Life of a Roman: An AAR Chapter two
A citizen ally?
My entire life has had one vision, one dream, to march with the Roman legions, now the dream has come true. Unfortunately it's not quite as I had imagined. In my sleep I saw myself marching as a fresh faced young Hastati, gladius by my hip, pila in my hand, shield strapped to my back. I march to war with a bow, some arrows and a blunt spear. No, I'm not a Hastati, I'm not even a Velite. Accensii? No I'm below even those dregs of society. I march to war as an ally of Rome with my Nuraghi "brethren."
Soon after the death of my father the man who owned the land to our north moved in with us, mother told me we needed protection, a women and her thirteen year old son living alone were not safe. She must have thought I was a bloody idiot, she had seen what I was capable of and my killing of Herion was common knowledge, people knew what they could expect if they tried to rob this poor widow and her son. Of course I made a mistake in my last account, I said I murdered Herion, how could I murder somebody who belonged to me? Perhaps you thought my use of the word denoted some sorrow or guilt for the deed on my behalf, pah! Read on and tell me if you still think that.
Mother and her lover were clever, I'll give them that. I spied on them for months waiting to catch them, I knew what was going on but there was always the small chance I could have been wrong. Finally about six months later I walked into her room and they were in bed together, mother cried out to me claiming it was the first time, he had seduced her etc etc. Her lover laughed and told me to get out, he was busy. I looked at him and smiled and the laugh disappeared, finally he realised what was going to happen and that the story of Herion's fate was more than just a story. I slit mothers throat with a dagger I had bought in town, she gurgled words I couldn't catch then slid to the floor. Dead. I was an orphan. He stared at me. I stared at him. "You're bloody crazy" he mouthed, barely able to get the words out. I still hadn't said a word and wasn't about to start then. I'm a man of action not words. I won't bother you with the details but he didn't get the merciful death mother got, I mean she was my mother, as I told you before I'm not some kind of psychopath. Some time the next day he finally died, let's just say anybody who knew him wouldn't have recognised him.
So an orphan, a murderer, what's the word? Matricide? Who cares, she deserved it. If she couldn't honour my father's memory it was up to me. I had to get away, far away where nobody knew me. I went to the port at Naples and bribed the captain to take me wherever they were going, it took all of the silver I had taken from home. The voyage was a nightmare, I was sick constantly. The crew tried to get me to help man the ship, they got the message when I held one over the rails threatening to throw him in. When we reached our destination I was ordered off, if I hadn't gotten off they would have thrown me overboard.
I had no idea where I was when I got off, it looked like Italy but I couldn't be sure. Perhaps everywhere looked like Italy. After a few hours wandering I came across a young girl, well not too young, a few years younger than me. I tried to talk to her but she didn't understand. She gave me some of the berries she had collected and I tried to make her understand I was lost. Eventually she got the message and beckoned me to follow her. She brought me to a crude hut were she lived with her family. I lived here for three years, eventually learning to understand this primitive people. I bet you thought I was going to rape her or something, I'm not some sort of a psychopath as I keep telling you. And she was ugly.
After three years I heard a voice outside speaking in Latin. The local governor had ordered a levy of troops to send to Rome. The recruiter was demanding at least one of this family volunteered, so I stepped forward. I didn't let on I spoke Latin of course, as far as he knew I was one of the Nuraghi. The other Nuraghi would know of course so I pretend to be mute. It actually makes life easier as they don't make much effort to communicate with me so I get out of most of the hard jobs. Another horrible boat trip later and I was back on Roman soil. We are marching north, hopefully to kill Gauls, though I actually have no idea where we are going or who we are going to fight.
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