Gallus fell onto Maximus blade, the cold steel biting deep, his slackness disappeared as life briefly returned and then faded from his eyes, the scene repeated itself over and over in Maximus mind as he slept, Gallus his sour faced brother reaching for his throat, mouth open, his eyes dead, over and over. Leontius watched his brother lay there moaning his face racked by grief and pain, with a grunt Leontius left the barracks, he knew what his brother felt, but he needed sleep and would have little if he stayed. With so many men dead it would not be hard to find somewhere else to sleep, as Leontius made his way across the main yard of the fort he spotted Aula standing in the shadows, they seemed to swallow her only showing her head and her dark eyes as she stood hidden from all but Leontius, she gestured for him to come over.
Aula watched the Legionarii come to her, she shrugged her shoulders so her dark robe fell open a little exposing the gentle swell of her breast. She would soon have another to look after her and when she was done with this one she would find another.
‘What do you want woman?’ Leontius said as he came over to her his face tight with tiredness and grief.
‘I just wanted to say I know what you’re going through with the loss of your brother, I to have lost my brother.’ A sad little smile on her face, Aula had never had a brother or any real family having been sold into the sex trade at an early age, but she would say what needed to be said to get what she wanted. Aula did not care, she would use as she had been used by so many.
‘I am sorry to hear that, but I am near falling over where I stand so get to the point whore.’
Looking hurt, eyes big her hair moved in time with the wind, her robe fell open a little more, Aula watched as his eyes darted down to look.
‘I can help with your tiredness, if you like. My quarters are quite, you can sleep or we can…talk.’ Placing a hand on his chest she smiled as her clothing parted showing her ample curves and milky white skin.
A little smile formed on Leontius face as he looked at the whore, why not? He thought to himself he needed something to take his mind off the last few days.
‘I could do with a good….talk.’ Aula grabbed his hands and pulled him into the shadows, eyes lit with dark desire. The goddess whispered in her mind.
Maximus woke from his restless sleep, only to hear shouting coming from the main yard, going outside he saw a newly arrived scout dismounting from his horse. He waited for Spurius to finish talking to the exhausted man. ‘What gives?’ Maximus asked his voice sounding hollow to Spurius.
‘The green skins come. They will be here by tonight, more than I thought possible, but it doesn’t matter we will do what we were trained to do. We will kill until we can kill no more. What more can our founder ask from us?’ A strange look rippled on his face, a light suddenly blazed to life in his eyes, a hardness generally not seen in the mild mannered Maximus.
He knew his newly appointed commander was right, the green skins needed to pay for what they had done, a slow fury started to burn, not a wild rage like Leontius was capable of but a cold hatred. His training had taught him not to let his emotions rule during a battle, this time it did not matter.
‘We should ready then for the coming fight.’ As he walked away a cold hard smile crept across Maximus face. Spurius watched the Legionarri stalk away and pitied the green skins who would meet Maximus in battle.
Their love making had been wild and rough, and after Leontius fell into deep dreamless sleep, he lay there dead to the world. Aula dreamed, darkness that was already in her soul grew as the sinister goddess Callisto whispered again in her mind, she spoke of blood and despair and told of power she could have if she followed the goddess and forsake her kind. The voices grew in crescendo they screamed at her as Aula's mind broke.
Aula slowly came awake, after the wild dreams of blood and hate, a strong metallic taste in her mouth; she looked down at Leontius as she sat with her legs apart on his lower body. His chest was wide open gore and ropy insides spread all over, dark red blood covered her like a nightmare cloak. Pieces of flesh hung from her mouth, numbness flowed through her body and then a new sense of strength. Leontius gladius lay next to her its blade crusted with blood; Aula looked at the blade and started to cackle to herself, louder and louder until she screamed, a cry of glee and hatred. She stood clothed in blood and gore and headed for her door as the goddess sang to her.
Maximus saw the whore’s door crash open as she came out, hair wild and draped in her macabre robe. Aula went straight for Maximus rage painted on her once beautiful face. Fingers like claws she swiped at Maximus face, he blocked the blow with one arm and slammed his fist into her face, Aula smiled bits of flesh and teeth falling out of her mouth. She punched Maximus in the face, knocking him flat. He quickly rolled to his feet, his gladius hissed from his scabbard. Other Legionarii stood stunned at the strange spectacle as Maximus readied for the next attack. She came at him again; Maximus swung taking her arm off from the elbow, blood fountain out. Aula cackled again ‘You can never stop me pitiful Romuli.’ Her voice sounded like a thousand people trying to speak at once. ‘You have been marked for doom, you will die.’ Aula smiled another broken smile and came at him again. Maximus stabbed her in the chest. Aula shugged off the blow and again punched Maximus in the face his nose breaking, stunned he staggered back a step as she leap on him. One Legionarii now moved forward, tall with a shock off black hair and gray blue eyes, he planted his studded sandal into the side off her head, knocking the frenzied whore off Maximus. Aula fell to the ground, as she stuggled to rise the Legionarii pinned her to the ground with a pilum. Aula lay there screaming in a thousand voices, with her one remaining arm she reached up and flung away the pilum.
The goddess sung loud to Aula as she started to stand, her voice droned as the daylight seemed to dim, Maximus stood and in one motion took her head from her shoulders, a great billow of blood and Aula body collapsed to the ground, head hitting the ground with a wet impact her eyes continued to dart about before finally stopping, staring straight at Maximus a little smile again on her face.
Horns sounded, for the green skins had come, a sea of swords spears and skull faced priests. Amongst the army of green moved blocks of armored men, armed with sword and spear also, the men of Demos had come for the blood of the Romuli.
Maximus saw what was left of his brother in whore’s room, his heart felt empty but for the rage that now burned bright and pure he turned to the Legionarii who had helped him.
‘What is your name Legionarii?’ he asked in a flat voice.
‘Anthony.’ He replied simply ‘Your loss I understand, but let us take revenge of the foul army that is coming. Let us send their souls to be crushed between our founder’s balls.’
Maximus looked at the man standing before him, his face open and honest; he nodded once ‘Let us end this madness.’ With that he gathered his weapons and made his way with Anthony to the wall to wait for the final battle of Lonely Hill Fort to begin.
Citizen
Re: After Action Reports (AARs)
Domesticus
Father of Thera
Originally Posted by Borissomeone
Primicerius
Push the button Max!
. Cheers.
Ordinarius
. Borissomeone's Tales of Thera.
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