Chapter 20: The Letter or The Law

Morning broke none too early on the capital city. Both Aislinn and Commodus had slept very soundly. Their confused emotions had been quieted for the evening by one another's shocking behaviour. Commodus went out to the courtyard to practice with the recruits. At the other end of the practice field, was Aislinn. She was facing off against five new soldiers and doing very well. He smiled and simply watched. Aislinn moved like a cat, precise and graceful. Her movements became swift and dizzying. He sat down and watched, completely entranced. The men around him said nothing and watched as well. One of the soldiers that was sparring with her made an unfair hit, knocking her to the ground. The men around her laughed. The man stood over her and knelt, on top of her. Commodus growled low like a wild animal. The man leaned down.

Aislinn looked up at him.

"I win, Celtess. Now give me what you gave the emperor last night.", he said suggestively.

Commodus jumped to his feet and raced over to kill the man. Before he reached the circle, Aislinn had kicked up into his manhood and thrown him off. She grabbed her staff and hit him in the back of the head. He leaned forward, groaning. She bashed him in the face with the staff sending him flying backwards. He landed right in front of Commodus. The very angry young Caesar put his foot on top of the recruit and leaned down.

"I believe you just assaulted my property, soldier. Arrest him.", he ordered. The men snapped to attention, taking hold of the battered recruit and hauling him away. Commodus turned to Aislinn. She looked at him emotionlessly and turned away. She began walking towards her quarters. Commodus raced after her. "Aislinn! Aislinn!"

She whirled around. "What!?", she said angrily.

"Did he hurt you?", he asked taking hold of her shoulders.

"No!", Aislinn shouted throwing his hands off of her. "I am quite able to protect myself, Caesar! I've been doing it since before I arrived in the capital!"

He looked down at her in amazement. He hadn't thought about this before. Aislinn had been through a terrible journey just getting to the city. He could only imagine what kind of evils the men had put her through. Then again, he could only imagine the kind of retaliation they had endured from Aislinn. He sighed and bowed his head a little.

"I wish I could take all of that back, Aislinn. I'm sorry. Things are better, now. It doesn't change the past, but it will shape the future. I swear I will let no one harm you from now on.", he said quietly. Aislinn bowed her head in agreement and turned away. Aislinn had still had her innocence when they had met, so the men had not been able to take full advantage of her. She was lucky in that regard, at least. He wished he hadn't been so prideful and stupid in letting this happen to her. At the same time, he wished he had ordered her to be brought to him long ago. He stopped and thought for a moment. What exactly had Aislinn been put through? Now that he remembered it, she was not wearing what he had been told was traditional Celtic clothing when he had seen her in the cell. He had to interrogate the men responsible for her 'retrieval'. He went over to Quintus.

"Sire?", Quintus said before the ruler could speak.

"Quintus, I want the men responsible for Aislinn on the way here to the capital, imprisoned. Let me know when that has been done.", he said. Quintus nodded. There had been five centurians sent out after Aislinn, three had already been executed with Falco. All five of the guards that had been sent had been in Falco's service to one degree or another, but Maltus (the man who had just assualted Aislinn) and Deimas (a man who was about to be assualted by the emperor) still remained alive. Quintus had always thought those men to be harsh and a little over the edge, even for Roman soldiers, but had remained silent. Now it was time to give full details to the emperor.

Commodus went into the prisons later that evening when he had been informed that the two remaining soldiers were being held for questioning. He walked into the cell where both men were chained and glared at both of them. He walked up to Maltus. Aislinn's words this morning repeated in his head. She had refused to see him for the rest of the day. He reared back and punched Maltus as hard as he could in the face. Maltus growled.

"Soldiers, Quintus tells me that you and three of your compatriots who recently met their demise, were responsible for the retreival of my slave. Is that true?", he asked.

Maltus showed no fear. He knew that he was going to be executed, such was the way of Rome. Deimas looked a little more reserved. Maltus laughed.

"Yes, highness. We fetched the little nymph.", Maltus said smiling. Commodus threw another punch, this time into his midsection. Maltus smiled brighter.

"Define nymph, soldier.", he ordered.

"The little dear was quite easy for us to subdue, sire. You would have been most impressed. She fought quite madly against all five of us dragging her from the river as she bathed.", he said scornfully. Deimas felt very afraid now. He made no sound and looked away as the emperor hit Maltus again. He turned to Deimas.

"Is that true, soldier? Or should we ask her for the truth?"

"It is true, highness.", Deimas said. Commodus stayed in front of Maltus, but looked hatefully at Deimas. "Sire, she was just a woman, just a heathen; we didn't think you would grow desirous of her."

Commodus shouted angrily and hit Deimas. He was letting out every restrained bit of anger and sadness on these two men. "She was more than that! Even I could tell that, that is exactly why I did not order her destroyed when she arrived!"

"But sire, even you treated her like nothing more than an animal upon arriving.", Maltus reminded coldly. "Although I've never known of a good farmer to break the leg of an unruly horse." Maltus's head bashed into the wall with the emperor's fist on the other side.

"You will be silent before me unless told otherwise!", Commodus raged. He took a few steps away and tried to gather his thoughts. It was no wonder Aislinn had reserved feelings for him. She had been kidnapped, dragged away naked and unarmed, and manhandled by five of the most disgusting soldiers Rome had to offer. He hit the wall behind him with force that would have killed one of the two men. There was no way Aislinn would consent to marrying him, this kind of wrong against a mere woman was unfogivable; but Aislinn was also royalty. He turned back to the men. Quintus approached him silently and bowed.

"Highness.", he said.

"What is it, Quintus?", he asked quickly.

"Aislinn asked me to give this to you.", he said handing him a small roll of parchment. Commodus took it. It was too dark in the cell to read it. He looked up at Quintus. Quintus knew well the consequences of delivering bad news, so it had become custom to read the outlay of a letter before delivering it. He smiled. "It is not a cruel letter, sire. It is good news."

Commodus felt the sky lift from his shoulders. Aislinn didn't hate him. She had told him this. Why would she have prayed for someone she hated or saved a true foe from posion? Even after everything that she had been put through, Aislinn had real love for him. It was all he had ever wanted and he had done nothing to merit it this time. He smiled and turned to leave. "Execute them before a firing squad. They should die as servants to the empire.", he said. Quintus nodded.

"Going back to your whore for the day, highness?", Maltus said after hearing the order. If nothing else, he was going to make the emperor as furious as possible before he died. "Your father knew that you would fall prey to the first bossom that showed you tenderness, real or otherwise. It was his dying fear that you would bring the empire to ruin for the sake of your own lusts; lust of blood in the arena, and the insatiable lust of a woman!"

Commodus turned around furiously and raced up to Maltus. He raised a hand to strike him, but hesitated. He looked deeply into the man's eyes. "You, you knew my father's last thoughts?", he asked with his voice cracking from rage and sudden sorrow.

"Of course, highness. Wasn't it you who said to Falco that the empire would have been better without the old man governing it with arcane philosphies and unnecessary drivelings?", Maltus said with a cold stare. "Falco believed you would have done well for the empire as Caesar. I shall have to tell him in Hades that he was wrong."

Commodus screamed in anger and hit the man furiously. He stopped after a moment. Maltus's face was covered with blood and a cruel stare. "Falco gave the order to have my father throttled?", he asked still shaking. Maltus smiled as best he could. "And you obeyed him!? You killed the emperor!?"

Quintus heard his emperor's last shout and ran back to see what was going on. Commodus had flown into a rage and would surely have killed Maltus with his bare hands. Quintus knew this would be a severely bad idea. He grabbed Commodus around the waist and pulled him away. "Highness! His fate is already sealed! Do not become him, destroy him."

Commodus looked up at him and nodded. He turned around one more time. "Tell me, Maltus, who was it that carried out the sentence against Maximus's family? Is that more of your handiwork gone askew or were you in the clear on that occasion?"

Maltus laughed through his very swollen lips. "The highlands are far to the north, sire. The Spaniard's home was on the way.", he said with a smile. Commodus again rushed up to him, as if to pummel him again. Maltus winced, this time, still feeling the incomplete impact of Caesar's wrath.

"Maltus. You have sinned against Aislinn of the Boadicae. A loyal servant to me, and royalty among her people. But you are quite lucky that she seems to be willing to forgive anyone that would call out for her blood. The way of the Christians is truly becoming a puzzlement to me.", he said as he turned to walk away. "But...Maximus. Maximus is no Christian. And he was also a loyal servant to the empire. You wronged him on just as many counts. Perhaps he would like to hear your confession before you traverse the river styx." Maltus looked up at him, terrified. Maximus would not end his life quickly in rage like Commodus would have. Maximus would make him feel all the pain that he and his previous family had. "Yes, I think that is a wonderful idea. Quintus, send for senator Maximus. he needs to record this testimony for the archives."

Qunitus saluted and nodded as he watched the emperor leave.

Commodus went into his private chambers and requested that the senate allow him a personal day. He also sent word to Gracchus that he needed to speak with him privately. He sat down at his desk and carefully pulled out the scroll. He looked at the seal on it. It was the same as Aislinn's medallion. Her medallion! He still had it! After he had finished with this, he needed to return it to her with the assurance that those who had initially wronged her were paying dearly for their crimes. He held up the scroll and breathed deeply. He coughed. The parchment did not smell sweet like Aislinn, it smelled like horse and sheep. This had not come from Aislinn's hand directly. He opened it carefully. The letter was quite long compared to what he had hoped it would contain. He sighed and began to read.

"Caesar Commodus Antonius Aurelius of Rome,

I send warmth and gratitude to you for the safety of my daughter. Aislinn sent word with our youngest son that she was in good health and being kept well by you. She also told many other things that need to be addressed. As ruler of the highlands, I must warn you that I feel persuaded to be less than cordial to anyone that has captured the heart, let alone the physical person, of our heiress and only daughter. However, her words through Tormod have assuaged my anger long enough to give you this advice if you truly reciprocate the tenderness she has for you. There are many forms of death, Caesar. Many more forms of respect. But there are two greatest virtues that tie for their place at the top of our list of necessary attributes for our daughter's companions; and they are almost equal in their descriptions. The first is love, Commodus. The second is courage. While I am very certain that you are already well in the know about the courage displayed on the battle fields and in the arena, I would like to shed some light on the many other forms of it that you yourself may have already unwittingly displayed. A man first shows courage in assuming the responisibilities of his family. The second form of courage is facing the enemy in person. I, myself, would not have chosen to abduct the enemy and unjustly force them into captivity in my homeland, but to each his own. The third form of courage is accepting responsibility for the wrongs one has committed and attempting to make it right. I am told that a severe wound was inflicted on my daughter, but the nature of it was not told. I also understand that you tended the wound and prayed the help of the gods for her healing. In that manner, you showed courage in the form of mercy. Then, to be courageous, one must call his enemy by name. They must remove the respect surrounding any titles and place their opposition on an equal level. I understand that it was after this incident that you began calling my daughter by her name. I am a little agitated that her name was revealed to you, but I also know that Aislinn never has, and never will fear a man simply because of his position in power. You brought Aislinn before your senate, another act of courage. When a man is willing to display openly his thoughts and ideas, he is brave indeed. Aislinn tells me that you have refused to take advantage of her, a great form of courage. Tormod told me that you listened to the testimony of a condemned man and allowed him to prove his innocence. A very great form of courage. You laughed before Aislinn as Bran the Blessed before his foes. That was very courageous. You allowed Aislinn to celebrate Beltane. I understand that Rome has no such custom, so this was indefinitely an act of courage on your behalf. You listened to her tears as she told you what she feared and hated. I have in the past allowed my enemies to do so. You ignored the tenderness for Aislinn to complete the order of her being displayed in the arena with a champion. While this enraged me to hear, I understand that you did so to appease the senate and had planned all along to never allow any harm to come to her. You allowed your heart to be swayed by her, but not to be changed from its identity. You proposed marraige. I am pleased to hear from my son that she refused. Word spreads quickly by bird and mouth from servants to guards, to all those in the highlands. I have known of all of your actions even in part since Aislinn arrived in the capital. I have deliberately refused to send soldiers to retrieve her, by her request. I am exceedingly glad that I decided against it in that you most recently fended off a tiger from killing her. Make no mistake, Commodus, you have not won my heart; but you have won hers. I implore you to give her free passage back to her home before the end battle in Samhain. She will not lose, and you will not sway her to wed you. There are indeed many forms of courage you have explored, Caesar, but there is one left to go. You must do what is right in the interests of all. That is the greatest form of courage and love that there is. Keep my daughter safe and warm in her quarters. I will expect word from her with your seal within a month. Strength and wisdom be with you.

In the name of our clan,

Boadicae'

Commodus closed the parchment. He sighed heavily. He needed Gracchus's advice desperately. He couldn't just send Aislinn away. The senate and the military would not allow it. As powerful as he was being emperor, he still had to answer to the people. He couldn't fight her, he couldn't kill her. Something else had to be done. 'You have to die.', his mind told him. 'There is no other way.' He shuddered at this. There had to be a right way to do this. He had a little over four months to research it. Rome wasn't built in a day, and his decision should not be made rashly either. He left his chambers and went to go and find Gracchus. The two had agreed to meet late in the evening, so it was getting close to time for the old man to be arriving. Commodus hoped that his words would be a little kinder and more plain than the letter.