In the epic Iliad, Dione once said this to smiling Aphrodite:
"My child, take courage and endure the pain. We gods who dwell on Olympus have suffered greatly because mortals fight one another.
"Even Ares, the god of war, suffered. The sons of Aloeus, Otus and Ephialtes, bound him with ropes and imprisoned him in a bronze jar for thirteen months."
Even gods were tormented so painfully by combative mortals. How much worse must it be for Georgiana?
She drank whiskey as she thought, the tavern's clamor buzzing behind her.
In 978 AD, because the German emperor Otto had seized Lorraine, which belonged to France, relations between the two countries rapidly deteriorated. At the beginning of summer, Lothair decided to send twenty thousand troops toward Aachen.
At first, Lothair crossed the Meuse River, reached Aix, and stormed into the palace at Aix, only to find it completely deserted.
The Germanic peoples had just departed with their families. The table was still set, and the food was still hot. The hungry soldiers fought over a few bites.
During this time, Otto returned to Aix and was astonished to find his residence occupied. In October, he led thirty thousand cavalrymen onto the land of France.
Under those circumstances, Lothair fled in panic and abandoned Laon. He placed all his hopes on Hugh Capet, hoping the Count of Paris would shoulder the responsibility of defense.
Capet had no time at all to gather troops for battle, while the Germanic peoples were already closing in. Among their forces was the emperor's nephew, who volunteered to open a breach through the city gates.
The emperor's nephew sent out a Germanic soldier built like a giant to issue a challenge, while Capet selected a cavalryman named Yves to defend the honor of the Franks.
As the