One of my favorite chapters. When Bakker really makes the effort, he can write almost any subject pretty well; we see him writing political intrigue in this Momemn chapter. It's a shame he limits himself to the same blind brain topic these days, both in his books and blog posts.
Lots of parallels to Roman history in this chapter. Conphas has a lot in common with Germanicus (nephew of the emperor, military leader, loved by everyone after a genocide of barbarians), while Xerius reminds me of Tiberius (emperor of Rome, paranoid and suspicious of everyone). The wheeling and dealing and scheming in Momemn is definitely inspired by the backstabbing of the Roman court.