if we want to prevent Rome from falling, we need to look at why it fell in the first place. The generally accepted theory is that the Empire fell because of barbarian invasions. That theory, however, does not paint a full picture. It only gives the specific cause of death, but says nothing of the overall health of the Empire. Following the end of the Pax Romana 180 AD, the Empire began a gradual decline as civil wars raged across the Empire over succession to the Imperial throne. A couple of strong emperors, like Diocletian and Constantine, attempted to stop the decline, but their effort were too little too late. To fix the Empire, we will need to change things farther in the past.

I have always been a fan of the economic reasons for the collapse of Rome. These range from agricultural decline, lack of economic freedom and slavery hampering ingenuity. Fixing these issues would be difficult and would require a major paradigm shift (or assistance from alien space bats) for Classical civilizations. It seems near impossible, but to give Rome the best chance you would need some reform minded emperors not distracted by civil strife throughout the Empire.

Perhaps fixing the system of succession could help. Rome was notable that those who took the purple were not always the son of the man who held it before. This actually gives us some hope because it means competent men have the chance to take control over incompetent children of the current reigning Emperor (as what happened when Commodus succeeded his father Marcus Aurelius). The problem is such a structure breeds strife as factions (army, bureacracy, Senate, etc.) fight over who gets the top spot. A more formal framework would need to be adopted to ensure a peaceful transition to power, especially if the current Emperor dies before naming a heir. Perhaps the Senate would then act as the College of Cardinals does today for the Pope.

A more stable Empire could then deal with the immediate threat of barbarian invasion. In fact, they may even take advantage of the golden opportunity to assimilate the barbarians into Roman culture. Many of the Germanic tribes who "invaded" Rome were actually refugees who were pushed west by more powerful tribes (like the Huns). I fear, however, that I am starting to get optimistic. Its just not plausible for large empires to stay together indefinitely (unless you count China as an exception). It is probably unlikely Rome would avoid all potential civil wars or survive other "barbarian" invasions (Arabs, Norse, Magyar, Slavs, etc.).

Perhaps Rome surviving on the German/Italian model would be appropriate. By that I mean that because of a longer Pax Romana Latin culture is even stronger in Europe. If the Empire does collapse, more successor states like the Byzantines arise allowing for a future reunification down the line. Thus in this scenario we have multiple versions of the Empire that reunite following brief periods of strife. We may even see future versions of the Roman Empire having a written constitution that structures the empire into more of a federation. Instead of the eagle, the phoenix may be a better standard for these future incarnations of the Empire.

There are still many variables that could wreck the scenario above. What if Rome changes the course of the migration of the steppe nomads from west to east? What if the Roman Empire's size and power makes it complacent and they are unprepared for a more dynamic rival? What if the author of this piece just doesn't know what he is talking about? That sounds the most likely actually, so please let me know your thoughts in the comments and if want to submit your own scenario email me at ahwupdate at gmail dot com for a chance to be featured on What If Wednesday.

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Matt Mitrovich is the founder and editor of Alternate History Weekly Update and a blogger on Amazing Stories. Check out his short fiction. When not writing he works as an attorney, enjoys life with his beautiful wife Alana and prepares for the inevitable zombie apocalypse. You can follow him on Facebook or Twitter.

Map Monday: The Restored Roman Empire by mdc_1957

So everyone likes to write timeline where the Roman Empire never fell, but those timelines seem to think that the only real Roman Empire is the western one, not the eastern one which didn't actually fall until 1453. I am speaking of course of the Byzantine Empire as it is more well known. We don't see many timelines where they do not fall, so I was happy to see this map from mdc_1957:

Set in the year 1900, it presents a familiar map of Europe coalesced into different nation-states that includes a surviving Byzantine Empire. There are enough differences, however, that you get the idea the author took the flapping of butterfly wings into account.

You can read more about this wold here, but the point of divergence generally focuses on a different line of emperors coming to power in the 15th century. Whether that would be enough to prevent the decline of the Roman Empire, I will leave that to you, the reader, to decide. If you are interested in other Byzantine and Roman alternate histories, check out Sean Korsgaard's showcase on "An Age of Miracles, the Revival of Rhomanion", The Economics of a Roman Suez Canal by Christopher Brielman, Inceptio by Alison Morton or "The Anointed One" by A.J. Nolte.

No honorable mentions this week. Sorry, just didn't see anything else I liked. If you want to submit a map for consideration for the next Map Monday, email me at ahwupdate at gmail dot com with your map attached and a brief description in the body of the email.

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Matt Mitrovich is the founder and editor of Alternate History Weekly Update and a blogger on Amazing Stories. Check out his short fiction. When not writing he works as an attorney, enjoys life with his beautiful wife Alana and prepares for the inevitable zombie apocalypse. You can follow him on Facebook or Twitter.

Adding Some Steam to your History: Incorporating Steampunk into Alternate History Worlds

Guest post by Daniel Ottalini.

I am tired of Victorian England.

I say this in the nicest possible way. I’m tired of every novel I read involving chaps with quirky British accents and a fading (or perhaps, resurgent) sense of empire. You see, I love reading steampunk novels, and I’m here to say that please, for the love of everything, take steampunk out of England.

Granted, by origination, steampunk is the use of steam-powered technology in more advanced than historically accurate ways onto a western industrialized civilization, almost always focused on the British Victorian Era. But how can we expand this tight beam focus? Surely, writers such as Cherie Priest and others have managed to include the American Wild West into the steampunk genre, and done so quite successfully, but where are the other worlds? Within those two areas we've covered one smallish island and a mere quarter of the United States. Alternate history is an amazing opportunity to expand and create new worlds incorporating both genres. I know because I write steampunk alternate history novels. (Maybe I should have said that before!)

I’ll admit up front, it is very easy for such a combination to go wrong. Part of the beauty of an alternate history is its plausibility. The strands of fate and time can be amazingly complicated and are balanced upon the edge of the simplest of choices. If a writer is not careful, the steampunk side of a novel can overwhelm the historical side, or simply not make sense. In this way, I am always teetering on the brink and always weighing my options. But what I am mostly concerned about is this – How much is too much steampunk?

As an author, I want to stay true to the roots of my series, The Steam Empire Chronicles, that of a Roman Empire surviving into the 19th century, dominating its traditional stomping grounds and beyond. The first novel, Brass Legionnaire, introduces people to the world, one where the empire has survived the barbarian invasions and thrived instead of collapsing.

To make the story plausible, I chose a distant point of divergence, the unsuccessful assassination attempt on Julius Caesar, to lay my foundation. It allowed me to play for time, and assume that many of the advances adopted by western civilizations in our timeline would have been accepted as well. But how to make it my own? Or more correctly, how to make it my world’s own version of technology?

Quite simply, I researched. I've got books on mechanical inventions from the 1800s sitting next to texts about the Roman Army next to The Steampunk Bible. What I did not do was write a story, decide I wanted it to be ‘steampunk’ and plop down an airship for my characters to go gallivanting off in.

That’s not steampunk, and that certainly isn’t good alternate history (See the latest Three Musketeers movie for proof). Every creation and part of a story should belong in the plot. If they have airships, why? How? Mechanical creatures or machines? Why and how? In The Peshwar Lancers, S.M. Stirling’s airships are mandatory because of the massive change in Earth’s climate. The technology must fit both the world and the people. My Romans have airships that simply look like the standard trireme with an airbag atop it. Why? Because technologically wise, they knew how to build ships, and floating ships would probably be designed in a similar way, especially at first (minus the oars, of course).

In Brass Legionnaire, the reader is thrown into the technology aspect of my world right away, with the building of a mechaniphant, a Roman warmachine modeled after the terrifying elephants of Hannibal’s army, something that had a major impact on the Roman psyche. It’s included because it is logical. Not just because I wanted a giant machine (which I did) but also because it is something that the Romans would have been impressed by, and would have wanted to create their own, improved, version of nature’s creation. Just as their Scandinavian opponents in my second novel, Copper Centurion, have created their own warmachine based on wolves.

So if you’re planning on adding some steam to your cup of alternate history, the key thing is to plan. If you’re already doing research (which you should be!) then examine closely famous inventors and technologies of the era to include or modify. The reader should know that the technology used is a common occurrence, part of the world from the beginning. I wish you good luck in your travels, and remember, it is good to be unique, but even better to make sense.

* * *

Daniel Ottalini is a teacher, author, amateur historian who was raised by both the History & Discovery Channel. His parents are very proud of decision to write about alternate history, in hopes that he will stop bothering them about it. His second novel, Copper Centurion, will be available on May 1st in both ebook and print versions. You can learn more about him at www.danielottalini.com or follow him on twitter @dottalini.

Interview: Alison Morton

I now present my interview with friend of The Update, Alison Morton:

Can you tell us a bit about yourself?

I’ve been a wordsmith much of my life - storyteller, playwright (aged 7!), article writer, local magazine editor and professional translator. Working in a variety of fields – Government service, the City of London, as a European head-hunter (not the real ones – executive search!), a Territorial Army officer and a translation company owner – I can draw on a wide range of experience to fuel my novels. I completed a bachelor’s degree in French, German and Economics and in 2006 a masters’ in history. I now live in south-western France with my husband. Following the publication of my history eBook Military or Civilians? The curious anomaly of the German Women’s Auxiliary Services during the Second World War, I became an Associate Member of the Society of Authors.

What is the Territorial Army?

It’s the reserve land forces in the UK. Although enlisted personnel are legally civilians, many members serve a tour in theatre now with the regular forces, especially if they have specialised competence or expertise. TA officers are under military rules at all times but are ‘permitted’ to carry on with their civilian lives unless serving in theatre or on mission.

The TA is not exactly parallel, but equivalent to the National Guard in the US.

What got you interested in alternate history?

The trigger was Robert Harris’ Fatherland set in a 1964 Germany where Nazi Germany had won the war. Even as I waited to pay at the counter, I was already intrigued by the idea of an alternate path of history. Published in 1992, Fatherland was intrinsically a political thriller written at the time the whole of Europe was attempting to realign after the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 and dissolution of the East/West Iron Curtain imposed after the Second War World. Excellent timing by Robert Harris!

Then I started looking for similar ‘what if’s and found Keith Roberts’ Pavane, the story of an England under Spanish domination after the Spanish Armada had succeeded with its invasion. The characters were ordinary people, labouring to make sense of their lives and struggling to take their society forward. But I couldn’t find any Roman alternates then apart from Roma Eterna which while cleverly structured and very detailed but weakened by stodgy writing. Romanitas in 2006 was a much better story, centred around real people. It intrigued me from the start.

What is INCEPTIO about?

New York, present day. Karen Brown, angry and frightened after surviving a kidnap attempt, has a harsh choice – being eliminated by government enforcer Jeffery Renschman or fleeing to the mysterious Roma Nova, her dead mother’s homeland in Europe.

Founded sixteen centuries ago by Roman exiles and ruled by women, Roma Nova gives Karen safety and a ready-made family. But a shocking discovery about her new lover, the fascinating but arrogant special forces officer Conrad Tellus who rescued her in America, isolates her.

Renschman reaches into her new home and nearly kills her. Recovering, she is desperate to find out why he is hunting her so viciously. Unable to rely on anybody else, she undergoes intensive training, develops fighting skills and becomes an undercover cop. But crazy with bitterness at his past failures, Renschman sets a trap for her, knowing she has no choice but to spring it...

What inspired you to write the novel?

Two events separated by many years!

The first was when I was on holiday in north-east Spain one summer. I was eleven and fascinated by the mosaics in the Roman part of Ampurias (a huge Graeco-Roman site). I wanted to know who had made them, whose houses they were in, who had walked on them.

After my father explained about traders, senators, power and families, I tilted my head to one side and asked him, “What would it be like if Roman women were in charge, instead of the men?” Maybe it was the fierce sun boiling my brain, maybe early feminism surfacing or maybe it was just a precocious kid asking a smartass question. But clever man and senior ‘Roman nut’, my father replied, “What do you think it would be like?”

Real life intervened (school, university, career, military, marriage, parenthood, business ownership, move to France), but the idea bubbled away in my mind and the INCEPTIO story slowly took shape. My mind was morphing the setting of ancient Rome into a new type of Rome, a state that survived the dissolution of the Western Roman Empire into the 21st century, but retaining its Roman identity. And one where the social structure changed; women were going to be leading society.

But what actually started me writing INCEPTIO? One Wednesday I’d gone to the local multiplex cinema with my husband. Thirty minutes into the film, we agreed it was really, really bad. The cinematography was good, but the plot dire and narration uneven.

‘I could do better than that,’ I whispered in the darkened cinema.

‘So why don’t you?’ came my husband’s reply.

Ninety days later, I’d written 96,000 words, the first draft of INCEPTIO.

What sources were particularly helpful when researching for the novel?

Classical texts, but Pliny, Suetonius, Caesar’s Gallic Wars in particular, plus my years of visiting sites and museums throughout Europe. My father had introduced me to history and especially to the Roman world. So much so, that it seemed perfectly normal to clamber over Roman aqueducts, walk on mosaic pavements, follow the German limes, pretend I was a Roman playactor in classic theatres all over Europe from Spain to then Yugoslavia, from Hadrian’s Wall to Pompeii.

I’d also spent six years in the reserve forces, which gave me experience of military life first hand and enabled me to write the later scenes in INCEPTIO.

But the most important source for any writer is other people’s books. Not plagiarising (the gods forbid!) but reading what is out there. Writers must read within their genre and learn the traditions and ‘rules’. It’s a plain fact that readers will be disappointed if you jolt them off the path they expect. I don’t mean your writing should be predictable, but that it should not be implausible. Michael Chabon’s The Yiddish Policeman’s Union can be wild at times, but for all its quirkiness it stays within the genre.

Who designed the cover?

The clever and extremely talented team at SilverWood Books! I collected images of covers I thought attractive and saleable over the three months before mine was designed, and sent them in with a request for imperial purple and gold as dominant colours. It was a fabulous result that has made INCEPTIO a very attractive product which shouts ‘pick me’ or ‘click me’. It even won a cover competition two days before publication day.

Do you have any other projects you are working on?

I’m working on book two of the series, PERFIDITAS (Betrayal). I drafted it a little while ago, but it’s been ‘in the drawer’ for several months. It’s a thriller again, but gets more to core of Roma Novan society.

What are you reading now?

I’ve just finished The Labyrinth of Osiris by Paul Sussman, a thriller set in modern day Egypt and Israel, but with many historical links. It’s beautifully written with a gripping plot and excellent characterisation. Not sure what I’m going to look at next...

Do you have advice for would-be authors?

Bash the story out. If you pause too long beautifying individual scenes at this stage, you risk losing the narrative flow. You’re first and foremost a storyteller; the story is the most important thing.

Put it away for at least six weeks, then do the first self-edit, checking the plot structure, deleting the dreadful parts and working on the sloppy bits. Then back into the drawer and start the next project.

Out of the drawer comes the first novel a few months later and this time you scrutinise each sentence word by word, forcing each one to justify its existence. Then you have something ready for sending to a professional editor.

INCEPTIO – An Alternate View

Guest post by Alison Morton.

When I wrote INCEPTIO, the first of my series of Roma Nova thrillers that was published last week, my aim was to produce a cracking story full of suspense, mystery, heroism, humanity and the odd touch of humour. The characters had to be well-defined and realistic, true products of their societies.

The core story is of a twenty-five year old living in New York who faces total disruption to her life when a sinister government enforcer determined to eliminate her pursues her to Europe. Add in a spy from her dead mother’s homeland who can’t make up his mind whether he likes her or not. And the strange country that she feels at home in, but hasn't adapted to. And the killer’s still after her...

That sounds as if it could be set anywhere, but New York is an Autonomous City in the Eastern United States (EUS) that the Dutch only left in 1813 and the British in 1865. The New World French states of Louisiane and Québec are ruled by Gouverneur-Généraux on behalf of Napoléon VI, California and Texas belong to the Spanish Empire and the Western Territories are a protected area for the Indigenous Peoples. These are only background details as the New World is only the setting for the first chapters. But as J K Rowling knew with Harry Potter’s world, although you don’t put it in the books, you have to have worked it all out in your head.

So, where did the Roma Nova in my books come from? 

In our own timeline, the Western Roman Empire didn’t ‘fall’ in a cataclysmic event as often portrayed in film and television. It localised and dissolved like chain mail fragmenting into separate links, giving way to rump states, local city states and petty kingdoms all facing the dynamic rise of the new peoples of Europe particularly the Franks, Visigoths, Burgundians and Alamans - see my post on the Domain of Soissons. The Eastern Roman Empire survived, albeit as the much diminished city state of Byzantium, until it fell in 1453 to the Muslim Ottoman Empire.

Some scholars think that Christianity fatally weakened the traditional Roman way of life and was a significant factor in the Western Empire’s collapse. Emperor Constantine's personal conversion to Christianity in AD 313 was a turning point for the new religion. By AD 394, his several times successor, Theodosius, banned all traditional Roman religious practice, closed and destroyed temples and dismissed all priests. The sacred flame that had burned for over a thousand years in the College of Vestals was extinguished and the Vestal Virgins expelled. The Altar of Victory, said to guard the fortune of Rome, was hauled away from the Senate building and disappeared from history. The Roman senatorial families pleaded for religious tolerance, but Theodosius made any pagan practice, even dropping a pinch of incense on a family altar in a private home, into a capital offence. And his ‘religious police’ driven by the austere and ambitious bishop Ambrosius of Milan, became increasingly active in pursuing pagans...

The alternate Roma Nova timeline

In AD 395, three months after Theodosius’ last decree banning all pagan religions, over four hundred Romans loyal to the old gods, and so in danger of execution, trekked north out of Italy to a semi-mountainous area in the direction of Raetia/Noricum. Led by Senator Apulius at the head of twelve senatorial families, they established a colony based initially on land owned by Apulius’ Celtic father-in-law. By purchase, alliance and conquest, this grew into Roma Nova.

Norman Davies in Vanished Kingdoms: The History of Half-Forgotten Europe reminds us that:

…in order to survive, newborn states need to possess a set of viable internal organs, including a functioning executive, a defence force, a revenue system and a diplomatic force. If they possess none of these things, they lack the means to sustain an autonomous existence and they perish before they can breathe and flourish. 

I would add history and willpower as essential factors. Roma Nova survived by changing its social structure; as men constantly fought to defend the new colony, women took over the social, political and economic roles, weaving new power and influence networks based on family structures.

Ancient Roman attitudes to women were legally repressive, but towards the later Imperial period women gained much more freedom to act, trade and own property and to run businesses of all types. Although adultery could be fatal, divorce was easy and step and adopted families were commonplace. The leader of Roma Nova’s founders was married to an influential Celtic noble from a society in which although Romanised for several generations, women in her family made decisions, fought in battles and managed property. Their four daughters were amongst the first pioneers so necessarily had to act more decisively than they would have in a traditional urban Roman setting. So I don’t think that it’s too far a stretch for women to have developed leadership roles over the next sixteen centuries.

Given the unstable, dangerous times in Roma Nova’s first hundred years, eventually the daughters as well as sons had to put on armour and carry weapons to defend their homeland and their way of life. Driven by the need to survive, service to the state was valued higher than personal advantage, echoing Roman Republican virtues. Women heading the families guarded and enhanced these values to provide a core philosophy throughout the centuries.

Roma Nova’s continued existence has been favoured by three factors: the discovery and exploitation of high-grade silver in their mountains, their efficient technology, and their robust response to any threat. Remembering their Byzantine cousins’ defeat in the Fall of Constantinople, Roma Novan troops assisted the western nations at the Battle of Vienna in 1683 to halt the Ottoman advance into Europe. Nearly two hundred years later, they used their diplomatic skills to help forge an alliance to push Napoleon IV back across the Rhine as he attempted to expand his grandfather’s empire.

Prioritising survival, Roma Nova remained neutral in the Great War of the 20th century that lasted from 1925 to 1935. The Greater German Empire, stretching from Jutland in the north, Alsace in the west, Tyrol in the south and Bulgaria in the east, was broken up afterwards into its former small kingdoms, duchies and counties. Some became republics. There was no sign of an Austrian-born corporal with a short, square moustache.

Twenty-three years before the action of INCEPTIO in the early 21st century, Roma Nova was nearly destroyed by a coup, a brutal male-dominated consulship and civil war. A weak leader, sclerotic and outmoded systems that had not developed since the last great reform in the 1700s and a neglected economy let in a clever and ruthless tyrant. But with characteristic resilience, the families’ structures fought back and reconstructed their society, re-learning the basic principles of Republican virtue, while subtly changing it to a more representational model for modern times.  Today, the tiny country has become one of the highest per capita income states in the world.

How to write in an alternate history setting

Setting a story in the past or in another country is a challenge. But if you invent the country and have to meld it into history that the reader already knows, then the task is doubled. Unless writing post-apocalyptic, which is too fantastic for me, the geography and climate must resemble the ones in the region where the imagined country lies. I’ll make a confession: I ‘borrowed’ Slovenia as the model.  And no writer can neglect their imagined country’s social, economic and political development. This sounds dry, but every living person is a product of their local conditions. Their experience of living in a place and struggle to make sense of it is expressed through their culture.

The key is plausibility. Take a character working in law enforcement. Readers can accept cops being gentle or tough, enthusiastic, intellectual or world-weary. Law enforcers come from all genders, classes, races and ages and stand in different places along the personal morality ruler. But whether corrupt or clean, they must act like a recognisable form of cop. They catch criminals, arrest and charge them and operate within a judicial system. Legal practicalities may differ significantly from those we know, but they must be consistent with that society while remaining plausible for the reader. But a flashing blue light, or an oscillating siren on a police car, is a universal symbol that instantly connects readers back to their own world.

Almost every story hinges upon implausibility – a set-up or a problem the writer has purposefully created. Readers will engage with it and follow as long as the writer keeps their trust. One way to do this is to infuse, but not flood, the story with corroborative detail so that it verifies and reinforces the original setting the writer has introduced.  Even though my book is set in the 21st century, the Roman characters still say things like 'I wouldn't be in your sandals (not shoes) when he finds out.'  And there are honey-coated biscuits (honey was important for the ancient Romans) not chocolate digestives (iconic British chocolate-coated cookie much favoured by police officers) in the squad room.

Another way to connect to readers when writing from an unfamiliar setting is to ensure the characters display normal behavior  Human beings of all ages and cultures have similar emotional needs, hurts and joys. Of course, they're expressed differently, sometimes in an alienating or (to us) peculiar way. But we can identify with a romantic relationship, whether painful, instant, careful or intense - it binds us into the characters’ stories.

To sum up, I approach the alternate history aspect from a historian’s viewpoint; there are no special powers, aliens, time slip, time travel, ghosts, or even gods directing the actions of mortals. My stories centre on people, their dilemmas and how they deal with them in the extraordinary culture they live in.

So what’s INCEPTIO about?

New York, present day. Karen Brown, angry and frightened after surviving a kidnap attempt, has a harsh choice – being eliminated by government enforcer Jeffery Renschman or fleeing to the mysterious Roma Nova, her dead mother’s homeland in Europe.

Founded sixteen centuries ago by Roman exiles and ruled by women, Roma Nova gives Karen safety and a ready-made family. But a shocking discovery about her new lover, the fascinating but arrogant special forces officer Conrad Tellus who rescued her in America, isolates her.

Renschman reaches into her new home and nearly kills her. Recovering, she is desperate to find out why he is hunting her so viciously. Unable to rely on anybody else, she undergoes intensive training, develops fighting skills and becomes an undercover cop. But crazy with bitterness at his past failures, Renschman sets a trap for her, knowing she has no choice but to spring it...

* * *

Alison Morton muses on writing, Romans and alternate/alternative history at her blog. Check out her new novel Inceptio, the first in a trilogy, now available in the United States and the UK (in paperback and e-book). You can find her on Facebook and Twitter (@alison_morton).

The Anointed One by A.J. Nolte

Captain Simon Diogenes glanced around him at the crowded docks. Jaffa was a busy port city even at the slowest of times, and with the death of the Emperor David I Agrippa, these were far from slow times.

Diogenes' glance flicked over the disembarking passengers, noting several barbarians from the European Mithraic states. After the most recent war against the Manicheans of the Byzantine Empire, in which Mithraist mercenaries from the Gothic and Frankish kingdoms of Europe had fought hard on both sides, it was common to see the big blond warriors throughout the Alexandrian Empire. Diogenes himself would trust an Axumite or Nubian a thousand times over one of those heathen barbarians, and indeed, he saw a fair number of both.

Most of the travelers, though, were men like Diogenes and their wives; loyal Alexandrians and circumcised followers of the one true God. He supposed that was true of the Axumites and Nubians as well, though he wondered, at times, just how deep their commitment to faith and empire really was. Diogenes saw a number of traveling rabbis, probably headed to the Counsel of the Imperial rabbinate to be held in a few months time.

The politically savvy soldier knew just how disturbed the religious authorities of the empire were about the heir apparent's decision to forego the traditional coronation in Bethlehem. After the conversion of the Roman Emperor Judas Constantinus to Judaism and his relocation of the capital to Alexandria, those sections of the Empire which held to other beliefs rebelled. This combined with the influx of barbarians into the empire led to the fall of Rome.

Alexandria, however, had not only survived and prospered, but united all of Egypt, most of the Levant and part of Syria, as well as the former Roman provinces of Africa, into a powerful new Jewish Empire. With the conversion of the kings of Axum and Nubia to Judaism, and their de facto absorption into the empire, it seemed as if God was finally fulfilling the promises he had made to the Children of Israel so long ago.

As a consequence, it had become customary for the emperor to be crowned by the Chief Rabbi at Bethlehem, in order to fulfill the current interpretation of prophecy which linked the Emperor with the anointed one of God, or messiah in old Hebrew. Not coincidentally, this also gave the rabbinate considerable power over the Emperor, which it was not loathed to use on occasion. But Eleazar II Agrippa, the son of the beloved and recently departed Emperor David, had announced his intention to be crowned in Alexandria, and, in his words, "to put the superstitious nonsense of the messiah behind us once and for all."

Certainly, there were factions within the rabbinate who agreed with Eleazar, but the consternation over the decision would almost certainly lead to yet another divisive counsel and considerable civil unrest whatever the rabbinate decided. Diogenes thought the young Emperor was a fool to pick this fight, but sometimes young men were like that.

"Your pardon, Captain." Simon looked down to see a man garbed as a scribe addressing him.

"Can I help you, sir?"

"I pray God that you can. I am Josephus of Cordoba, a scribe in service to Lord Thiudaric of that city." Simon nodded; the Mithraist lords of Europe, whose religion taught them to shun any "work but soldiering", often used Jews as administrators.”I was sent by my lord to deliver letters to the Emperor at his coronation in Bethlehem, and to serve as his ambassador to the Emperor once the coronation was finished. Now, however, I find that the coronation has been moved to Alexandria, and my wife is great with child. I fear she could not easily make the journey, and I would not depart until I have seen her safely settled."

Simon sighed; this man's small crisis was only one of the many things Eleazar's unexpected change of plans had set askew.

"Your difficulties are not unusual, sir. If I can help, I will. Do you have lodgings arranged in Bethlehem?"

"Not yet, Captain. I fear my wife cannot travel much beyond that city, however."

"Perhaps I can help, then," Simon said. "My men and I ride for Bethlehem shortly. We will find a litter for your wife, and you can ride with us to the city. I believe lodgings are to be had with ease, particularly with the Emperor's changed plans. Once your wife is settled, you can best determine how to travel on to Alexandria."

"God Bless you, Captain, and I must accept your kind offer." The two men clasped hands, and Simon wondered what he had gotten himself into.

The trip to Bethlehem was uneventful, and Josephus, as it turned out, made for very good company. The Cordoban Jew had seen a fair slice of the world, even traveling to the capital of the Byzantine Empire, and to Persia.

"Byzantium is no great city," Josephus told Diogenes. "The emperors have tried to make it a new Rome, and its defenses are quite formidable, but it is a cheerless city, and the Manichean priests see manifestations of evil everywhere."

"And what of Rome?"

Josephus sighed. "Alas, it has fallen on very hard times, and is little more than a ruin. The land has not recovered from the ravages of Vandals and Huns. Of the Mithraic lands... well, it would be best if I kept my own counsel I think." Still, for all his reluctance to speak of Cordoba, Simon learned a great deal from Josephus from what he did not say. The man was not surprised to see synagogues, but much more shocked to see faithful Jews baring weapons. Josephus' eyes also darted around furtively, as though he were constantly in fear of ambush. Clearly, life was far from easy for the Jews of Cordoba.

"We are approaching Bethlehem, Captain." Diogenes nodded to his soldier, and turned to Josephus.

"This was a bucolic little town once, but it has grown since. I doubt King David himself would recognize it." The town had become a small city, full of inns and shops, with a number of influential synagogues. None, of course, could compare to the rebuilt temple in Jerusalem, which was the heart of the rabbinate's power. Still, Bethlehem had become an important place in the empire, because of the coronations of so many emperors.

Josephus chuckled. "Do you know, Captain, I had a whimsical thought just now."

"Oh? Please do share it."

"Well, in the interpretations of prophecy common outside the empire, it is said that the anointed one, the messiah, will be born in Bethlehem, not crowned there. So if all goes as I think it might, some men might say my son is..."

"That is a whimsical thought best kept quiet, my friend," Simon interjected. "Neither the Chief Rabbi nor the Emperor would find it amusing. There have been pretenders advancing that claim before, zealots who have stirred up rebellions against what they see as imperial decadence."

"Yes, of course. I meant nothing by it, certainly."

"I know that, Josephus, but if your Miriam does give birth in Bethlehem, as seems likely, you had better let it be known your son was born somewhere else. What were you thinking of naming the lad, by the way?"

"Jesua, in the vulgar Latin of Hispania."

"A good strong name. That would be Yeshua in Aramaic?"

"Yes, though it is common for those of us living in the heathen west to make our names less… distinctive. My wife, for example, goes by Maria to the people of Thiudaric’s court."

"That is no bad thing, in this case. I think it best for you, and the boy, if Jesua of Cordoba is never associated with Yeshua, a boy born of Miriam in Bethlehem." Josephus nodded.

"Perhaps that would be best, for now. As for tomorrow, who can say what the future might hold?"

 Simon Diogenes would have cause to remember those enigmatic words of the scribe Josephus, decades later, when the name of Jesua of Cordoba was spoken from far Britain to the east of Persia and the south of Nubia. And he wondered then what part he might have played, if any, in the messianic movement that forever changed the world three centuries after the fall of Rome.

* * *

A.J. Nolte is a PHD candidate in international relations at Catholic University and an aspiring sci-fi and alternate history writer . He is knowledgeable in Byzantine, medieval, ACW, Cold War, Islamic and post-colonial history. Also, he'll read almost anything once if it's got an airship in it.