UPDATE: Vulpes got his own blog for those of you interested. Just go there and chill. Caesar-Vulpes-Inculta.
A/N: This chapter deals with rape and abuse. It's not very important to the plot, so if you have some bad experiences with that sort of stuff, you don't need to read anything after the horizontal line.
Chapter 6: Red Dread Redemption
"Sir, the railways have been cleared around the wasteland and they are currently being repaired. We have several Vegas citizens that are willing to operate the monorails for payment." A young recruit stood nervously before me.
"Excellent. Soon enough, travel will be very simple and available to the public for a small fee. This is... a very good sign. They're starting to trust us enough to work willingly." My fingers tapped together in my lap.
"We should be able to leave for Flagstaff pretty soon, huh? I wonder how many jobs the railways will make." Sennia chimed.
I glanced over at her. She was wearing a new tunic and her hair was braided and tied up. White with a gold sash. She looked like an ancient statue.
"A few hundred at most. We'll need railway maintenance, operators, and staff. The railways spread for thousands of miles in this region. Ambassadorial duties will be made much easier. Trade too."
"Everything seems to be going according to plan, sir." The recruit added.
"Anything to report? How are the men handling the new rules?" I lifted my finger to my jaw.
The recruit shifted his feet. "Well, some of the others have been ignoring them. I've walked in on several counts of abuse. And one rape."
I slouched in the throne with a groan. "I want names. I want them here right now."
Sennia's knuckles whitened. "What are you going to do to them?"
"You'll agree with it." I glared at the recruit. "Names. Now."
He coughed nervously. "Philippus Senecio, he was the rapist. Stadius Nerva, Cario Pullus, Philto Gallus, and Olympus Epolonius have several counts of abuse."
"Bring them here. And the women they have harmed." I sat up straighter. "This will be your first order."
"Yes, sir. Right away, sir." The recruit saluted and marched out the tent quickly.
Sennia and I sat in silence, waiting for the requested individuals to arrive. A small, frail girl with several cuts and bruises shuffled in first. She held herself tightly.
"I'm sorry, Caesar Vulpes. I never meant to take time out of your schedule. I'm sor-"
I held my hand up and smiled. "You are not here to apologize. You are here to get an apology. Who has hurt you?"
Her brows knit together in confusion. "I'm sorry, I don't understand."
"Which one of my men has hurt you?"
"Uh, I think his name was Olympus. There's no need to apologize. I deserved it."
Sennia stepped up and took her hands. The young girl flinched from the contact. "You didn't deserve this. You are going to get redemption. Do not apologize for what has been done to you."
The girl opened her mouth to speak, but another former slave entered the tent. Her head was held up high, smooth skin contrasting with the hand print wrapping around her throat.
"Good day, ma'am. You are not in trouble. Who has harmed you?"
"Cario." The woman bit out.
"I am sorry to hear that you have been hurt." I offered my hand to her and she shook it.
"That bastard will get his." She snapped.
A wide grin broke out on my face. "Yes. Yes he will."
Sennia gave me a suspicious look. "You don't have to deal with him after this."
The five recruits filed into the tent obediently. Cairo and Olympus paled at the sight of the women. All the men lined up in front of me and glared at Sennia and the two women.
"We're just waiting for the rest of the women to get here." I smiled at the seething men.
"Why are we here?" Philippus barked.
"If you're smart, you will shut the hell up and wait to be spoken to. Next one of you to speak out of turn is crucified."
They glared in silence and Sennia smiled happily. "Here they are."
Six more women entered the tent discreetly. Most had marks to some degree. All but one. The one that was void of bruises and cuts hid behind her hair. Her injuries were invisible.
"Ah, welcome ladies. Please, join me by my side."
The women steered clear of the men and stood around the throne. Several guards had entered behind them and stood at arms distance behind each of the accused men. It was now that the men had realized how much they fucked up.
"You are all here for one reason: the first rule has been broken." I clasped my hands together and held my finger to my lips. "Men, shut the hell up if you know what's good for you and don't move an inch. Women," I looked over to the group of girls surrounding me, "would you do me a favor? Step up, say your name, and tell us who has hurt you. You can tell us how they hurt you if you please."
The first girl stepped up. "My name is Ellie. Olympus slapped me and dragged me across the tent because I spilled coffee on his sandals."
Olympus shifted his eyes between me and Ellie. His face held a mixture of anger and fear.
The woman from before stepped up in front of Cairo. "My name is Shannon and this piece of shit strangled me because the ink in the pen I handed him was the wrong color."
Cairo held his glare at her but kept quiet. The next girl stepped up confidently.
"My name is Arris and Olympus wrenched my arm out of socket because I spoke 'out of turn.'"
"My name is Daisy and Olympus threw me against a wall because I didn't want to have sex with him." A girl to my left spoke up. Olympus scoffed.
"We're halfway through with this, gentlemen, and it's not looking well for you. Next." I called out.
"My name is Kinsey and Stadius broke a bottle on my head and held the glass to my throat because I wouldn't stop crying."
Stadius opened his mouth to object, then thought otherwise and closed it again. He actually looked sorry for what he had done but there was no excuse for him.
"My name is Lexie and Philto wanted me to marry him. I told him I didn't want to and he choked me."
"I'm Lacy, Lexie's sister. Philto tied me to a post so I couldn't tell you not to marry him."
Lacy and Lexie exchanged sorrowful glances. Philto avoided their faces.
I looked over to the girl that hid behind her hair. "Last one. What is your name?"
She shook her head and her hair swayed in front of her. She bit her lip and stared at the ground. I leaned in closer so only she could hear me. "I know what he has done to you, sweetie. You don't need to tell us what he has done. We both know and no one else needs to know if you don't want them to. Just tell us your name and his. We need to make sure he gets what he deserves."
She glanced at me with uncertainty. She held herself tighter and I could see a faint tear stream down her cheek. I tapped her elbow as gently as possible.
"We can go in the back room with Sennia and talk if you need." I whispered.
She nodded hesitantly. I stood up and waved Sennia over. I told her what was going on and ordered the guards to keep a close eye on the men. The three of us disappeared into the back room. Sennia sat on the bed gracefully and patted the mattress next to her. The girl sat down quietly.
"I can leave any time you want me to. Don't feel like you can't tell me if I make you uncomfortable." I said, sitting down in a chair against the tent flap..
Sennia brushed the girl's hair out of her face and lifted her chin up. "What's your name?"
The girl bit her lip again. "Tandi."
"That's a pretty name. Did you inherit it?" Sennia smiled.
"It was my great grandmother's name. She came from California."
Sennia placed a gentle hand on Tandi's shoulder. "She sounds like she had a well-lived life. I'd like to hear some stories later. For right now, we should talk about what Philippus has done."
Tandi seemed to shrink under Sennia's gaze and looked over at me. I took the hint.
I stood up from the chair. "You don't need to say it. I'll leave you two alone. I don't want to make things weird."
Tandi thanked me and I closed the curtain to give them some privacy. I sat back in the throne and all eyes were on me.
"We can all wait. Philippus, you really seemed to have fucked yourself over. I hope you know you really hurt her, but she isn't broken. She isn't giving you the satisfaction of that." I grabbed a bottle of water from the table and took a sip. "And remember, know your place."
Philippus glared at me in his unbridled rage. He was shaking and a vein had protruded from his forehead. He was deliciously pissed.
I crossed my legs and leaned back with a smirk. The woman had taken to glaring at the men back, taking advantage of the order of silence.
After several tense minutes, Tandi and Sennia had exited the room. Tandi held her chin up and her eyes were hardened. Sennia ghosted a smile.
"My name is Tandi and Philippus thought he could control me. He was very wrong." Tandi's voice reverberated throughout the room.
"Thank you, Tandi. Now that everyone has been named and we've gotten to know each other, your punishments will be announced."
Everyone in the room looked around and shifted from foot to foot in anticipation.
"Ladies, you will be given the choice of punishment and whether or not you would like to fulfill that punishment yourself."
Philippus snorted. "This is bullshit. You are no Caesar and you certainly are no leader. You think women should be allowed to decide what should happen to us let alone speak?"
My brows shot up. "You done? Good, because you weren't coming out of this alive anyhow. Now it will just be slower," I said with a faint grin.
He spat on my chest and lunged for me. The guards reached out but my hand was already on his throat and he was headed for the ground, with me on top. He clawed at my arms as my fingers closed tighter around him. The guards pulled me off and held him down. I stood up and straightened my tunic.
"Excuse my moment of barbarism. As I was saying, you all may choose which way these men are punished, how far the punishment will go, and if you want to do it yourself. Hell, you can kill them if you want. You are given all the control."
The woman smirked at the men who had wronged them. The girl that had appeared the youngest had straight up beamed at me. Sennia rested her hand on my arm.
"Alright, let's make our way to the arena. This will be public. We need to get the message across."