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Post by 𝘨𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘯 on Dec 4, 2016 15:19:19 GMT -5
( glad to know I'm not alone! )
Cassius saw this as the end of this conversation, and he was silently relieved. He really didn't want to go any further into it, he saw nothing in that but an argument which would lead to nothing.
He was just about to change the subject when a call announced that dinner was ready. Cassius glanced back at Elowen, then started walking, gesturing for her to follow. Dinner was no exciting affair, they needed to eat food that would keep on the road which meant salted meats and grains. The exception were the nights after a win in battle, when they were able to eat the food of the army they'd beaten. Last night had been a night like that, today was not. Still, not having eaten for many hours, Cassius wasn't complaining.
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Post by ƤαƖƖαѕ ✧ on Dec 4, 2016 15:33:13 GMT -5
Elowen followed, looking forward for a chance to ease her own hunger. Elowen, too, hadn't eaten for hours, and had travelled on a captive's ration. The captive's serving was small, but Elowen suspected that it was nothing she couldn't manage on once she got used to it. As of yet, she was certainly not used to it, and her stomach would probably still complain for a couple of days until it settled down to these new portion sizes and got used to them.
So she followed Cassius, certainly not reluctantly, into the camp. The sooner she could eat the better, she thought.
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Post by 𝘨𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘯 on Dec 4, 2016 15:39:37 GMT -5
For the entire legion to be in one line would be ridiculous. They'd lost men in the recent battle, certainly, but not enough for it to even dent their impressive numbers. As such, two or three centuries grouped together and ate separately, with their own line-up. Anything else would take hours. Cassius knew his way to his own well, for the order they lined up in remained the same no matter where they were, and so he lead Elowen with him.
He knew the smell of the food well, and while it wasn't appetising, it wasn't stomach-churning either. It wasn't a feast - and he'd been to several - but the food served it's purpose and was filling enough to last a day.
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Post by ƤαƖƖαѕ ✧ on Dec 4, 2016 15:55:27 GMT -5
A couple of soldiers came up after Cassius and Elowen, and caught sight of the Celtic girl
"Huh, they're feeding dogs human food now?" One joked to the other, but it was loud enough for Elowen to hear and she went red with rage for a moment, her pale skin giving away her anger, though she managed to control her emotions and she took a deep breath in, allowing the colour to drain out of her skin, but not before the soldiers noticed it
"What's the matter, barbarian. Did we offend you?" they asked mockingly "Oh, what a shame."
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Post by 𝘨𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘯 on Dec 4, 2016 16:19:23 GMT -5
Cassius ground his teeth. He didn't like these insults, if they would even be called that, for some reason. He turned to look at them, raising an eyebrow.
"You know," he mused, "Your insults aren't too creative today. I'm pretty sure you used those exact ones when we had that Gaul with us. Remember? You've got to step up your game, there are many more creative ways to offend someone than by calling them a dog, I assure you."
He really wasn't sure why he was doing this. He wasn't directly defending Elowen, but he was drawing the attention away from her and onto these two men. Besides, nothing he was saying was a lie. Still, that didn't excuse his behaviour.
"For example," he continued, casually, like he was conversing about the weather. "You could bring her leadership abilities into questions, mock her for losing the battle. I did that yesterday. Or you could insult her culture and insinuate that the reason the Empire is able to claim so much land here is because her people roll over at anyone's command simply because they're too stupid to think to take things for themselves. I did that just now. Or how about this one," he turned to Elowen, tilting his head ever so slightly. "It took twice as many men to restrain a ten year old back in Gaul as it did to get you. What does that say about you, do you think?"
To be fair, these insults weren't too creative either. In fact, they were dry; anyone could come up with them. But they were more personal than 'dog' or 'barbarian' which would make them sting more, and hopefully look better to these soldiers.
He turned back to the men, a curious look on his face. "Your turn. Let's see what you've got."
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Post by ƤαƖƖαѕ ✧ on Dec 4, 2016 16:36:07 GMT -5
Elowen barely reacted at Cassius' insult, appreciating that he had made it into a game, making the situation considerably more manageable.
The flush of anger now had died down and only remained at her throat, turning her collarbone pink. That too would fade soon as the last of her anger died down.
His insult was personal, to be sure, but Elowen kept calm, knowing that he was actually doing her a favour, shifting the attention like this. He meant them, he had no doubt, but at least this way she could choose to react to his insults.
She was now calm e mouth to look at the soldiers, expecting them to give their own insults. But the two men, clearly embarassed that they hadn't thought of better insults and possibly that they couldn't think of any decent ones at that moment, turned back to whatever topic of conversation they had been discussing before insulting Elowen.
Elowen glanced at Cassius "I don't know whether to thank you or be angry with you"
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Post by 𝘨𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘯 on Dec 4, 2016 16:47:54 GMT -5
Cassius was almost disappointed that they didn't try. He would have enjoyed critiquing their lacklustre insults, no doubt about it, but they hadn't given him a chance. "No? Shame."
He turned back to Elowen, a small, smug smile playing on his lips. "You could try both," he suggested. He took a step forward as the line shifted. He was pleased with himself, and he wasn't bothering with attempts to hide it. They would be in vain and a waste of energy anyway.
"It was fun," he commented, mostly to himself. "I've got to do that more often."
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Post by ƤαƖƖαѕ ✧ on Dec 4, 2016 17:05:10 GMT -5
"I don't have the energy for both" Elowen replied "So I'll compromise and settle for neither."
When he said that he'd had fun, Elowen replied "I'm glad it was fun. Yes, by all means, be insulting more often. I'm sure everyone would appreciate that"
Okay, so maybe she was being a bit sarcastic. Fine, a lot sarcastic. But damn it, Elowen had been through a andot a she deserved a break.
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Post by 𝘨𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘯 on Dec 4, 2016 17:32:52 GMT -5
Cassius wasn't sure she'd settled for neither, she seemed more angry than not, not that he blamed her. He hadn't exactly gone easy on her.
"Mmm," he agreed. "I think they would. With a little practise I could actually become good at it. That would make things even more entertaining."
To be fair, the need for an apology was cancelled out by the help he had offered, at least in Cassius' eyes. He didn't feel bad, although maybe he should. The things that had previously been hidden behind civil questions and innocent observing had just been made obvious. There was no reading what he'd said as positive.
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Post by ƤαƖƖαѕ ✧ on Dec 5, 2016 2:00:27 GMT -5
(Sorry about typos by the way. I'm on a tablet and sometimes it decides to autocorrect and sometimes not)
"I'm sure it would," Elowen replied, a little distracted as she looked around at the situation.
She glanced at the slowly advancing food queue. They were close to the front, which was good. They would be eating soon.
It was dark, but not too dark. The sun had only just set. But a fire was already being set up ready to light when it got dark and cold enough.
She figured that they would have another less marching to do tomorrow once they got to the Wall, but Elowen knew she'd have even less freedom than she did now, with the Picts attacking. They couldn't risk her running off to join them.
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Post by 𝘨𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘯 on Dec 5, 2016 2:45:13 GMT -5
( looks good to me, but I'll bear that in mind. )
Cassius smiled to himself but didn't reply. This close to the front, things were moving quickly, so it wasn't long before they were at the front of the line.
The man handing out food grunted a greeting and handed them each a plate, one with a decent serving of food for Cassius and one with significantly less to Elowen. Cassius raised his in thanks and then turned, walking towards the fire in the middle of camp. It hadn't been lit yet, but soon it would be, and then he'd find more warmth there than anywhere else in the camp.
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Post by ƤαƖƖαѕ ✧ on Dec 5, 2016 11:54:39 GMT -5
Elowen took her portion, which was not much more than half of a full portion, and headed towards the fire. She knew the rules around eating by this point, which was that Elowen could sit where she wanted unless a Roman would want to sit there, so at mealtimes she generally found herself pushed as far away from any fire as possible and away from the soldiers. Which she had no problem with, apart from she had to give away her place around the fire.
But then she couldn't be so far away that she couldn't be watched in case of any escape attempts, lest Cassius or someone start complaining. She she chose a spot against a tree trunk, a little distance away from the fire. It was far away enough that she wouldn't have to keep giving up her space and moving, but close enough that they could watch her and that she didn't look like she was eating suspiciously far away.
As she sat down, she couldn't help but wondering why even simple things like eating had to be complicated with these people.
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Post by 𝘨𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘯 on Dec 5, 2016 12:18:39 GMT -5
As the last tint of orange in the sky vanished, the fire took its place. It shone brightly and warmed anyone even remotely near it. It would burn all night, and the men who'd watch the camp during the night would spend the time between patrols here, tending to the first and warming up again.
For many, the campfire was the greatest part of a day, because once you had your food and everybody else had theirs, you were free to spend the time eating it as you wished. And where the evenings were filled with conversation and mild banter, the nights were loud and messier than any other part of the roman routine.
Cassius was among the people who loved the fire for its warmth, and the freedom it gave the soldiers. He'd been seating himself as close to it as he'd been able to for years, for its warmth but also because that's where things were the most upbeat. The closer to the fire you were, the more entertaining your night would be.
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Post by ƤαƖƖαѕ ✧ on Dec 5, 2016 12:28:22 GMT -5
Luckily for Elowen, she had picked a place close enough to the fire that some of it's warmth still reached her and its light still touched her skin. There would be no issues about her being too concealed in shadow.
As she sat, eating, she couldn't help but ask a question she hadn't had time to take a moment and consider as of yet. What exactly did these people want with her? There must have been a reason they had wanted to capture her father, and therefore her. Perhaps to be led back to Rome and presented to the Emperor as a trophy? To be made a slave? Or just to break up her tribe just enough to make the victory easy?
But then, if they had captured her just to ensure their victory over the tribe, what would they do to her? She highly doubted they wanted to kill her. If they'd wanted to do that, being the Roman army, they probably would have done it before they wasted any food on her or marched her a day's march away from the battlefield.
She had questions, but she had no idea if anyone could answer them yet. They may well still be making decisions about her, and she wouldn't know for a while yet what the intentions of these people were.
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Post by 𝘨𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘯 on Dec 5, 2016 13:04:30 GMT -5
It wasn't long until the loud chattering began. It didn't measure up to the Roman feasts, not even to the celebrations that had taken place before, but it was a decent replacement.
It wasn't rowdy, and there was no drink, but the talk was loud and the soldiers were moving among themselves, exchanging claps on the back and loud conversation before moving onto the next.
Someone on the other side of the fire started a brawl, but by the time one of the two men involved was on the ground, the fight had dissolved into nothing but laughter and congratulations to the man who'd won - and taunts for the man who'd lost. Say what you would about the Romans, but at least they were consistent when it came to tastes in entertainment.
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Post by ƤαƖƖαѕ ✧ on Dec 5, 2016 13:20:09 GMT -5
Elowen raised her eyes to events around the fire for the first time that evening when she saw the brawl start, which ended in fits of laughter and playful jibes and taunts.
It was somewhat comforting for her to see something like this, because this at least bore some semblance of home to her. Playful fighting, jokes. Every warrior knew the rough-and-tumble nature of an evening around a campfire, and it didn't seem to matter which culture you came from. This was comfortingly universal, and this gave her a reminder of what life had been like before her tribe had turned serious and grave, when the threat of the Romans came.
She was distracted by the sound of some disturbance in the forest, her red head turning. Were her people there again? If they were, it must mean they had something important to say, for surely they would not have passed a message to villages this far north if they just wanted to recapture her.
But there was just one last splintering sound before silence descended once more. Elowen looked in the direction of this final sound, to see an arrow stuck to a nearby tree, just out of reach of the firelight. It surprised even Elowen how silently her people could move in the shadows.
And on the shaft of an arrow was a ring. It was one that she recognised. It was her father's. It could only mean one thing, and a well of grief rose in her throat. It had been coming for months, but it had finally happened. Had these warriors simply been trying to give her a message all along, her father's illness had taken him?
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Post by 𝘨𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘯 on Dec 6, 2016 15:30:18 GMT -5
The Roman army, consumed by the roar of 5000 men enjoying themselves, was oblivious to anything going on. It was probably a good thing that nobody was attacking them because they were painfully unaware of anyone approaching, and the two centuries who had a patrol shift tonight couldn't fight an army by themselves.
The men stayed around the campfire for another hour or so before they retreated to sleep for the night. They left in groups, sticking to their cohorts. When you spent so much time with such a small group of people, coming and going with them was natural. The result was that even if you'd never spoken to another soldier, you could pick out his cohort just by watching him move over the course of an hour.
Cassius left with his own group just like anyone else. They'd communicated silently between themselves and left in a clump, still laughing and elbowing each other. About half the legion had left at that point, but the remaining group was quickly getting smaller as more and more people left to sleep.
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Post by ƤαƖƖαѕ ✧ on Dec 6, 2016 15:40:52 GMT -5
Elowen took the opportunity, while the Romans were distracted, to slip the ring off the shaft of the arrow, sliding it onto her own finger.
Normally, she would have probably put it on a leather thong around her neck but as no such thing was available and she didn't want to lose it, she figured it would be easier to keep it on her finger.
As the group started to dwindle Elowen glanced around her. She could take this opportunity, while everyone was distracted, to escape. If she wanted too. She was still in her tribe's territory but she could go into hiding and meet up with warriors from the tribe.
(Idk if she should try an escape attempt or not tbh)
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Post by 𝘨𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘯 on Dec 6, 2016 16:05:38 GMT -5
( hmmmm... it might be interesting to see, honestly, and she'll probably not get another chance, so if we ever want it to happen now's the time. sorry for the short post by the way! )
Cassius crashed onto the thin mattress provided for him. Having shed his armour already, he could just lie down and wait for sleep. Around him, the others did the same. Slowly, the sound level lowered until all you could hear was the hushed conversation and repetitive padding of the patrols passing by. It wasn't long before Cassius was asleep.
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Post by ƤαƖƖαѕ ✧ on Dec 6, 2016 16:17:05 GMT -5
(Okay. I've got to sleep but I'll reply tomorrow)
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Post by ƤαƖƖαѕ ✧ on Dec 7, 2016 2:13:28 GMT -5
Eveyone was distracted and Elowen might never get another chance to do this again. God only knew the repurcussions if she was caught but it was a chance she was willing to take.
So she slipped our of the firelight, into the darkness. She could see little for the forest around her, but she knew her bearings and took off south, disappear in into the darkness of the forest.
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Post by 𝘨𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘯 on Dec 7, 2016 15:40:25 GMT -5
The men by the fire took no notice, so it wasn't until the first patrol returned that the alarm was raised. Suddenly, the entire camp was filled with light as men rushed around wielding torches, waking others to join the search. They didn't know why, but they knew that there was no way they could let this captive get away.
Soon, a dozen centuries were scouring the forests for the Celt, shouting between each other to be heard. Another set was heading north, and there was one heading both east and west as well while the rest of the camp got some rest and the patrols continued to do the job they'd failed so miserably at.
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Post by ƤαƖƖαѕ ✧ on Dec 8, 2016 2:15:49 GMT -5
(Hey, sorry for not replying yesterday x It was a busy day - two exams and a performance with the school choir.)
Elowen could soon see distant light from the camp as the soldiers woke, and every now and then she'd hear the sounds of a century getting close, at which point she'd have to find an opportune place to hide.
She had no idea how long she could keep this up for. It was miles to the nearest village and having to stop and hide all the time was slowing her down. If she could just get out of the areas they were searching she might be able to move more quickly.
Hiding was vital, though, because firelight caught her colouring so well. Usually, if a century was distant enough, she would climb a tree until they passed, but sometimes she had to resort to bushes and other such things.
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Post by 𝘨𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘯 on Dec 8, 2016 16:19:58 GMT -5
( I totally get it, this time of year is always busy. )
Cassius, among the men shouting in the forest, was done. This was the second night in a row he'd get no sleep during, all because of Elowen. If she could have just given him one night's sleep before rushing off and causing a ruckus throughout camp, maybe he wouldn't be wearing the sour expression on his face, but one never knew.
The men paired up and fanned out, each pair holding one torch. Some stayed closer to the camp while others continued forward. It wouldn't be long until the Roman army held the entire forest, and then it was just a matter of finding her. Cassius hoped they'd achieve that soon so that he might go to sleep already.
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Post by ƤαƖƖαѕ ✧ on Dec 9, 2016 1:57:10 GMT -5
Elowen could see the faint light of torches everywhere, and scrambled up a tree to gain a better vantage point, only stopping when going any higher would make her fall.
She looked around, surveying the forest. She could see torches everywhere, in a ring around the forest. Once again, she was surrounded. She had two options - to hide until they gave up, or to try and get past the Romans at the edges of the forest.
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Post by 𝘨𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘯 on Dec 9, 2016 2:41:06 GMT -5
After a while, the men stopped moving further out. If she managed to leave the forest, she'd be able to hide in a village and there'd be no use in following her in there. If they hadn't recovered her by then, the best solution would be to head back to camp and start fighting again. Orders were orders, and it didn't matter to these men how many Celtic villages they overran in the process of following them.
Instead, the men moved in smaller circles, lighting up the underbrush and treetops best as they could. In the dark, it was difficult to see much at all, but if the light caught her, that would be all they needed. And in a few hours, the sun would be rising again. If she was still in the forest at that point, she'd be easy to spot.
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Post by ƤαƖƖαѕ ✧ on Dec 9, 2016 2:48:11 GMT -5
Elowen swore under her breath as she saw the sun starting to rise and the light of Roman torches everywhere. They would illuminate her in mere moments, and the sun gave her about an hour.
So she climes further along her tree, stretching as she climbed into the next. She began moving from tree to tree in this fashion, but there was no knowing whether she was climbing onto an illuminated tree. She could be caught at any moment, but trying to move would be better than staying in one place and waiting to be caught.
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Post by 𝘨𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘯 on Dec 9, 2016 2:58:28 GMT -5
A yell sounded from the east, and every soldier close enough to pick it up picked up and moved. They were quick but thorough, using the time to scan the forest they travelled through. And sure enough, as they reconvened with the source of the yell, she'd been found.
The men were on foot and she was in the treetops, so they outpaced her greatly. It wasn't long until the tree she was in was surrounded. Several crossbows were trained on her, as were the few spears from people who favoured them. "There's nowhere to go," one of them called up, his voice as level as the bow in his hand.
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Post by ƤαƖƖαѕ ✧ on Dec 9, 2016 3:05:52 GMT -5
Elowen felt a drop in her stomach and a hot feeling of dread as the yell sounded and moments later she was surrounded, weapons pointed firmly at her form.
The soldier who called up was entirely right. There was no way she could move to the next tree without getting shot, and nobody in her culture wanted to be shot hiding. If you were going to die it was going to happen in battle, had you any honour.
She she climbed down - slowly, as instructed by the soldiers - and dropped moments later onto the forest floor.
She'd bide her time. The Picts would be a new threat. Then she might have another chance. If they ever gave her an opening again after this, of course.
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Post by 𝘨𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘯 on Dec 9, 2016 3:25:50 GMT -5
It wasn't long until her wrists were bound and they were marching again, raising calls to the others to go retrieve to small army that had headed north and west. They kept their weapons on her as they walked, not hesitating to shove her forwards with them if they got impatient, or if they got bored.
Nobody said it, but the crossbows were a subtle nod to how this army saw her. They were a hunter's weapon, rarely used in battle, where the powerful sword or elegant bow was favoured. To any respectable citizen, they were useless in any other circumstance than making a show. And that was what this was, the march. It was a display of the legion's power (though there were none to witness it) and a reminder to Elowen that she was no more than an animal to them, a brutish, uncivilised animal who simply resembled someone human.
The march back was quick and messy. The men wanted to sleep, and though the legionnaire would likely allow a few extra hours of rest this morning for anyone who went out tonight, it wouldn't be enough for them to be on top today. When they arrived, they found this to be true. They left for their tents, leaving Elowen with the soldiers who'd just woken, ensuring that three of them would stay by her for the rest of the day, per the legionnaire's orders.
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