The Wandering Commander: Asinius Commodus

[littlelostboy]

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Chapter 14 – The Request
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“How did you escape?” asked Asinius, as he and Guern walked around the open aired peristyle.

“Through some small forest,” replied Guern, admiring the lush garden in the middle of the peristyle.

“Yes, but how? I sent my troops to search for the remaining survivors,”

“Your troops do not know the forest well enough,” said Guern.

Asinius made a sound of annoyance.

Both walked in silence, just walking and admiring the variety of plants that added a concoction of fragrance in the light evening air. To be more exact, Guern was admiring it while Asinius was just pondering the many thoughts that ran through his mind.

Asinius looked up at the sky, watching the night slowly taking over the day. Pursing his lips, Asinius let out a loud, shrill whistle and waited. Guern stared at him with puzzlement and suspicion written over his face. Dropping his hand to his hip, Guern lightly fingered the sword hidden in the folds of his clothing.

“No, watch,” said Asinius, knowing full well what Guern was thinking.

Guern looked up, wondering what was the Roman lad up to. Although the Briton was particularly observant, all he noticed was the night clouds hiding the streak of red in the sky and the sun setting at the west.

Then, Guern caught something with his eyes. Something moving against the clouds and it was getting larger and larger. At first, it was just a small speck, the size of Guern’s thumb but after a few moments, Guern could make up the brown feathers of the flying bird. Both he and Asinius watched in silence, as the bird slowly loomed larger in view. When it was close enough, just a few feet away from the roof, Guern saw the magnificent bird in its true splendour.

With its wings raised behind its back, the eagle smoothly swooped down onto Asinius’s leather clad arm. Guern raised his eyes in astonishment and admiration: astonishment that a wild and independent eagle was completely tamed by Asinius and admiration at the eagle fine markings. The plumage of the eagle was dark brown, with a golden wash over its head and neck. The wing tips were covered in small white strips and the eagle’s legs were feathered. The large golden eyes stared hard at Guern and the large yellow beak was pressed hard together in fury.

“You have one fine eagle,” said Guern as he watched Asinius stroking the eagle’s neck with his finger.

“Yes,” replied Asinius.

“Did you trained it yourself?” asked Guern.

Asinius turned and grinned at Guern. Both the eyes of Asinius and the eagle looked so alike, the fire and the fierce concentration burning within, that Guern, for a moment, thought that he was looking at a god.

“I would like to take credit,” said Asinius, “but no, a Briton animal trainer helped me,”

“Where did you captured it?” probed Guern.

“You asked a lot of questions,” replied Asinius, wanting to avoid the topic of the first battle between the Juli and the Briton.

“Where,” asked Guern.

Asinius sighed, he wanted to avoid the issue at all cost but it seemed that Guern was determined to reprise the issue again. For once, the thought of calling the guards tempted Asinius. It would make things a lot easier for him. But on the other hand, Asinius would be appear like a coward if Sextus and Lucius found out how he dealt with the renegade leader.

“Samarobriva,” replied Asinius.

Guern stayed silent and Asinius began uneasy as he saw a slight frown on the rebel leader’s face. Only the eagle perched tall and erect on Asinius’s arm, watching the strange exchange between the humans.

“It seems that many things happened at Samarobriva,” said Guern, “The site of your first battle, the place where my daughter barely escaped from you, the place where you got this eagle, do you think the gods could be trying to tell you or maybe me something?”

“I don’t believe in the gods,” replied Asinius.

“Then what do you believe in?”

“Ourselves, we make and control our own destinies, that is what I believe in,”

Guern stayed silent, he wanted to argue with the Roman but instead, he kept his mouth shut, knowing that there was more important things to do than arguing about philosophy. The eagle leaped and settled onto Asinius shoulder, looking at Asinius and Guern, watching them in a bored and puzzled way.

“How did you survived?” asked Asinius.

“In our own way, we lived off the land, we avoided your legions and towns,” replied Guern.

Asinius remained silent, unsure whether to feel sorry for Guern’s harsh life or to feel relieved that at least Guern managed to avoid the patrolling legions.

Guern continued, “Every night, every day, I think about my daughter, how she is and where she is,

“The last thing I heard was that she escaped to Trier and after the end of your siege, disappeared mysteriously, although her brother Taximagulus died,” said Guern

“I tried looking for her but to no avail,” relied Asinius.

“Then this is worse news,” a deeper frown came upon Guern’s face.

“Why?”

“At least when she is in your hands, she is well, but if she escape and she did not go back to Londinium, it can only mean two things,”

“What is it?”

“She has escaped to Germenia and she still alive, or perhaps dead, killed by your ransacking legions,”

“Perhaps she has escaped again,” said Asinius.

“Yes, that is what I have thought, Drusilla is tough, she will escape, she has escaped and I can feel in my bones and heart that she is still alive,”

“And the second thing?” asked Asinius.

“She is in Thrace,”

“Why that godforsaken place?”

“It is a gateway to Greece, to the lands of the Brutii,” explained Guern.

“I thought you hated Romans,”

“I prefer her to be with Romans, given her half blood,”

“Oh,”

Both remained quiet, each one thinking about the woman who had somehow elusively escaped the clutches of one man but yet did not return to the other man. Asinius’s mind was working furiously, trying to think of the possible outcomes that befell on Drusilla and yet also trying to think of something comforting to say. If Drusilla had escaped to Thrace, there should be some word from her. The Thracians were neutral throughout the whole campaign against the Britons and Germenia and for Drusilla to escape there would mean that some Thracian village or town had taken her in. Still, why was no word heard from her? Asinius pondered, trying to solve the mystery. The Thracians themselves were half-civilized people, something could happen to Drusilla anytime.

“Asinius, I have a request,”

“What?” asked Asinius, although he knew full well what was coming?

“Seek my daughter, bring her back to me. I want to see her for the last time,”

“What if I come back too late with her?”

“Then tell her to put her ring on my grave,”

“If I fail?”

“Then my gods and your gods will curse you till the day you die.”



This is then end of Part II. Part III will be coming up soon.

[Ludens]

Is part III coming on, littlelostboy? It would be a pity if you abandoned the story after getting this far.