THE WOLF OF ROME

- CHOICES -

By Isileth

Maximus' last memory was a sword's hilt on the base of his head. Despite this, he wasn't feeling as bad as he thought he should.

"Welcome back to my world, Wolf of Rome. Things have changed a bit since our last meeting."

Maximus suddenly remembered where he had heard that voice. The Spirit in the Dream World. For years he had thought he had been dreaming, but now, back again in this strange reality, he knew that it had been real.

"You're wondering why you're back here, aren't you? Since we don’t have much time, I'll explain. I have followed your life in the humans' world from time to time and I saw you fulfilling the promise I saw in you when you were here. Now your life is in danger and your family's, too. I called you here to give you a choice."

Maximus looked at him, puzzled, but he didn't speak, waiting for the Spirit to talk. "You're in great danger. You're going to be executed in the morning and there are men riding to your house to kill your family. I don't wish this to happen so I want to give you a choice, but this will mean that you're going to spend to the rest of your life in my world."

"How?"

"Do you remember that when you were here, you could change your shape at will? Well, I'm going to give you this power in your world for the time needed to rescue your family and then you'll have to return here. Once you accept, you'll never be able to go back to the humans' world. Say no and I won't interfere. You won't even remember having talked to me."

The promise in the Spirit's words was enticing, but Maximus thought of his duty towards Rome and the Empire and he considered the offer carefully. If he could manage to escape his executioners, he could try to reach his home before the Praetorians sent to be sure that - as Quintus had said - his family would meet him in the Afterlife. And after having rescued them, he could plan his revenge against Commodus.

But what if he didn't succeed?

The Praetorians were probably already on the road to Hispania and he shivered at the implications of this thread of thought. He had clearly in his mind his duty towards Rome as well as his thirst for revenge, but he thought very hard about his family, too. They mattered more than his pride. His loyalty to Rome was undeniable, but after so many years far from his family, he realized that he had another duty to fulfil. Saving his family mattered more than everything else.

"I will accept your offer," Maximus said evenly and the Spirit nodded, or so the soldier thought, because he wasn't sure he could see to whom he was speaking.

"All right, this is the plan," the Spirit began to explain.

Maximus woke up in the darkness where the Praetorians had thrown him momentarily to prepare his execution. His wrists were secured behind him and a rope was tightly tied around his ankles. He grinned.

The Praetorian had returned to the stables to be sure that the general was still there. He knew that this wasn't necessary because the man was out cold and tied, but he had orders so he opened the flip of the tent and stepped in. A deep growl greeted him and the guard froze. Lifting the lantern he was carrying, the man was able to spot the source of the sound, a big dark-furred wolf was looking at him, fangs bared, ready to attack.

The Praetorian shivered and grabbed the gladius at his belt.

The animal stared at him and he couldn't but think that the beast had the strangest eyes he had ever seen in a wolf, aquamarine, with a disconcerting human light in them.

The growl became louder and the wolf jumped.

The guard raised the sword for protection, but it wasn't needed as the animal ran past him in the night.

Once far from the camp, Maximus turned into a horse, a huge black horse, galloping into the upcoming dawn. His mind was still human, but his body was reacting to the new senses that his shape brought. He felt the road under his powerful legs and hooves, the air through his nostrils, the wind in his mane. He ran like a dream of speed toward his destination.

When he was hungry, Maximus turned into a wolf to hunt. He smelled the small animals hiding in the shadows, trying to escape from the menace he represented, but he gave them no hope and ate them still warm to support his effort and will.

The Spirit observed the man's journey with interest. He knew that meddling with the humans' world was something that he shouldn't have done, but at the same time he valued the wolfman's life too much to see it wasted by the mindless hatred of that cruel coward who was naming himself emperor. The Spirit spat in disgust.

Maximus kept himself far from places inhabited by men and women, but from time to time he met some people in the vast fields and roads from Vindobona to Spain. He didn't pay attention to them, but they did to him and more than one spoke about the black riderless horse running as if his hooves weren't touching the ground.

He took on human shape again near his farm. It was early in the morning, but he sensed his people around, ready to attend to the morning chores. He looked at himself, slightly taken aback about how normal he apparently was. The journey home had been a sort of dream and the reality of his home hit him deeply. He sighed and walked on.

He headed to the stables where he found Titus, a young man with long limbs and a shock of black hair. The servant was sweeping the hay, but halted when he heard Maximus opening the door. He turned and surprise ran along his features as he recognized his master who was supposed to be fighting in Germania.

"Sir, we didn't know you were coming," he began to say but Maximus waved back the rest of the speech.

"That is not important, Titus. You must listen to me. Everyone is in great danger. There are people coming here intent on killing. There is no time to waste. Go and tell everyone in the house and the fields to run away immediately if they value their lives. Run!"

The eerie calm under Maximus' words and the sad truth in his eyes convinced the young man, who hurried out without looking back. The general went to the main house.

As he had expected, everyone was in rush. Without paying attention, he went upstairs to his own room. As he'd thought, his wife was there, dressing their child. Maximus' heart leaped in his chest at the sight. So many days apart and now he was there.

"Welcome home, love," Selene said, smiling at him. Her eyes were serious, but her expression was everything he needed in this world and the one he was headed to.

"I've nearly finished with little Marcus and we'll be ready to go," she added pragmatically.

"We are not going with the others. We are to stay here."

"But you told Titus that people are coming this way to kill us. Why should we remain?"

Maximus sighed and went close to her, holding her in his arms. "This is complicated. I am going to explain and my words will be hard to understand, but please believe me. This is important."

While clearly puzzled and frightened, Selene nodded and the general began to speak.

His tale began with the battle, Caesar's offer and his death at his son's hands. Then came the hardest part. He told her of his adventure in his younger years and the new meeting with the Spirit and the offer he had received. He also told her that they would have to leave the humans' world in order to live.

Selene remained silent for a while and Maximus was ready to show her his ability to chance shape to convince her when she spoke.

"All right. Show us the way, Carus. We'll always be with you."

His heart sang in relief. She trusted him, beyond reason because she loved him. His love for her was nearly too much to bear. He kissed her and went briefly outside to give the last instructions to his people.

He found Marcus' young nurse.

"Master, please hurry!"

"We are not going to come, Publia. We must stay here or else they will come after you."

"But, Master, you can't! They'll kill you and your wife and child."

"No, they will not. I know that. Please follow my orders and go away. Now."

His tone was so commanding that the girl ran away without questioning any further.

Maximus returned to his room and smiled at the sight of Selene playing with Marcus.

"So, my beloved ones, stay close to me," he said, joining them on the big bed.

The Praetorian squad sent to kill the general's family and household was amazed to find the fields empty. It was mid-morning and the place should have been full of workers, but no one was around, only some farm animals. They rode towards the main building of pink stones, stopping their run in a cloud of dust. When it settled they discovered that the door was open and still no one was around.

Their leader stepped in, weapon in hand, and his steps sounded loudly in the big hall. The big deserted hall.

He gestured to the men to scatter around in search of someone, but after few moments the scouts returned to report that nobody was around. The Praetorian snorted and headed for the stairs. The master's room was, predictably, right at the top of the stairs and the door was open. The man went on warily, raising his sword. The sight that waited for him inside stunned him.

In another place, Maximus was walking hand in hand with his wife, while their child was running on the grass with the she-wolf, who had greeted them in the Dream World. Selene was amazed at all the new things she was discovering, but the warmth of her husband's hand in hers was all that she needed to know that she had made the right choice. That he had made the right choice. She smiled up at him and Maximus was held captive by her dark eyes, her hair black as the earth of the fields of their homeland, her love.

"Tata, Mama, over here!" Marcus shouted near a pool created by the waters of a spring and the adults followed him. When they got closer they could see the Praetorians in their room. Maximus knelt down and put his free hand into the water, erasing the image.

"But why, Tata?" Marcus asked.

"Let us forget about them. Now we're here." he replied, hiding the hate he had felt for a moment behind a smile.

"Yes. You know, Tata, I love It here!" the child replied and his parents shared a sigh of happiness.

The bed in the master's room held the bodies of the general's family and the general himself, who was supposed to have been already executed back in Vindobona. They looked asleep, but too still, so the Praetorian knew that they were dead. They showed no wounds, so he looked for another reason. A cup was on the floor and the man grabbed it, sniffing. The pungent odor revealed the truth: wolfsbane.

Watching Maximus with his family, the Spirit couldn't hold back a thought that made him grin. The Wolf of Rome had finally returned home.

The End

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