Clay Warrior Stories Boxset 1

by J. Clifton Slater

“It doesn’t feel so at the moment,” the man mumbled. “I am Gilibertus. A trader from the Golden Valley. The Illyrians attacked the ship I was traveling on. They took me as an oarsman.”

  “Good story. Now Dulce Pugno Gilibertus, who stabbed you, and who is the dead man on the beach?” asked Alerio. Then, he added. “And how did you get caught? Your brothers and sisters are usually more careful.”

  Before the assassin could answer, Lupus arrived with a Legion medical kit and a bucket of water.

  Chapter 32 – Acolyte of Angitia

  Lupus built a fire and rested the iron tip above the flames. Once the iron poker glowed red, he pressed it onto the chest wounds. Gilibertus screamed and passed out. The smell of melting flesh hit Alerio’s nostrils and he gagged. But Lupus inhaled deeply and his eyes glowed with delight.

  “They always go out and miss the aroma,” offered the Private. He lifted the iron to his nose and sniffed. “Don’t you just love the smell of flesh cooking?”

  “Why is it, Private Lupus, you are only a Private at your age?” asked Alerio trying to change the subject. “And don’t tell me it’s because you’re incompetent. I saw you giving orders on the transport and leading the Legionaries in the assault.”

  “And I’m a fine swordsman. In spite of your cheating ways, gladius instructor,” Lupus teased with a grin. “I’m from the central tribes of the Republic.”

  “When I was a small lad, my parents sold me to the temple of Angitia,” explained Lupus. “The temple was always short of children. Oh, not because they abused us. On the contrary, as potential priests and priestesses, we were fed well, and taught letters and numbers. No, the shortage came because this sect of Angitia showed homage to the Goddess by handling her snakes. You’ve got to start a devotee young when working with living serpents. Unfortunately, not many of the children were granted the gift by the Goddess.”

  “Those without the gift, or lacking pure intentions, got bitten. The priests would hold hot iron pokers on the bite marks as a way to burn out the venom. After a while, I grew to love the smell. The aroma of burning flesh means a second chance. If the bite was only the result of impure thoughts, then the Goddess and the red-hot iron would allow the bitten to continue the training. If it truly was a lack of the gift, Angitia would take them from this world,” the Legionary explained. “I was kissed twice by Angitia’s pets in my early years.”

  Lupus rolled up the left sleeve of his tunic. The scars looked as if candle wax had dripped down the back of his arm. He lifted the left side of his tunic displaying another line of melted flesh on his chest.

  “Kissed twice by the Goddess and I lived because I have the gift. As I got older, I became exposed to more of the mysteries of Angitia. Beyond the public rituals of snake handling, the sect makes medicines from the venom. There was this little girl, like a sister to me she was. One day while milking a snake,” he would have continued but Alerio’s eyes opened wide. “Oh, you didn’t know you could milk a snake like a goat or a cow. Yes, Lance Corporal, you milk them by placing the fangs against the side of a smooth clay bowl. Press down lightly and the snakes will eject a milky substance. It’s used in many potions.”

  “This little girl hung around me like I’m her big brother,” Lupus related. “One day while I milked a snake, she reached into the box with the other serpents. I heard her cry out. When I turned, she was withdrawing her arm from the box. There were three kisses from the Goddess on her tiny arm. It was early morning and none of the priests or priestesses were nearby. There was only one way to save my little friend. I had to burn out the venom.”

  Alerio watched Lupus’ face for any sign of distress. There was none. The infantryman had stopped with a smile on his face as if reliving a pleasant morning on a farm. After a time, he resumed his tale.

  “I kicked over a brazier, grabbed a piece of cloth, and picked up the hot dish,” he explained. “But my little friend didn’t have the gift. No matter how many times, or how hard I pressed the metal to her arm, the Goddess called her from this realm. When they found us, I was holding the lifeless form of my friend in my lap still pressing the cold metal to Angitia’s kisses.”

  “Three snake bites to a child?” stated Alerio. “On the farm, we had grown men die from one bite. I can’t see how a child could survive three strikes from three snakes.”

  “That’s what the priestess said. But, I knew better. If the Goddess had given her the gift, my little friend would have lived,” Lupus insisted. “I blamed the Goddess, and finally, my rantings got me expelled from the temple. With no other prospects in sight, I joined the Legion.”

  “You joined as a full-grown man,” Alerio guessed. “That’s why you’re only a Private?”

  “Ah, gladius instructor, you are kind like a dove in the meadow at first light,” Lupus exclaimed. “I was eighteen when I joined the Legion. One thing being in a temple teaches you is focus. While the other lads in my training unit struggled to learn, I calmed my soul. A call to Angitia, like when I was preparing to handle the snakes, allowed me to open my mind to new things. Like a new unsullied scroll, I absorbed the lessons and graduated at the top of my class.”

  “A few years later, my Century marched north,” Lupus declared. “By then I was a squad leader. When our Corporal fell and broke his foot, because I learned to write and do numbers at the temple, I was promoted to the position. We met the barbarians north of a large trading town. For five days, we engaged, rotated off the line, rested, and went back into the fray. For five days, we delivered death and accepted death into our ranks. By the time the savages vanished into the mountains, my Century had lost only ten of our eighty Legionaries. Other Centuries had suffered much greater casualties. Angitia watched over us is how I explained our low injury rate.”

  “You know what they say - never talk politics or religion around a campfire. Well, I broke the rule,” admitted Lupus. “After announcing Angitia was the source of our luck, a few of my infantrymen challenged the assertion. Did I mention, we had consumed a large quantity of vino? We had. I went into the fields, and as I’d learned to do as a little lad, I gathered a sack full of snakes.”

  “You brought serpent into a Legion camp?” a horrified Alerio asked.

  “Only ten, but five were babies. I was a little drunk. If I’d been clear headed, I could have found more,” Lupus boasted. “I called the Century to attention and explained the gift of Angitia while the pokers heated in the fire.”

  “What did you do?” demanded Alerio.

  “I had those brave enough, and with enough faith, put their arms into the sack,” described Lupus. “Some emerged with no kisses from Angitia. Others were chosen and I placed the iron pokers on their kisses. The sweet smell of second chances filled our Century’s area, and the hand of the Goddess moved through our ranks.”

  “How many died?” Alerio asked.

  “The Goddess only took five,” Lupus confessed. “We would have discovered how many more had the gift, but my Optio arrived, and stopped the ritual.”

  Alerio for the first time looked closely at the Legionary’s eyes. They were open wide, and he stared as if looking into another world. In that look, Alerio recognized the fever of a true fanatic.

  “I was transferred to the Southern Legion and placed in Second Squad,” Lupus concluded. “Sadly, my Lance Corporal has an unnatural fear of snakes. Just the mention of serpents, or the Goddess Angitia, and he gives me extra duty.”

  Private Lupus packed up the iron poker and the ointments. He stood and looked down at Alerio.

  “Don’t tell him about our talk,” begged Lupus. “If he finds out, he’ll put me on latrine duty for a week.”

  Alerio let out his breath slowly as the infantryman strutted away. Then, Gilibertus stirred and he glanced over at the assassin.

  Chapter 33 – City State Politics

  Gilibertus groaned and asked for water. Alerio held the ladle to his lips while attempting to clear his mind of serpents.

  “Will I live?” asked Giliber
tus.

  “You are cleaned, salted, burned, greased up, and alive,” Alerio informed him. “All signs point to your survival.”

  “Then you are truly an Ally of the Golden Valley,” the assassin declared. “How may I repay you?”

  “Answer some questions,” replied Alerio. “Who stabbed you? Who is the man on the beach? And how were you discovered?”

  “The body on the beach is the former assistant Navarch of the Illyrian Navy,” Gilibertus replied. “He died and a commander more in favor with Martinus Cetea took his place.”

  “How did he die? I examined the body and the only mark is a small hole in his back,” explained Alerio.

  “He is dead,” was all Gilibertus would say.

  Alerio recognized the evasion. The Dulce Pugno never talked about the target of a contract or the client who ordered the assassination.

  “I assume the new assistant Navarch is the man who stabbed you,” Alerio deduced, then asked. “How did they catch you?”

  “Yes, the new assistant stabbed me after they found a deceitful note by my patron in the dead man’s belongings. Just one person knew of my position as a rower on the warship,” Gilibertus explained. “He has broken the contract and will suffer the penalty. But, you haven’t asked the proper questions.”

  “What are the proper questions?”

  “Why would the Illyrians attack Bovesia?” suggested Gilibertus. “And, why would the Greeks interfere?”

  “I guessed the Illyrians wanted the supplies and Bovesia was handy,” said Alerio.

  “No, ally. The pirates are seeking a merchant ship,” Gilibertus reported. “One sailing from Egypt to Syracuse to a Greek city-state. A ship with the ability to make common cause between Alexandria and Athens.”

  “Why would the Illyrians care if Athens and Alexandria signed a treaty?” Alerio questioned.

  “As a kingdom, they don’t. It’s their benefactors who seek to interfere with the treaty,” Gilibertus explained. “Think. Why would the seagoing Illyrians, who don’t colonize, attack Bovesia? Unless paid to do so.”

  The assassin raised an arm and pointed out to sea. Three quinqueremes with light brown sails billowing in the wind floated across the horizon. Between the sails, and hull color, the three distant warships were identifiable as Qart Hadasht Navy.

  “The Empire cares and their gold and trading agreements buy a lot of favors,” proclaimed Gilibertus. “The Greeks also seek the merchant ship. It’s why they came to your rescue; they want to keep Bovesia free, and under the protection of the Republic.”

  “I don’t understand. Why is a trading treaty between Athens and Alexandria threatening to the Qart Hadasht Empire?” Alerio pondered.

  “I only know what I learned while rowing on the Illyrian warship,” admitted Gilibertus.

  The trumpet from the watch stand blared. Three notes of three sounded, signifying the Empire warships were in the area. From high up in the town, Tesserarius Cephas called out for the infantry to form up.

  “I have to go,” said Alerio. “What can I do for you?”

  “If you have coins to lend, I will signal for a fisherman’s boat, and leave,” Gilibertus stated.

  Alerio reached under his tunic, pulled out the Nocte Apis and a coin pouch. After handing them to the assassin, he helped him stand. Gilibertus staggered up the beach towards the bank of the Kaikinos River. Alerio turned and limped down Bova Beach in the opposite direction. Pain radiated from his side and his thigh at the thought of climbing the stairs.

  Chapter 34 – Reinforcements and Reports

  The healthy Legionaries stood as if on parade across the stairs, and over the roof tops. Behind them, and hidden from view by the shields were the walking wounded. These infantrymen tended their injuries. If the Qart Hadasht warships beached and attacked, they would be available to man the lines. Far behind the injured Legionaries, merchants and citizens huddled in groups.

  Alerio, on the right roof top, leaned on his armor and wrote on a piece of parchment. Other than a smear of ointment and a change of bandages, he required no additional treatment. His helmet rested on his bent knee. A piece of parchment was wrapped around the back of the helmet to provide a writing surface.

  “Writing your last will and testament, gladius instructor?” asked Private Lupus.

  “No, a letter to my family,” lied Alerio.

  In reality, he was crafting a note to Tribune Velius. The information might be old stuff. If old, at least it would confirm what the spy master already knew. If new, it was information the planning and strategies commander could use to fill in his map.

  “Stand down,” announced Corporal Cephas as the sails on the warships disappeared over the horizon. “Looks like the Qart Hadasht navy took one look at you killers, urinated in their silk panties, and decided to go bother a softer port of call. Squad leaders, on me.”

  The trumpet blared again from the watch tower. The Legionaries on the front line had just hoisted their shields when the trumpet sounded. Everyone tensed and counted notes. When it passed three, they relaxed. At five they smiled, when five additional notes followed, they began to cheer.

  “Mail and reinforcements,” Tesserarius Cephas announced. “Let’s get a squad on the beach and another on the stairs. Let’s go people; the Legion isn’t paying you to sit around wasting a perfectly good day.”

  ***

  By the time one squad was on the beach, and the squad members from another stood on separate steps, two Legion patrol boats came into view. The boats beached and seventy Legionaries waded ashore. Medics carrying heavy bags jogged straight for the steps.

  “How did you know we needed medics?” Alerio asked a short time later.

  “A Greek warship rowed into Rhegium and talked with the Colonel last night. We rowed out at dawn but Occhio was attacked so we stopped there. Not too much work for me. The lads saw them coming and rained arrows down on the Illyrians. After a skirmish, the pirates boarded their ship and rowed out. Then we headed here,” the medic explained as he peeled back the dressing on Alerio’s side. “Someone is good with the hot poker. A little more ointment and you’ll be as good as I can make you. It’s rest and time now.”

  A Legionary with two huge pouches bouncing on his thighs came up the stairs. He was delayed as the stairs were full of equally loaded down citizens making the descent. After he navigated the crowd and arrived on the upper level, he began to shout.

  “Lance Corporal Sisera, Third Century, Eighth Squad,” the man called out. “Lance Corporal Sisera?”

  “Here. Over here,” Alerio replied.

  The mail carrier dropped a sealed parchment into Alerio’s lap. After an exchange of coins, the man left with the parchment for Tribune Velius.

  Alerio broke the seal and unrolled the letter.

  Lance Corporal Alerio Sisera, 3rd Century, Eighth Squad

  Greetings, hopefully, this missive finds you in good health.

  There is a town on the Kaikinos about eight miles upriver.

  I would appreciate a report on the mood of the Republic’s

  citizens from Passomasseria. Specifically, concerning

  any contact with foreign agents. With great

  anticipation, I await your report.

  Tribune Velius, Southern Legion Planning & Strategies

  “Lupus. What’s the best way to get upriver?” Alerio called over to the Private.

  “How far up?” Lupus asked. “To the split, or higher into the mountains?”

  “To a town called Passomasseria,” Alerio said.

  “It’s about eight miles,” Lupus explained. “Our patrol boats can make the trip. Much beyond there and you’ll need a trapper’s canoe. Or you can hike, but it’s steep trails and high plateaus most of the way. Oh, that’s right, you have an arrow hole in your leg. Forget the hike.”

  Alerio struggled to his feet, which wasn’t as difficult as bending over to pick up his armor and helmet. Finally, when he had the gear in hand, he went in search of Tesserarius Cephas
.

  He located the Corporal, the Century’s seven squad leaders, and their Centurion who had accompanied the reinforcements. They were meeting in the command building. Alerio found a bucket, turned it over, and placed it under the awning of the porch. He sat down stiffly to wait for the staff meeting to conclude.

  ***

  “Lance Corporal Sisera. There are easier ways to catch flies,” said Corporal Cephas.

  Alerio, squinting through his eyelids, saw the Tesserarius and the Centurion looking down at him. Apparently, he’d leaned his head against a porch post, and fallen asleep with his mouth open.

  “Sorry, sir,” he replied while attempting to stand.

  “As you were,” commanded the infantry officer. “The medics have you on light duty. You should be in your quarters resting. But, I’m glad to find you here.”

  “Why’s that, sir?” Alerio asked.

  “Two of my squad leaders and my Corporal seem to have developed an obsession,” the Centurion replied. “They can’t stop relating tales of bravery, cunning, and acts of outright stupidity by one Lance Corporal Sisera. Seeing as you saved the lives of my Legionaries while, somehow miraculously surviving, I wanted to thank you.”

  “I was just doing my duty, sir,” Alerio responded. “But, if you’re feeling generous, I have a favor to asked.”

  “What is it gladius instructor?” the Centurion inquired with a broad smile. From the look and mention of his title, Alerio knew Cephas had related the stick versus gladius story.

  “I have to go to Passomasseria for Tribune Velius,” Alerio said. “A ride would be appreciated.”

  At the mention of the planning and strategies officer, the smile vanished.

  “Here’s the truth Lance Corporal. The Illyrians could return at any time,” the Centurion explained. “I can’t spare a single man, let alone twenty to row you up the river for a spy mission. Besides, you are on light duty. If I let you go off on a mission before being cleared by medical, I could end up on the Colonel’s merda list.”