Et Stellas: Beyond Different Worlds

(Aurelius; II) How good would be

Aurelius (II)

Not too far away, is currently Lucius.

With a satisfying thump, he closes his leather book. He carefully lays it on top of the desk in addition to takes another leather book that was lying there. He opens it with an excitement hurry and jumps to the first page with no doubt on what he's doing.

He is fascinated with the beautiful images of the stars and planets that coexist in an unreachable place, and unknown for every living thing.

"Lucius, son of Commodus" A female voice quietly purrs behind him, making Lucius, besides making his hair stood up, quickly close his book in a simple and hard thump.

He instantly looks over his shoulder to finally observe at the Cat Lady that's standing in the door of his room. He already knows if she's in her room is for two reasons:

The best, the villagers want to talk about something important. . . or the worst, my father is calling me, It's the first thing that comes to his mind in a fraction of a second. The Cat servant is already bowing with her entire body, her paws already hidden behind her back "The Emperor is requesting for you in the locus throni(2)" She announces with her melodious accent voice, before leaving the room with the same quietness as she came.

Lucius' room is not a big one. At least is warm, is what he usually says in joking tone if someone is talking about his dormitory. A regular mattress in one corner, with a big table, still round head and three legs, on its side. A piece of large furniture at the bottom of the bed with a soft red blanket covering it.

And over the furniture is Lucius, letting a heavy sigh escape from his chest, feeling the bad augury slowly coming in. His excitement for the leather book that shines 'Astronomia(7)' as title has gone far away.

In that place, the birds occasionally sing or wing around. It's mostly quiet, with nothing more than the howls of the wind that hits the walls that cover the Empire or the sound of the all-day working felines.

Lucius finally stands up from the furniture with no excitement at all and grabs his leather books. He quietly raises one of the soft yellow pillows, that was resting over the mattress, and slips both of the books below it.

He doesn't like to wear armor or even touch a sword. He's just dressing in a light-yellow/light-blue formal toga(4), so he just makes his way outside the room.

The cat servant is standing on the other side of the doors, waiting for the Emperor's son. As soon as Lucius leaves the room, the two felines start heading down the long corridor, directly to the locus throni(2), with the cat servant leading the way.

Those corridors are quiet and has been always like that. The woods of the torches cracks quietly as possible because who knows why. And Lucius is grinning, or at least trying to, and he does not even why, but that awkward grin disappears once they reach the big doors of the throne room.

Two guards, swords on their scabbards and big lance in hand, standing next to each door. A tiger on the left and a lynx on the right side. They look at the son of the Emperor and simply opens the door, no bowing or reverence, not signal of respect.

That empire, in comparison with Et stellas, has lots of different types of 'ethics' and mores.

First thing Lucius sees when he enters to the big room is at his father. He always dresses with his Emperor's armor. Made of dark, but still shining, hard metal with the logo of Arcus fei scriptor stamped on his chest. His big and heavy sword is perfectly placed on his scabbard and his paws on his back, standing in front of the throne, waiting for his son to get closer.

Lucius walks forward, slowly, trying to breathe calmly and not make any sudden move out of rate. He stops closer, but not too, to the Emperor and makes a reverence, interlacing his paws and taking them to his back just how the Cat woman did before. "Father, you called me".

He's shivering and making his best to not crack his voice on his talking.

The dead eyes of Commodus darts his son for a long time with the only sound of the hard breathing of the Emperor around that big, or huge to say, room. 

Until he finally speaks,

"Rector told me you haven't go to the training since weeks" Commodus spills, slowly crossing his arms, making the armor make a muffed clanging sound. Lucius slowly stands back up, trying to avoid eye contact. He's scared of his father, and he must, but not in that way.

Commodus sighs "May I know the reason?". Lucius swallows nervously, looking at his father's feet.

Lucius and Commodus are different, very different, in appearance, and even the way of thinking. Lucius is a snow leopard, like his mother. While Commodus is a black panther. "Sorry. . . father. . . but the villagers have b-been complaining. . . about the crops of. . . but I'm t-trying to—".

Lucius tries to continue, but the big paw of the Black Panther is already up, making the Leopard cut his repetitive speech, because it's not the first time Lucius does the same, and it's not the first time he raises that same excuse.

Commodus darts his red glance for last time to his son, before turning around, giving him his back.

The Emperor sits down on his respective throne and rubs his eyes with a hand, showing the combination of stress and disappointment that has been filling him since days with a simple sigh. "How are you going to be Emperor, if you can't swing a sword?" He quietly growls.

Lucius stays in quiet, he doesn't want to be Emperor, but he's afraid to tell it to his father. He's, indeed, terrified of his father.

"I asked, Lucius" Commodus adds, raising his voice, starting to lose his patience. Lucius still can't answer, he's frozen in his place.

The blood of his body is cold and he can barely feel his legs. The cold feeling overruns his entire body in a frame second just as a single drop of sweat starts rolling down the side of his face, trembling for what's going to happen, a quick heartbeat that Lucius can feel on his entire body.

He wants so bad to cover his eyes with his hands, cry, or maybe yell, the feeling of the pressure is too strong inside him. He wants to run away, leave everything behind, and start a new life. How good would be to born one more time? To enjoy childhood once again, free from struggling problems. To be a simple happy kid that runs everywhere, asking for food to his mother or crying if he fells, before standing again.

Or maybe he wants to finish everything.

Everything that started, even if he didn't want to, take it to an end with a single swing of a sword against himself. He's so blind from his thoughts that he doesn't notice his father.

Lucius tries to turn around and start running with all his will to the exit of the Empire, but Commodus has already grabbed his hand.  

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(2) Locus Throni: In Latin, Throne Room.

(4) Tunic and Toga: Roman male cloth, woolen toga is often draped over the tunic

(7) Astronomia: In Latin, Astronomy. Science which studies the celestial objects, space, planets, stars, galaxies and the universe.