Yes this is very late, yes I'm a horrid human being, yes I plan to post with more regularity. But lets be honest, I probably wont.

Later that night, I couldn't get Tiberius out of my head, I knew from my dreams that this how it went before. A chance meeting with Nasir, learning a name given to him as a slave, days of shared gazes, lingering touches, watching from the sidelines as Nasir comes to chose freedom, and takes up the name his family had given him at birth. Later parting with Nasir who went to the mines in hopes of saving Naevia, a quest which almost cost him life. All that had happened finally leading into the first time my past self kissed Nasir.

But that had been a past life, if it had ever been true at all.

So far many things seemed to repeat, Duro getting hurt, Spartacus championing movements of freedom and equality, Crixus' lost lover, and Spartacus wife. Even little things; like the way 'Tiberius' had given me his name. It was all so similar, so painfully reminiscent of my dreams.

I was going to go mad, I could feel it. The idea that the Tiberius I'd just met could be the Nasir I used to know. It was overwhelming, suffocating, and I wanted it more than anything. I wanted to hold the man I dreamed of, I wanted to live with him in a way that the me of the past had only dreamed of.

I finally noticed that I'd been just standing beside my car for sometime now, keys in hand, daydreaming, when I should have been on my way to meet up with Spartacus, Crixus, Rhaskos, Varro, and Duro. I'd gotten off work at 7:30 and been standing like a fucking idiot for at least 20 minute if the clock on my cell was anything to go by. Duro had even texted me asking if I was still meeting everyone at the bar.

Of course he'd start wondering, I was less than fifteen minute drive from the place, even with it being on the edge of downtown.

Cursing I threw myself into my car, shooting Duro a quick bullshit text about helping Sibyl with heavy boxes and drove off for the bar.

~~o~~

For me stepping into 'The Drunk Corner', was like stepping into the past. The place being more of an Inn than a bar, it was owned by Gannicus, who bought it shortly after his first time competing in "Modern Gladiator" and the man kept the place open from sunset to sunrise. It was a very old fashioned Tavern people drinking, dancing, pawing each other, and Gannicus encouraging people to take to upstairs room for the night. The owner himself was never completely sober and would often take to singing loud rounds of his favorite drinking songs.

The Drunk Corner was as busy as ever, which is to say not that busy, normally there were only a few dozen people, tonight there was a rough count of 20. Spartacus, Crixus, and Varro were bent together in convertation. Rhaskos and Duro were competing for the attentions of a pretty blonde I'd never seen before.

She looked just like the kind of girls that would party here, pretty things looking for men to warm their beds and care for them.

I waved to Mira at the bar, silently asking for a drink, before taking a seat between Varro and Duro. Greetings made, Mira came with my beer, and I watched Gannicus draw a group of five men into a very off key singing of "My Cock Rages On".

Yes, this place felt a lot like my past life, I thought turning to listen to Spartacus' latest campaign. This one was close to both his and Crixus' hearts: women's right, dealing mostly with rape and the abduction of women.

Both of them knew women who suffered such treatments, Crixus' own girlfriend had been taken on her way to meet him one night and had yet to be seen again. Spartacus had torn a whole city apart when his wife, Sura, had gone missing only to find her months later abused and half dead.

I turned back to Duro and the blonde girl now sitting on his lap talking animatedly with Rhaskos, she flipped she hair back and something clicked; I knew her. Or at least I had a lifetime ago, Chadara, she had once upon a time been Nasir's friend. Another Slave in the same villa as Nasir, she'd been Rhaskos' girl then, would she be again?

"So you won't be trying for American Ninja Warrior like Duro?" She was saying, "What a shame!" With a teasing laugh she turned back to my brother. "It must be hard work, training for such an event."

Duro laughed flashing me an excited grin. "Oh it's hard enough but Agron, my brother here, he trains with me. Can I count on you to cheer me on?"

Chadara wasn't at all shy in her affections, but then she had never seemed the type.

"I never got your name," I said, leaning forward to offer my hand. "I am Agron, this little shit's big brother."

"I'm Chadara," she replied shaking my hand.

First meeting Tiberius at the 'Minerva's' and now here was Chadara at 'The Drunk Corner', a love I had thought to be little more than a dream was suddenly laid out on the path before me if only I was willing to walk it.

"I don't recall having seen you about before, are you new to town?"

Chadara flashed me a brilliant smile and Duro gave me a decidedly 'Back-off' look. "Yes I just moved here,"

I didn't really care at all for Chadara, apart from any connection she might have to Nasir, or make with my brother. I had to know if she had come here with Nasir, or Tiberius as it would seem he was back to calling himself by that name. And if she had come with him how far had he been from me all this time? Across town? Country? World? "Was it very far, where you moved from?"

"Hmm, not too far, just one of the small Vancouver Island towns It's not like we changed countries! But far enough I suppose."

"Far enough indeed, why the change? Everyone says BC is beautiful." So she at least had been on the other side of the mountains, had Nasir been with her?

Chadara glanced over her shoulder, giving my brother a wicked grin. "That would be because of my best friend Tiberius, for some reason or another he's wanted to move here, to Calgary, for a while." Something darkened her eyes, but only for a moment. "So, when opportunity presented itself he moved and I came with him. We've only been here a few months, maybe you'll be kind enough to show me around?"

I grinned back, So Tiberius had come with her, that was why I had never seen him before. "Nah, I work to much, besides, Duro knows all the good spots, if you ask nice enough."

Duro, who had been getting annoyed with me for distracting Chadara, lit right back up. Promises of all the great places he'd show her spilling out.

Varro had left while I had been picking Chadara's brains, Spartacus had gone soon after dragging a drunken and depressed Crixus with him. I helped Spartacus get Crixus into his car and decided to leave myself. I'd only had the one beer, and it had been a while already, I was definitely sober enough to drive.