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Post by 𝘨𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘯 on Nov 29, 2016 13:01:28 GMT -5
The circle started to move, still in formation. Breaking it now would risk someone allied with the young woman attempting to crack through the formation, and they couldn't have that. Instead, they shifted gradually into a tortoise formation, slowly enough that they remained solid as they marched off the battefield while still turning into a formation that wasn't as fragile as the circle they had built.
The rest of the legion stayed behind to fight a battle that they'd already won. They'd come back some hours later, all of them hollering, some in celebration and others to mask the pain caused by losing someone as close as any brother would be. Nobody would know who was genuinely happy, and nobody would ask. It was a silent agreement they all stuck to.
It wasn't until they got back to camp that the formation dissolved into chaos as the century celebrated among themselves. Cassius was ready to go join them when his centurion clapped him on the shoulder. "Watch her. Somebody needs to."
Cassius nodded, holding back a heavy sigh. He nodded again, this time inclining his head out of respect, then turned to join her, rolling his eyes once they couldn't be seen.
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Post by ƤαƖƖαѕ ✧ on Nov 29, 2016 14:18:04 GMT -5
It had been dark and stuffy for many minutes, a few minutes filled with the heavy scent of the leather that was used so much in the Roman uniforms, and even sometimes the faint irony tang of blood from those who had been injured in their little standoff.
Finally, though, the tortoise formation broke off as the Romans began to celebrate among themselves, clearly proud of having won their battle.
With Elowen finally having been left in relative peace, she began to relax a little, her tense muscles becoming more relaxed. Only to tense up a little again when she saw a soldier approaching her. She presumed he was just there to guard her, considering that she already had her wrists bound.
At first they were silent - Elowen found nothing that she needed or wanted to say to him. Instead she silently and gradually - so gradual as to be unnoticeable - she began to explore her bonds with her wrists. They seemed to be made of simply rope, but it was a very strong and tightly bound rope that could only be released by a blade. Of course - the Romans didn't seem to know the meaning of the word 'loophole' - they seemed to have thought of absolutely everything. There was no aspect of the rope that was weak at all, and there was absolutely no way for her to work herself free.
So instead she spent the silence thinking about the people she had lost; she was without doubt now that almost all of her warriors had been killed in the battle, and most of the remainder had been captured. She would likely not see any of the warriors from her tribe again, and she couldn't help but worry about her father, and the people in her village - were they going to be harmed for the defiance of Elowen and the warriors?
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Post by 𝘨𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘯 on Nov 29, 2016 14:41:31 GMT -5
Cassius sat in silence. Knowing that unlike the men celebrating, he was still on duty, he sat straight and stone-faced, only casting the woman beside him glances every now and then. It was only when he saw his centurion join the others in their celebration that he relaxed, knowing that he was no longer being watched.
"You're a woman," he said bluntly, slumping down slightly. His hand still rested on the handle of his sheathed sword, a silent warning that any attempts to escape would not succeed, and that despite his less than impeccable posture, he hadn't ceased to watch her. He let his hand close gently so that it would be as simple as pulling up to unsheathe his blade, something that would take a split second.
He looked her up and down, as though trying to assess how she managed to lead men in battle. She was certainly pretty and she was built like an athlete, but she didn't look like a soldier. It confused him.
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Post by ƤαƖƖαѕ ✧ on Nov 29, 2016 14:51:02 GMT -5
Elowen glanced at the soldier as he finally began to speak, and raised one dark red eyebrow at his rather blunt statement.
"Good observation - I am a real, live woman" she countered dryly "and what of it?"
She knew exactly what he meant by it, but drawing it out of him was rather entertaining, and it allowed him to question himself before he actually said anything. But yes, she knew what he was wondering, from the way he had looked her up and down. How she could possibly be on par with a male warrior, how she could possibly lead warriors in battle.
Even as a Celt, it was not a new idea for her that women should not lead soldiers. Some men in her tribe had thought that perhaps it was a job better left to a man, and that Elowen should spend her time nursing her father rather than soldiering.
But Elowen's father had given her his blessing, and Elowen had decided that she would be helping her father more by attempting to defend the tribe than she ever would in trying to nurse his ails. And so she had began to lead the army without any loss of faith in herself to her abilities as a warrior
[OOH, ELOWEN GETTING SASSY]
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Post by 𝘨𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘯 on Nov 29, 2016 15:21:25 GMT -5
( sass him Elowen! )
Cassius looked back at her face, confused. "I mean, that's it, isn't it? You're a woman." He wasn't sure what she expected him to say. That she couldn't lead men in battle. Clearly, she could - she'd lost badly and so had her men but that she'd done it badly didn't negate the action. The question was whether she was really the best person for the job. He said as much, not caring to phrase it in a way that wasn't extremely condecending.
A cheer rose from the other men and Cassius winced. He could use some of what they were drinking, but unlike them, he still had responsibilities. He made a disgruntled sound, but otherwise he ignored them, knowing that if he turned to see them celebrate, he'd just be even more bitter that he'd been selected for this job.
"A leader should be striving towards the same standards as his men, but how could you do that when I'm willing to be that any man under your command is by far stronger than you? You may be an athlete, but you're not built like a soldier."
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Post by ƤαƖƖαѕ ✧ on Nov 29, 2016 15:24:22 GMT -5
Elowen shrugged "I might not be the best example of a female leader, but I did the best that I could. I had no training in leading an army - I only had enough training to know how to handle myself with a sword and in battle. I never intended to be a leader, only a warrior. But when my father fell ill, he had some - I admit, probably misguided - faith in me that was so strong that nobody questioned him. I guess, in the end, I believed it too.
But, to answer your question, there are many women leaders who have trained their whole lives for their roles. They might not be quite as strong as their soldiers, but they make up for it with agility in battle and knowledge in battle strategy in leading soldiers. Besides, in a time of need, our tribe needed a leader as fast as possible. My father has no sons, and I was the first choice"
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Post by ƤαƖƖαѕ ✧ on Nov 29, 2016 15:24:55 GMT -5
[sorry, mistake with my post x editing so I can get a full reply XD]
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Post by 𝘨𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘯 on Nov 29, 2016 15:34:25 GMT -5
( xD alright. let me know when you're ready for a reply! )
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Post by ƤαƖƖαѕ ✧ on Nov 29, 2016 15:34:53 GMT -5
[I've just edited it XD It's ready now x]
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Post by 𝘨𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘯 on Nov 29, 2016 15:38:43 GMT -5
( haha, okay, I'll get to work on a reply now then! )
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Post by 𝘨𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘯 on Nov 29, 2016 15:44:37 GMT -5
Cassius frowned but nodded. He had faced talented warriors who were alse women before, but his army had also beaten down any army led by a woman. He debated with himself for a moment, then decided to stick to what he knew. either way, the Roman military was clearly doing something right that everybody else were missing.
He fell silent again, sighing heavily. The celebrations were in full swing, and now that he wasn't talking any more, it was far to prevalent. How long would he be forced to sit here, minding this woman? All night? Wouldd anyone relieve him of his position? By the looks of the celebrations, the answer to that would be a resounding no.
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Post by ƤαƖƖαѕ ✧ on Nov 29, 2016 15:50:23 GMT -5
She caught the sigh and saw how miserable he looked, her gaze trailing to the celebrations happening for the rest of the soldiers.
"I'm sorry that you are missing the post-battle celebrations." she commenced at last "When my people win a battle, the celebrations are just as joyous, and I know I would hate to miss them"
But her people would probably be winning battles no more. She was going to be the last leader of her tribe pre-Roman rule, and she had ended her short period of stand-in rule like this. What a terrible way to end one's rule.
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Post by 𝘨𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘯 on Nov 29, 2016 16:27:20 GMT -5
Cassius nodded. "They're the best part of the job," he agreed, glancing over at them. "Oh well, I'll get to sleep all day. They'll have to carry me, so they'll be the ones complaining tomorrow."
He focused on this informtion, and it did a little to comfort him. The Roman army was strict, but they took care of their soldiers. If he stayed up on duty all night, they'd let him sleep during the day. And while celebrating with the rest of the legion would have been better, it was a small comfort.
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Post by ƤαƖƖαѕ ✧ on Nov 29, 2016 16:33:29 GMT -5
Elowen said nothing in return, just tucked herself further into her own body, making her look perhaps a little less proud than she had first appeared, and found herself looking at the sky - it was already turning to night, the first starts twinkling in the sky.
Her mind was occupied with the fates of her people. She was relatively safe right now, but many of the tribe's warriors lay dead, and she had no idea what could be happening in the villages. People could be being killed there already and she would have no idea. They could be sowing salt on the fields so they would bear no food come harvest time.
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Post by 𝘨𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘯 on Nov 29, 2016 17:46:22 GMT -5
Cassius could see that Elowen was thinking, and he could guess where her thoughts were headed. He was unsure of whether see wated comfort or not, not that he knew how to give it, or if he even should. He tightened his jaw, turning his gaze to his hands instead.
"Your people will be fine," he said eventually, reaching the conclusion that she had tried to comfort him so he might as well do the same. "Rome wants Britannia for it's position and land. They'll have to conform to an entirely new way of life, but I doubt that the civilians will be needlessly slaughtered when Rome could easily use them for taxes and produce."
It probably wasn't a huge comfort, knowing that instead of dying the people you cared about would live out their life forced into a foreign culture and heavy work, but he couldn't lie when she'd likely seen what the Roman Empire did to lands they conquered.
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Post by ƤαƖƖαѕ ✧ on Nov 30, 2016 2:19:28 GMT -5
Elowen was pulled out of her thoughts by the Roman's voice, and his words were at least more comforting than her greatest fears had been.
She wondered why he was comforting her, but ideas of debt and repayment were important to both cultures. Elowen understood at least they she had comforted the Roman. And that perhaps he felt that he owed her some comfort too
"Thank you for that," she murmured quietly "I already knew that, of course, but my mind had wandered to dark places"
She was grateful for his attempt to comfort her, but she did know that the comfort was small. She knew many Celts in the villages would rather die than conform to the Roman ways, but with the Warriors dead they had no choice now. Elowen, she realised, had rather effectively dug her tribe into a hole they would never be able to get out of.
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Post by 𝘨𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘯 on Nov 30, 2016 6:25:19 GMT -5
Cassius simply nodded, acknowledging her thanks but not doing anything further about them. Instead, he just looked away and kicked his legs out in front of him. It was a less advantageous position, speed-wise, but he wasn't sure how long he could handle sitting with all his weight on his legs. Especially not it this turned out to be an all night thing.
The celebrations had turned from loud hollering between all the legion's men to smaller, quieter affairs between centuries and companies. A man in his own company walked up to clap him on the shoulder, saying something about saving him some food and drink. Distracted, Cassius caught about half of it, but accepted. He needed for as much as anyone else did.
The man paused on his way out, glancing over at Elowen. "What about her? What are your orders?"
Cassius thought for a moment. Nobody had specified that she should or shouldn't eat, so he took that to mean that she'd eat as much as any captive. "Bring her a captive's ration," he said after a moment.
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Post by ƤαƖƖαѕ ✧ on Nov 30, 2016 12:31:52 GMT -5
Elowen had listened at the pause, wondering if this Roman had orders not to feed her or something. So when he said she was to have a captive's ration, she was admittedly a little relieved, though she suspected a captive's ration was almost as bad as no food. But she would have to find out.
She watched as the other Roman soldier left, and she assumed that he was going to set aside the needed amount of food for both Elowen and Cassius.
She found herself curious now, her eyes darting around her new surroundings. She could see immediate differences and also glaring similarities between a Celtic and a Roman military camp. Not that the Celtic people used military camps all that often.
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Post by 𝘨𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘯 on Nov 30, 2016 14:31:18 GMT -5
Cassius frowned, following her gaze to see what exactly she was looking for. "See anything interesting?" he asked, somewhat dryly, looking back at her. He had no way of knowing what she was looking at, or if it was just as simple as searching for an escape. Either way, he was curious.
He looked around the camp again, searching for any information or clues as to what was interesting, but found nothing. It looked just like any other military camp he'd been in, if a little messy now that it had been taken over by celebrations.
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Post by ƤαƖƖαѕ ✧ on Nov 30, 2016 14:37:03 GMT -5
Elowen shrugged "I was just curious. Our cultures just do things very differently, that is all. We Celts don't fight overseas, we just fight with other local tribes, so we don't need to use anything like military camps. We don't have the same polished battle strategies as you do, either, because we don't fight to take new lands like you do. We don't have an empire, and we don't want one. So everything about your military is different to mine."
It was true - the Celts were ver happy where they were, thank you, and the tribe boundaries were pretty much set. The Celts weren't expansionist people, and usually only went into battle to fight over perhaps a religious dispute with another tribe. They simply wanted to live in peace. And now the Romans had come and destroyed the life they had been trying to make for themselves.
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Post by 𝘨𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘯 on Nov 30, 2016 15:00:18 GMT -5
Cassius pondered this. It made sense, he supposed, but it seemed strange to him. He understood that other cultures did this differently, of course he did, he'd seen too many to be oblivious to that face. He could also understand not having a drive for an empire. It wasn't as though he himself was going around dreaming about expanding the Roman empire. But it was weird, hearing it said out loud.
"Hmm." He turned back around, turning his back to the rest of the legion. Night was falling quickly now, which had both positive and negative effects. On the one hand, it meant that some of the soldiers were leaving the forum to gamble in their tents. On the other, it meant that things were getting darker, which made monitoring someone far more difficult.
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Post by ƤαƖƖαѕ ✧ on Nov 30, 2016 15:07:37 GMT -5
Elowen wasn't making it difficult; she knew it would be far too difficult to attempt an escape. It was a camp of many armed soldiers, and she had no true bearing of where she was; she had walked here from the battlefield in the total darkness of the Testudo the Roman soldiers had made. She couldn't navigate her way back to her village, and if she did, for what? To be caught again? To lead the soldiers straight to her father? No. Elowen wasn't stupid.
So she simply arranged herself so that she was facing the fire that was in the nearby centre of the camp. She did not, apparently, need to be nearly as close as the Roman soldiers to be warm - growing up in the harsh British climate had done the Celtic woman some favours when it came to harsh conditions and cold temperatures.
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Post by 𝘨𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘯 on Nov 30, 2016 15:10:22 GMT -5
( I feel like this scene is nearing it's end, just because it's achieved whatever it potential it had. any ideas on who to do next? )
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Post by ƤαƖƖαѕ ✧ on Nov 30, 2016 15:12:24 GMT -5
[True. IDK, they probably fall asleep, but IDK what should happen the next day. I feel like something huge should happen, I just have no idea what XD]
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Post by 𝘨𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘯 on Nov 30, 2016 15:20:19 GMT -5
( Cass will have been up all night, so he'll probably sleep during the morning at least. but as for what will actually happen, I honestly have no idea. )
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Post by ƤαƖƖαѕ ✧ on Nov 30, 2016 15:23:06 GMT -5
[Right, yeah….hmm… okay. We could have an ambush by the Celts on the Roman legion as they're marching? It'll be a big test for the two of them, and it'll be interesting to see their reactions to the event. I don't know]
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Post by 𝘨𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘯 on Nov 30, 2016 15:24:17 GMT -5
( we could definitley work with that! it could be really interesting to see! )
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Post by ƤαƖƖαѕ ✧ on Nov 30, 2016 15:26:49 GMT -5
[Okay, I'm glad you like it! So how should we start it?]
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Post by 𝘨𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘯 on Nov 30, 2016 15:29:15 GMT -5
( maybe we could start with Cass joining the march? since I controlled the Roman army, it only makes sense for you to take the Celtic side, and that way we can still set the scene. )
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Post by ƤαƖƖαѕ ✧ on Nov 30, 2016 15:31:19 GMT -5
[Okay, want me to start, or do you want to start?]
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