Roman Flames

Chapter Fourteen: The Story?

Chapter Fourteen: The Story?

Sanctius

“Marcus!” she cried, sinking to her knees. I threw up on the ground, and I was a mess between tears and vomit and blood. The sky was engulfed in red and smoke and the smell of carnage and decay was strong. Nero had finally caught up to us.

God, help me, I begged, the prayer catching in my throat. I wiped my mouth with the back of my wrist.

“We have to go,” I begged, grabbing her and pulling her arm. She screamed and pounded the ground with her fist, begging for God to help us. He was silent.

“Marcus,” she sobbed.

“We have to go,” I repeated, trying to hold back my tears. My heart was beating hard in my chest as fear swelled and took over me. I was shaking and desperate to leave. She looked up at me, here eyes swollen and red, and I knew I looked like that as well. “Please.”

“God have mercy on us,” she prayed, her voice breaking. She grabbed me and held me close, and I refused to look anywhere else but at her, knowing that if I looked elsewhere, I would cry and vomit again.

I woke up with a sob in my throat. The tears were streaming down my face, and for that moment, all I could feel was immense sadness. My parents were gone, and I was alone. I threw off the blanket and left the room and the tavern quickly. The moment I was outside, I took off at a sprint, feeling the earth beneath my feet and the cold against my skin. I breathed deeply, trying to calm my emotions, trying to soothe the fire. I bit the inside of my cheek and concentrated on that, trying to forget my dream, desperately. I thought about the cold and the throbbing of my cheek and the sun just beginning to rise.

I slowed down, coughing, fighting back tears and sadness. My lungs and throat hurt from running and coughing, and I thought only of my breathing and steadying my heart from its heavy pounding.

Calm down, Sanctius, I thought to myself. It is the past. You are here now. Calm down. Calm down.

My breathing steadied and I stopped coughing. I fought hard to repress the memories that were surfacing, of my parents, of the arena, and I thought about the good things I had.

Antonia. Decimus. Phaedra. Maria. Vespera.

God had brought these people into my life after tragedy. They were what was good. They were my reasons.

A breeze blew through my hair, and I looked up.

Hello, God, I thought, and I sighed. You sent me another nightmare.

He didn’t reply.

I scratched the back of my head. Maybe I shouldn’t complain. Thanks to You, I have five people to love. I looked at my hands, at my slender fingers, and the lines in my palms. God gave me a mother and father, but Nero took them away and gave me a sword. God guided my hands, but Nero took away my sword to make it more fun. God gave me the strength to run, but Nero had forever taken away my liberty.

Nero was the bane of my existence. God was my salvation.

I saw my mother, clutching onto me, screaming, and I swallowed back a cry. Breathe, I thought. I changed the memory to one of Phaedra laughing as I twirled her around. The pain ebbed. I thought of Vespera’s smile, and suddenly I grew relaxed. I felt my heart go to its normal pace, and the warmth seeped back into my cheeks.

I glanced back in the direction of the tavern. I was so grateful to have such a loving and supportive family, even if we weren’t actually related. I took deep breaths and headed back, not wanting Decimus to wake up and wonder where I had gone.