I didn’t bother looking at faces and reading expressions. I just about knew where everyone stood. But there was only one path available to us right now, one way to fix all this, and one opportunity to get all of us home – if that’s what any of them wanted anymore. Merlin may have planned this from the very beginning, but at least he’d left me a way out in all this.
A means toward absolution.
A way to fix the universe.
“I know some of you might hate me,” I said quietly, my eyes firmly fixed to the floor, “and I don’t blame any of you if you do. I hate myself. I did some bad, evil things, and I won’t patronize you by trying to abdicate myself by blaming the orb. I still did those things. I did them. And I have to live with them. I don’t even know where to start. I didn’t trust any of you, I didn’t listen to anyone, I alienated each of you, and I hurt many of you, physically, emotionally, or both. I’m so sorry to each and every one of you for all of it. But…” I swallowed hard, preparing myself for what had to come next, “…but especially to you, Titus.”
Slowly, I lifted my head to look at the young man whose own eyes were drilling through my own. Seeing that targeted anger nearly scared me off, but I wasn’t about to give up this one opportunity to do what was right. “I know how much Vincent meant to you. He meant so much to me as well. When I replay the memory of what I did to him in my mind I… I can’t believe what I see. It’s unreal, but I know it’s true. I’m so sorry, Titus. So, so sorry. I don’t know how I’ll ever live with it…”
I trailed off with rapidly blinking eyes that couldn’t focus and a mind that was suddenly at a loss for words. I didn’t want to deliver a speech, even if I could muster one with my broken mind, nor did I want pity or sympathy for things I could never forgive myself for. All I wanted to do was apologize and beg for…
“But you do have to live with it, mate.” I looked up, recognizing the voice and searching for Wang, finding him beside Santino, his arms crossed and his eyes angry. He caught my attention and nodded, unfolding his left arm so that he could point at me. “You didn’t kill Vincent, Jacob. Your body did. You didn’t order that fucking centurion to knock me out either. Your stupid, easily-manipulated mind did. It’s not your fault you’re a pathetic wanker. I can’t speak for Titus, but I don’t know what the bloody hell you’re trying to apologize for.”
I blinked, not sure what to say, but then someone else spoke up.
“Me neither,” said another voice off to my right. I looked, and found that it belonged to Archer, sulking in the corner, his arms also folded. “You could have killed me when I confronted you, Hunter, but you didn’t, and I think I know why. Even if it was you beating the shit out of me, as you’ve done before, I know it was you who restrained yourself. It was you who kept the orb from killing me.”
Emotion crept up on me now, and I felt my lips tug up in a silent thank you, but I beat it down. Even if Titus forgave me right here and now as well, I wouldn’t change my mind, and there was no way I’d be able to forgive myself in time to change it either.
“Thanks,” I managed and looked back at Titus, but when he didn’t seem eager to say or do much of anything, I returned my attention to the floor, “but whether or not you’re right, there is still a lot I need to atone for, starting tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow?” Artie asked. “The wedding rehearsal?”
I nodded. “Won’t be much of a rehearsal for anything by the time I’m done with it.”
“And what exactly do you plan to do?” Bordeaux asked from beside Madrina.
It was nice to see her again, although her tall frame and red hair reminded me so much of Boudicca that I had to suppress a sudden urge to cry again. I beat it down and focused.
I raised a hand and gestured at Merlin. “You know who this is, or, at least, you think you know who this is. His name isn’t Faustulus or Merlin or… Tim… for crying out loud, I’m not calling him Tim.” I sighed. “But like Tim, these names are simply guises. They’re personas, identities he’s taken on for purposes all his own. But who he is really doesn’t matter. What matters is he’s prepared to help us.”
“How, pray tell?” Santino said, and I almost smiled.
It was impossible not to miss Santino.
Merlin stepped forward. “You have two problems. First, you don’t have the red orb. Second, you must contend with Remus.”
Santino snorted. “I can take him. Sneaking up on gods is my specialty.”
Stryker threw up a hand and Santino blindly high fived it with a loud smack, a smug grin on his face, his eyes never leaving Merlin’s.
Merlin shook his head. “Unfortunately, Johnathon, Remus would not be fooled, even by you.”
Cuyler, sitting on a bench with one leg propped up on its surface, held up a hand casually. “I can put three in his chest from across the city in the time it’d take him to blink.”
“No, Alexander” Merlin answered evenly. “You cannot. You people do not understand. For all your advanced weaponry and tactics, you are but insects in comparison. Remus will hear your footfalls and gunshots no matter how careful you are, and his reactions are instantaneous. You would achieve little.”
“Just who the fuck is this guy then?” Santino demanded.
Merlin opened his mouth to speak, but I knew he would simply dribble on about how it doesn’t matter, how we wouldn’t understand, or how we’re not supposed to know anything about the past, typical bullshit from him, so I interrupted.
“He won’t tell you,” I answered, my voice strengthening, “but I’ll tell you what I’ve managed to piece together from his cryptic half-truths. They’re all that’s left – maybe – of some kind of precursor civilization, an advanced society that predates modern history, and was, apparently, destroyed or removed from history. Shit like Atlantis, ancient astronauts, Stonehenge, and all that other bullshit…”
“Doesn’t sound much like bullshit to me anymore,” Helena whispered beside me
I shushed her and continued. “I haven’t a clue what happened to them or where they went, if they even still exist, but Remus showed me far more than this asshole did. These orbs work through wormholes, activated by black holes, powered with quasars, nebulas, and God knows what else. I’m talking quantum mechanics so obscure and advanced, we should come up with a new name for it. They terraformed an entire version of Mars just to channel all of this energy through the orbs, for Christ’s sakes! They did all this – or maybe it was passed down to them by an even older civilization, who knows – so is it any surprise that the people of such a civilization can be nine feet tall and have god-like abilities?”
The room was quiet, but it only lasted a few seconds before Santino had to ask, “So why aren’t you a giant too?”
Merlin, who stood at least six feet tall, shrugged. “I’m an old man.”
An aha expression spread across Santino’s face, and he took a step backward, a clear indication that he was finally ready to shut up. Silence set in again, and I finally took a moment to glance at their faces. Most looked grim, or at least serious, but even Titus’ face didn’t appear outright angry, and he wasn’t staring lasers at me anymore either. I wondered if they’d just walk out on me, but then Marcus sauntered into the atrium from the building’s front entrance, strolling in almost nonchalantly, completely oblivious to what was going on as he stopped for a second to remove his footwear. Everyone turned silently and watched as the Roman unstrapped his boots, what most from the future would called sandals, and neatly placed them beside his feet. He took a second to inspect his toes and picked at a piece of dirt or grime beneath one of his toenails, but then he took notice of something worse and started scrubbing away at his big toe.
Apparently satisfied a few seconds later, he straightened and looked up, immediately jumping back a foot or two in fright at the sight of everyone present. Mild chuckles rumbled through those gathered as they turned away from the startled Roman, who in turn was just now catching his breath. A moment later, he finally caught
sight of me, and jumped again.
“Hunter?” He asked. “You are well?”
“Not exactly,” I replied, “but better than I was.”
Marcus beamed. “That is most fortuitous news.”
“Explain,” Gaius demanded in a voice that would have seemed rude had he not been talking to his closest friend.
“I have just returned from the farm,” Marcus started. “A note was placed at the dead drop location that indicated a large army has been seen north of the Rubicon and should be here in perhaps a week.”
I sighed. “Do I even need to ask?”
He shook his head. “It is unconfirmed, but I believe it to be Galba. He indicated months ago he would march on Rome as soon as he was able.”
“It could be Vespasian,” Helena mentioned from beside me. “I think he would object to this upcoming union as much as the rest of us.”
Wang shook his head. “Two weeks isn’t enough time for him to even hear about it, let alone decide to march on Rome.”
“It would be if he was close,” I mumbled, mostly to myself, wondering now what kind of wrench could be thrown into our plans if one or both of them showed up uninvited and with a raging horde of professional warriors behind them. If they got here too early, it could really screw things up, but it wouldn’t. They couldn’t move as fast as us and would be too late to change the outcome of what I had planned.
The sound of flesh slapping flesh distracted me, and I looked up to see Santino with his hands on his face, slowly running them down his thick beard before sending them upward again to rub his bald head – a grooming style I couldn’t help but find amusing.
“Gods, and aliens, and giants, oh my,” he started, flinging his hands to his hips in frustration. “Such problems we have. And Galba too? I guess we can throw him into the aliens category since he looks so much like one. But we actually have another problem. A big problem. A mind bogglingly huge problem! And I’m not just talking about her boobs, which are also big and… firm and soft and…”
Immediately, almost everyone in the room whispered, “Agrippina,” but then looked at each other awkwardly when they all realized they’d come to the conclusion based on Santino’s particularly crude and sexual description alone.
“Oh, yes!” Santino yelled excitedly, spinning his head around in a large circle as he said it. “The one, the only… Slutpinna herself! Who the fuck knows what she has planned. Are we all really so naïve as to think that she’s marrying Remus solely for his two foot long…”
“John!” Artie yelled, interrupting him as though she was in on a joke or reference.
He winked at her and continued. “Well, we all know she’s not simply marrying him because she intends to turn herself into a farm for baby gods. She wants something out of this too, and we all know she’ll do anything to get it. Like I said, we’ve got other problems.”
“Aye,” Wang mumbled, “like how to take out a god that even you apparently can’t sneak up on or Cuyler can’t put in the Earth from half a world away.”
“What about me?” Bordeaux asked with a sly smile, rolling his large shoulders. “I bet I can take him.”
Madrina smacked his arm, hard enough to cause the big man to wince and rub the struck spot, ending the conversation immediately. More nervous chuckles emanated from the crowd but those too ended very quickly, and everyone settled into uncomfortable silence once again.
“So what do we do?” Artie asked, seconds later. “How do we fight a god?”
Merlin stomped his foot, almost angrily. “For the last time! He is not a god! He is… a man! Only more so. But if you insist on referring to him as such, so be it. I will indulge your simple minds if only because it will make the following question easier to understand: what does one need to fight a god?”
“Another god,” I answered, growing tired of everyone’s lack of insight.
“Exactly,” Merlin said, “and where might we find another god?”
Santino shrugged. “Well, there’s one standing right in front of me.”
Merlin growled and turned to me. “In person, he really is not as humorous as he seems…”
I nodded but didn’t take his bait, deciding to end this game myself. “Romulus,” I said. “That’s who we use. That’s our play. We free Romulus and let him tangle up Remus while we find the orbs and deal with Agrippina.”
“And then what?” Archer asked, the first words he’d said in a while. “What if Romulus loses?”
I shook my head. “It doesn’t matter, because the plan doesn’t rely on Romulus beating Remus down. He only needs to distract him. The only way truly out of this is for me to get Remus away from here.”
“Get him away from here?” Artie asked, concern obvious in her voice. “What do you mean, Jacob? What are you…”
“It means I’m going to use the orbs to take him to some alternate world where he’ll never harm anyone again. Some desolate world where he’ll be of no threat to anyone. Somewhere he can die alone three thousand years from now if that’s how long it takes. After what he did to me, and especially because of what he did to Boudicca, he’ll be lucky if I don’t drop him off in the middle of some ocean, just to see if he’s related to Neptune as well.”
“But…” Artie started, her head shaking in disbelief, “…what if he stops you? Even if you manage to send him somewhere else, he might be too fast for you to make it back alive!”
“I’ll be fine,” I said. “I’ll jump back before he even knows what hit him. Even he’s not that fast.
“You don’t know that!” Artie argued, and I found myself touched at how much she cared. “He’ll tear your arms off before you even make it to the other side. Even if you make it, he might still kill you!”
I tilted my head down so that I could look at her. “If that’s what it takes.”
XI
Sacrifice
July, 44 A.D.
Rome, Italy
Jacob/Diana Hunter
Another sniper hide. Another mission.
The last sniper hide. The last mission.
Regardless of how this turned out, I was done with all of it. Whether I died here today or made my way home, I couldn’t imagine ever wanting anything to do with war ever again. Helena and I had often spoke of what life would be like once we returned home, and often those discussions had been silly and far from serious, often describing a fantasy that could never be fulfilled. Home was filled with death, destruction, and war, and it was only a matter of time before the end of everything, but something about that was appealing.
If given a choice of staying here, even if we succeeded today, where I could live out my days in peace and tranquility, or go home where the risk of dying well before a natural death was exponentially higher, I would still choose to go home. I would choose the life of perpetual fear and risk of death, because at least I wouldn’t have to be involved anymore. If someone dropped a nuke on my house, it wouldn’t be because I had caused it or had anything to do with the consequences. I wouldn’t be responsible for it. I’d just be another nameless statistic in a casualty report, and that anonymity was what I wanted.
If we stayed here, peace was certainly an option. I already knew the end times were well and beyond my lifetime here, and there was no chance of mass annihilation through fire and brimstone, divine or otherwise. Living a long and happy life was certainly possible here. But I was also known here. I was a notorious outlaw, bandit, sheriff, Vanus, general, freedom fighter, and maniac. I’d made a thousand enemies in the half decade I’d been here. Most were nobodies but others were Agrippina herself, Empress of the Roman Empire. Even if she was dealt with, she’d have thralls of sycophants eager and willing to avenge her. Peace may be an option, but so was poison in my drink or a shiv in my back or, worse, a similar fate for Helena, Santino, or one of the others. And unlike back home, where those things could happen completely by random, here they would be my fault.
I let in a deep breath and closed my eyes behind my binoculars, r
eminding myself that neither option seemed all that likely today. The third option was far bleaker, but one I would take in a heartbeat if I could: self-sacrifice for the greater good. I didn’t deserve it, but it was all I could hope for anymore.
But then there had been the plan, the plan everyone hadn’t had a problem with, all except Artie, of course.
“Are you insane?” She’d demanded yesterday after I’d made my announcement. “Even if Romulus has him distracted, he could still stop you before you’re able to transport away! And if you succeed, he may still kill you!”
The ground had continued to be a comfortable place to stare at then.
“I understand that,” I’d said, “but it’s a risk I have to take. The only way to get rid of him is to trap him somewhere else. I’m the only one that can do it.”
She’d folded her arms and glared at me. “That’s not true.”
“Come on, Artie,” I’d pleaded. “You know I can’t ask you to do this. I can’t ask you to even be involved. It’s my fault you even…”
“I even what? That I even exist? Is that what you were going to say?”
“No, I…”
“I don’t care what you were going to say,” she’d interrupted. “We’re here. I’m here. And I’m going to help. We can figure out a way to remove Remus from this equation without you having to sacrifice yourself.”
I hadn’t had much of a choice on what to do next. All I could think to do was nod and move on, hoping to convince her that I’d at least consider her words. She’d quieted down and let Merlin and me discuss the plan. It wasn’t particularly elaborate, relying mostly on chaos and confusion to get the job done, but timing was imperative. Move too soon and Remus would sniff us out, move too late and we’d miss our opportunity to get him out in the open.
I shook my head and ignored the memory, glancing at my watch.
Praetorian Series [4] All Roads Lead to Rome Page 39