The Strix That Offered Protection

When Have We Ever Known Peace.

Fabia and I had been ostracised for many seasons, we had a visit from my brother he was sent on an errand from my father to check on my well-being, he was asked by Fabia's father to check her well-being too. Mikeli had learned of Calcius being there. Calcius went to hide, but i told him not to, my brother was a very peaceful young man, he hated violence.

The fact my brother wouldn't fight incensed my father, to the point where he called him names, but my brother brushed them off and sought solace in our mother. My brother Mikeli was happy to find us in great health, he couldn't believe we had a gladiator hiding out in our home. We told him never to tell father, or anyone. My brother was like me, he had a connection with the gods, he was aware of Calcius being there.

Mikeli was the type of man who needed to see things with his own eyes to believe them. My brother decided to stay a while, he and Calcius would hunt for food, they would pretend to fight and Calcius would teach him how to defend himself, they became really immersed in each other's company and they grew to become great friends. My brother was told by the gods that he was to fix the marks the Romans made on his body, he had to use many types of berries to alter and remove the markings. Calcius soon had the markings of a tribesman from Hispania, whom were closely related to us.

My brother had to travel home, but as he was about to leave, we heard from the gods that three legions of Roman soldiers were heading our way. We didn't worry as we knew the Strix would be there to intercept them. Calcius was growing worried in case he was caught, but the gods told us that he was to come with us and watch as the Strix were being devoured. We told Mikeli to stay and watch with us, we built a watch tower between two trees, we hid the tower beneath the canopy of leaves, we could watch from there as the Romans reached the border and see some of them cross it, then the Strix would there to not let them pass further.

The Strix split into three groups, as they knew the legions would send two legions to the east border and one legion to the south. The commander of the group sent one thousand men to the south and they were eaten in a rapid manner. The commander didn't dare cross to discover what happened to his men, he travelled to the east border, the same thing happened again. The commander and the rest of his legions retreated back several miles, he stayed there for several days and the Strix attacked them in their contuberniums at night. The screams could be heard for miles. We watched as they scattered. Calcius was in awe, he hadn't seen beings like this before. Calcius had a huge smile on his face, as he seen many of his captors be torn to pieces. The Strix ate their fill and retreated to their hideout, a place that none of us knew of.

My brother and Calcius were jubilant, we watched in the tower as all the remaining soldiers began their solemn journey back to Rome. We heard from the gods again, the people were beginning to turn on Concilius as three thousand husbands, fathers and sons didn't return home. We were told Concilius wandered the palace yelling at his commander, begging the senators for more money for another attempt. The senators refused more money for another campaign. The senators knew that Concilius didn't have the funds to finance a campaign on his own.

Concilius called his commander to ask what is it across the borders that they were so afraid of?

The commander replies, "emperor, they were fast, they ate the men, they drained their bodies of blood."

Concilius called for the pagan leaders in Rome, to ask what type of being could do such a thing? The pagans of course did know, but they didn't want to tell him. They knew it was the Strix, they wanted the empire to fall as much as those beyond it's borders. Concilius was furious and he ordered the immediate execution of his commander, he told the people he's being executed for cowardice. This had the people in an uproar, the commanders wife Aquina was a close friend of Concilius' wife, she approached her and asked her to try and intercede on her husbands behalf. Concilius' mind was made up, his commander and longtime friend was to die.

The day of commander Marcus' execution was taking place, his wife at his side until the guards came and took him, while she was by his side, they took her too, they brought them to the colosseum, they had two huge crucifixes waiting on them, Aquina walked along side her husband, she held his hand, her head held high, they kissed and said their goodbyes. The colosseum was emptier than usual, during the execution and in the night there was a mass exodus from Rome.

The rich and powerful too decided to leave Rome until it had a leader that wouldn't continue taking them to war. Concilius was at a loss, he didn't know what to do, a city that held well over a million had decreased to around five hundred thousand. Concilius was advised by the senators to stop going to war for a while, to start supporting the people he was supposed to rule over. Concilius agreed to have peace for one season, then he would fact find by himself what was killing thousands of men.

The senators asked, "are you really going to travel alone and find out what's doing this?"

Concilius thinks for a moment, he then said, "I will just wait and see."

The senators took from that, that the mass exodus will help him discover what's going on beyond the border.

The people that fled from Rome, fled to Pompeii and Herculaneum, for many this would be a huge mistake, but that's not Akashia's story. Rome now contained more slaves than the rich and powerful that used to live there. Concilius as a gesture of goodwill to the people, he gave away the homes of the rich to freed slaves, he didn't do this out of the goodness of his heart, it was that once he was gone, that those people who fled, won't ever get their property back.

Little did Concilius know, it was probably the only good thing he's ever done in his miserable life. Concilius was the ninth emperor by the time his people turned against him. The truth is many despised their emperors, but it was the way it was, people had to live with it. Concilius was hated the most, he was a warmonger, the people were sick of paying for needless wars and more land.

It has even been said by the Roman people, "when have we ever known peace? Our husbands, our sons and our fathers are taken from us, often never returning to us."