Soldier of Rome: The Legionary (The Artorian Chronicles) (44 page)

On the arena floor, both men turned and faced the Emperor, weapons raised.

“Hail Caesar!”
Both men said together.

Vitruvius was then silent as the huge African said the rest of the statement.

“We who are about to die salute you!”

“Speak for yourself,” Vitruvius said in a low voice.

Both men turned and faced each other. The African held his shield at arm’s length, his sword up at shoulder level, as if preparing to smash his opponent. Vitruvius settled into a comfortable fighting stance, his gladius low and at his side, shield arm cocked back, ready to punch. He quickly started looking for openings. He definitely wanted to end the fight swiftly. As the African giant raised his sword up slightly, Vitruvius saw what he figured might be a potential weakness.

“I’m going to spill your guts, Roman
, and gain my freedom.” the African snarled. “You will beg for death before this day is done.”

“Unlikely,” Vitruvius replied with a smile.

The African’s eyes filled with contempt. Spittle sprayed from his mouth, along with a small stream of blood where he had bitten his lip in anger. He yelled a tribal battle cry and lunged straight at Vitruvius. He raised his sword high to smash his smaller opponent. The blow came hard, but slow. Vitruvius easily sidestepped as the gladiator’s weapon slammed into the ground. A vicious backhand slash followed, which the optio deflected off his shield. Both men settled into their fighting stances once more. As the gladiator raised his sword up to smash once again, Vitruvius’ eyes brightened in realization.

Got you!
He thought to himself. The African was violating one of the most basic principles of close combat by leaving his flank exposed.

Vitruvius lunged in, raising his shield to protect himself from a potential blow. He
stepped inside the African’s shield arm and smashed his shield’s upper edge into his assailant’s face. The shield impacted just below the giant’s chin. Without waiting to see the effects of his blow, using a straight thrust, he plunged his gladius into the gladiator’s belly, just above the belt. The blade sank all the way up to the hilt, the African giving a jolt of surprise as both arms fell slowly to his sides. Staring into the man’s surprised eyes, Vitruvius tensed and brought his gladius up in a hard slice directly through his guts and up to his ribcage. As blood started to flow from the gash, running down his hand and forearm, he angled his gladius up and thrust the point under the ribcage and into the gladiator’s heart. Just as quickly, he pulled his sword down and out, and stepped away.  The African stood motionless, sword and shield dropping to the ground.  His eyes were glazed, and he swayed momentarily like a tree in the wind, and then toppled forward. Vitruvius turned around, and started to walk away even before his opponent hit the ground.

The crowd stood in stunned silence. The fight was over, and it had barely begun. This was not the type of match they had expected
. Vitruvius was halfway to the gate, when a lone figure started to slowly clap his hands together. The crowd looked around searching for the source. It was the Emperor Tiberius, sporting a rare smile, standing, and clapping for one of his finest soldiers, who had made a mockery of Sacrovir’s gladiator. The crowd suddenly broke into frenzied applause and shouts of adulation. Vitruvius turned back towards the Emperor, removed his helmet, and saluted with his weapon held high. The Emperor returned the salute as one soldier to another; then Vitruvius turned to salute the section holding the legionaries and walked out of the arena.

No, I guess the better man wasn’t here today,
the optio thought to himself. He couldn’t help but allow himself a grim smile. It had felt good to dispatch that pompous fool Sacrovir’s prize fighter so easily.
If there is somebody out there that can best me, I won’t find him in the arena.

“No!”
Sacrovir screamed. He pulled at his hair frantically. The African giant he had paid so much for, who had won him many victories and great wealth, slain by a lowly legionary. His hatred only intensified when he saw the Emperor applauding the man. This, in turn, fueled his loathing. He turned and started to run down the tunnel, out of the arena as the crowd continued to chant the name
Vitruvius
over and over again. Sacrovir placed his hands over his ears. The name had become an abomination for him. In that moment he swore he would have vengeance upon not only Optio Vitruvius, but on all legionaries of Rome.

The men of the Second Century were still applauding loudly for their friend and optio when Decimus suddenly came running up to their seats, excited about something.

“You
have
got
to come with me.” he panted.

“Hey, where have you been? You missed the match
.” Praxus shouted.

“Oh, I saw it. Good on Vitruvius. Don’t worry I saved one for him,” Decimus said,
waving his hand dismissively.

“One what?” Praxus asked.

Decimus smiled and winked. He then took off running down the steps.

“Well
, don’t just stand there, come on!” he shouted back at his companions.

Shrugging, Artorius, Praxus, Gavius, Magnus, Carbo, and Valens all
stood and followed the excited legionary into the atrium.

In the foyer, behind the seats there was a number of rather striking young women. All wore revealing gowns, and many had laurels in their hair. They smiled and
waved at Decimus, who waved back, smiling.

“Who are they?” Artorius asked, mouth gaping. Decimus put his arm around him, eyes never leaving the young ladies.

“Those, my friends, are
courtesans
. They are the very best ladies of love that money can buy.”

“You mean the ones who only
rich, old senators can afford?” Valens asked.

“The ones they can afford, yet cannot perform properly for, yes,” Decimus answered.

“So how do we as lowly legionaries afford such supple beauty and grace?” Artorius asked.

“We don’t. That’s the best part
. They’ve already been paid for!” Decimus was giddy with anticipation.

“By who?” Magnus asked.

“Who cares?” Artorius retorted. “Maybe Severus used a share of his winnings from the fight as a way of saying ‘thank you.’ Or maybe they’re just doing their patriotic duty to the State. Either way, does it matter?”

“Indeed
.” Decimus laughed as he shoved Artorius towards one of the waiting ladies.

She was a couple of
centimeters shorter than Artorius, with curly hair that reached just past her shoulders. Her green eyes contrasted with the color of her skin. He could tell by the way her gown lay that she was well-endowed with a firm, tight figure. Her smile betrayed her lack of innocence. She was definitely something he could understand rich men paying a lot of money for.

“
Hello there,” he said, trying to sound casual. She slipped an arm underneath his and around his waist.

He looked around and saw that all of his friends were similarly engaged. “So, um, anything in particular you would like to, well um,” he was embarrassed that he was stuttering.

She was a prostitute after all, even if she was a really expensive one that probably hadn’t had a real man bed her in years.

“
We could go get some wine, find a nice place to dine, and pretend we are courting,” she said sweetly, albeit sarcastically. “Or we could just skip the preliminary nonsense and get right down to business.” She raised her eyebrows as she said so.

Artorius looked away for a second in mocking contemplation.

“Hmm…alright then,” With that, he wrapped his arms around her and kissed her aggressively and passionately.

The girl yelped in surprise at first, given his initial awkwardness. She then moaned in pleasure and anticipation as she placed her other arm around him and kissed him back.

Chapter XXVIII: The Rewards of Triumph

***

Artorius,
with most of his friends, was escorted to the courtesan house. It had taken no more than a few minutes to get there, though with
eroticism about to consume him, it seemed like much longer. He was quick to observe how lavishly decorated the house was from the moment they entered the main foyer. The floor and pillars all gleamed of polished marble. An elaborate fountain with a bronze statue of Pan on the top stood in the center. Vases of heady-smelling flowers and statues rested on pedestals throughout, exotic
and erotic mosaics decorated the walls. As they walked down a wide corridor, Artorius saw a familiar face walking towards a room, a beautiful woman in each arm. One was young and fetching, the other was much older, though still very striking. He assumed she was the “lady of the house.” She looked aroused and flattered to have drawn the attention of the strapping legionary who was probably twenty years younger than she. Artorius laughed to himself when he caught the face of the young legionary. Valens smiled, winked, and shook his fist in the air, as if celebrating a conquest. Artorius returned the gesture and continued on his way with his new friend in tow.

The courtesan’s
room contained a huge bed with numerous comfortable pillows exuding delicate yet exotic scents. Incense burners hung in each corner, and the art and décor was of the finest quality. Yes, it would seem that a number of rich senators had been busy to have sponsored such a place. Artorius contemplated, briefly, that just a few of the contents in the room cost more than a year of his salary.

He thought briefly about his encounter with Camilla the night before. By Hades, he had been brutal to her
. He eyed his companion and wondered if she would be up to a similar challenge. As she dropped her gown and moved confidently towards him, he figured she was. He was then taken in the young woman’s arms and kissed deeply and aggressively. He soon forgot about everything else in the world. For the time he was there, nothing else mattered or even existed.

His companion, whose name he
found out was Lucilla, had been more than a generous host. She seemed genuinely pleased and extremely
aroused by the young legionary. His brute power and extreme physical conditioning seemed to add to her excitement. Artorius prided himself that no rich magistrate possessed his youthful vitality, stamina, or brutal strength. He stroked his ego further by thinking that perhaps
she
should have been paying
him!
Then again, he was quite impressed by her veracity and physicality as well. It became something of an erotic competition to see who could wear the other out first. Each found they were both worthy opponents in this game of lust and fury. As evening came, they lay relaxing in each other’s arms.

“Hmm, think I should get back?” Lucilla asked him.

“Whatever for?” Artorius asked.

“
Well, there are a lot of other soldiers in the city in need of affection,” she giggled, caressing his chest with her fingers.

“To hell w
ith them,” he retorted. “I’m a soldier, and you were hired to take care of us while we are here. I take it your contract did not say how many or for how long? I mean, am I not enough to keep you satisfied…”

She placed a finger to his lips, cutting him off.
“Hush, I was only teasing,” she said with a smile. She laid her head back onto his chest. “Believe me, you’ve got more vitality and energy than any man I’ve met.”

“You have no idea,” he said, smiling. Without warning he rolled her roughly to her back.

She yelped and then laughed as he tried to show her just how much vitality he did have.
He then leered at her, a devious thought crossing his mind as he rolled her over, her butt in the air. He admired the view and gave her a firm smack on the behind.

“Mmm, I know what you want
.” she said with a smirk.

“Yeah, well don’t think that this means I like boys
.” he growled as he pulled on her hair.

“Oh
, I would never…
ah!”

Artorius could not quite place it, but it gave him distinct pleasure in demonstrating
such sheer dominance with women. Perhaps it was the pent up aggression from the campaigns in Germania, or it may have been a repressed resentment towards women after Camilla abandoned him. Whatever it was, he enjoyed it and not just because it felt good. Like Camilla, Lucilla buried her face in a pillow and bit into it; although, unlike Camilla, she started to grind into the lusty legionary and seemed to revel in his savagery.

It was not until late the next morning that Artorius finally left the courtesan house. He was almost sad as he left. Lucilla stood on a balcony, body aching and wanting nothing more than a long soak in a hot bath. Still she smiled and waved at him as he walked away. Artorius felt his heart strings getting pulled as he waved back.

“Come off it, man
. Don’t forget what she does for a living.” he chastised himself harshly. “Some creepy old man probably had his hands on her just before you did.” And yet he could not help but feel he had left something of himself there.  He walked a little delicately himself; after two days of pleasure, he was feeling a little chafed.

“Men, look who finally made it back.” Statorius said, sarcastically.

The
decanus was reclining on the ground, a cup of wine in his hand, lost in his own reminiscing.

“I think I need an ice bath for my groin
.” Artorius moaned as he limped over to where his section mates were lounging, the smile never leaving his face.

His friends all looked equally serene, though it was obvious he was the last to return by quite some time. Valens lay flat on his back, eyes closed
, his legs spread wide and both hands resting on his crotch. He groaned as if in pain, though he never stopped smiling to himself.

“I can never go back to trashy frontier whores ever again,” he muttered.

“So what was that last night, the ‘mother-daughter’ special?” Artorius asked as he slowly eased himself down onto the grass.

“I doubt that a mother and daughter would have done the things to each other that those two did,” Valens replied, eyes still closed while continuing to
smile
and moan to himself. “You know, I was perfectly happy to just watch. However, they were
so
insistent that I participate as well. I mean, what was I to do?”

Later that afternoon Statorius kicked Artorius’ cot, stirring him from his pleasant dreams. “Just so you know, your pass the day after tomorrow has been approved.”

“Pass? I didn’t ask for a pass,” Artorius replied, still half asleep.

“I don’t think you’ll want to miss this,” Statorius remarked, handing him a scroll.

Artorius
’ heart soared as he read the scroll.

Primus Artorius Maximus does hereby request the presence of his son, Titus Artorius Justus, on the day following the Triumphal Parade in order to oversee the marriage of his father to Juliana Helena. At the gardens of the Temple of Castor and Pollux, three hours after dawn
.

At the bottom was written:
Approved, by permission of Platorius Macro, Centurion.

He had been waiting for weeks to hear from his father and had hoped that perhaps he had made his way up from Ostia. To know that not only was he going to be able to see his father, but that he was finally doing right by Juliana made Artorius beam with pride.

The Triumphal Parade was a spectacle unlike any other. It seemed like every citizen of Rome and all the surrounding areas had turned up to pay tribute to the legions who had smashed Arminius and the Germanic tribes. On the morning of the parade, the legions were lined up outside the forum. Each soldier had taken the time to polish his armor, helmet, and weapons, and draped his cloak over his shoulders. As they milled about, Artorius saw a familiar face he had not expected to ever see again.

Camilla still walked with a
slight limp, and she had, at this point, given up trying to cover the bite mark on her neck. She smiled at Artorius, and he walked over to her, removing his helmet as he did so.

“Looks like you got savaged by a wild animal,” he remarked sarcastically.

She smiled wryly. “Yes, well, it seems I had to learn a hard lesson about trying to get back with a former love after I went and got married behind his back.”

“So what did you tell your husband?” Artorius asked, morbidly curious.

Camilla gave a shrug.

“Only that we had both spent the night paying to be serviced by men,” she answered.

Artorius could not help but laugh at that.

“I think he’s envious, since his lovers aren’t quite so
masculine.
” She then gazed downward for a second. “Artorius, I know it was wrong for me to get married the way I did. I did not love Marcellus and still don’t, but I can’t take it back.”

“Look, if we can at least part as friends, it will be enough,” Artorius replied.

Camilla smiled, gave him a lasting embrace, and walked away.

“What did
you
do
to that woman?” Magnus asked as they watched Camilla pause and brace herself against a pillar for a second. She let out a long sigh before she slowly walked away, never looking back. Artorius was grinning from ear to ear as he turned and faced his friend.

“I only got even with her for a pre
vious wrong,” he replied.

“
Remind me never to piss you off.” Magnus remarked, his eyes wide.

They wandered back over to where the rest of the
century was staged. All wondered why they were there so early, since the parade was not supposed to start for several hours. Then Severus and Germanicus mounted the dais in the center of the formation. They were each wearing their finest military dress: shining breastplates, purple cloaks over their shoulders, ceremonial gladii at their sides, ornamental helmets underneath their arms. They looked so different than when each had been covered in dirt and blood on the fields of battle.

“Soldiers of the Twentieth Legion!” Germanicus called out. “It is my duty and privilege to present to you your Emperor, Tiberius Claudius Nero Caesar!”

With that the men erupted into loud shouts and cheers that shook the Seven Hills of Rome as the Emperor mounted the dais. He was dressed in full military garb, like his generals. The only thing he lacked was the ceremonial helmet; instead, he wore the laurel crown that signified him as Emperor. He raised a hand in salute, and the legion immediately became quiet.

“My friends, fellow s
oldiers,
brothers
in arms.” he began. “For each of you that stand before me, I acknowledge as my brother. You have avenged the greatest treachery of our time bringing justice and honor to your legion and to Rome. And though we, as individuals, may be forgotten by history, your deeds and your valor will be remembered forever. Therefore
you
, my friends, will live forever! In honor of your victory, it is my privilege to present each of you with the campaign crest and medal. Wear them with pride and know your Emperor is proud of you!” He then raised a medal in his right hand as the soldiers all started to chant together,
“Hail Caesar! Hail Caesar! Hail Caesar!”

Once the Emperor left,
centurions and options made the walk down the lines of their centuries. It was the first time Artorius had seen Macro and Vitruvius in full parade dress with all of their awards displayed. They each wore a harness over their armor, which displayed their medals and decorations. Both had quite a few, though Artorius was surprised to see Vitruvius actually had more than his centurion. As they passed in front of each soldier, Macro took a medal from Vitruvius and handed it to each man. He then clasped each soldier by the hand.

Artorius gazed at his medal the
centurion and optio presented to him. For Artorius, as well as many of the younger legionaries, this was the first decoration he had been awarded. It was slightly smaller than the size of his hand and was made of silver. As was customary, it was emblazed with the image of the Emperor. On the top was inscribed:
For Victory in the Defeat of our Enemy Arminius
. Across the bottom it read:
XX Legion, Valeria, Senatus Populusque Romanus.
Once all medals had been handed out, Macro took his place at the head of the century formation.

“The campaign crest and medal honors us as a
legion and our deeds during this war,” he said. “But there are those who also distinguished themselves individually, and they deserve to be honored and recognized. We have several soldiers within the Second Century who have been selected to receive awards for valor. When I call your names, come forward and receive your award.”

The first award Vitruvius handed t
o him was a gold crown.

“Legionary Decimus
, you are awarded the Rampart Crown for being the first legionary over the wall of an enemy stronghold.”