Wrath of the Storm (Mark of the Thief 3)

I smiled over at him. "My final memory of you will be the way you cried like a baby when the soldiers led you away."

He lunged for me, but the soldiers held him back and quickly steered him out of the comitium. I hoped they were taking him back to the carcer, this time for a more permanent stay inside the prison.

Once he was gone, Probus leaned in to me again. "You said you have two requests. I assume the second is for your freedom."

Crispus bowed again, perhaps hoping if he did it often enough, it would save my life. "Caesar can see that Nicolas Calva is concerned for the protection of Rome. He is not a slave anymore, but a freeman and a citizen of the empire. Reward him for his loyalty and his bravery."

Probus nodded and considered that before he looked at me again. "There is no need for the judgment of the Praetors here -- considering they are probably not fair judges at this trial, I will decide your fate alone. Your reasons are honorable, Nicolas Calva, and I respect you for them."

Crispus nudged me with his elbow, and for the first time, I allowed myself to hope. Was it possible I would escape this trial, and what's more, with Brutus under arrest? It seemed like too much.

It was too much. The emperor continued, his face turning more grim, "If all the empire had to contend with were the reasons for your actions, I would release you at once. There is logic to the things you have done. From what I've been told, you have acted in defense only, never to attack the empire, but to stop the attacks upon you. I cannot fault y

ou for defending your life, or the lives of those you love. And yet, I must convict you. Not for what you have done, but for what you are capable of doing. You cannot be allowed to live while having powers that may even rival the gods. Nicolas, my sentence upon you is not a punishment for any crimes of magic, only a consequence for having magic in the first place. I sentence you to death, with full expectation that you will rise up in the Elysian Fields. And from that place of peace, I hope you will forgive the choice I've had to make this day. Long live the empire of Rome!"

Soon die the boy who tried to save it.

The emperor's guards still remaining in the area immediately laid hands on me, but I struggled against them and shouted, "I said I had two requests of Caesar. You have not heard my second!"

"It was for your release," Probus calmly replied. "I have ruled against you."

"That wasn't my other request," I said. "Please hear me."

Probus arched a brow, curious. But he nodded, and the guards let me continue standing to address him, though their grip on my arms remained just as firm.

I said, "For as long as she is condemned by Rome, the dragon I spoke of will seek her revenge. This dragon is no ordinary creature. She was a young vestal who fell in love with Marcus Brutus and assisted him in Julius Caesar's assassination. For his greater crime, Brutus went free. The vestal, named Atroxia, was buried alive and cursed by Diana to become what she is today." By now my heart was racing, yet I had to keep speaking. "I ask you to pardon her for the crime. She has been punished enough."

"Where is this dragon, Nicolas?"

I shook my head, not as a refusal to answer, but simply a refusal to answer as completely as he wanted. "For now she is trapped, but once she gets free, she will seek the destruction of this empire. Perhaps if she had your forgiveness, it would give her peace to move on to the next life. You will save her, but not only her. Allowing her to pass into the next life might also save Rome."

"They will not forgive me." The Mistress was speaking into my head now, her tone cold and bitter. "Just as they will not forgive you. The empire does not understand forgiveness."

Probus placed a finger against his jaw. "I will consider your request, but that still does not change my verdict. You must die today."

A desperate voice called out behind us. "No!" I couldn't see her, but that was Aurelia's cry. Pain and sorrow carried from her voice directly to my heart. I didn't want her to be here, not for this.

Probus only momentarily glanced in her direction before adding, "The executioner awaits you now."

Behind me, Crispus went to his knees. "Reconsider, Caesar, I beg you. He is innocent."

But I wasn't. And it didn't matter anyway. Probus had already turned his back on me. His orders would be carried out.

The crowd that had been behind me parted, and when it did, I first saw the platform that must've been brought here during my short trial. In contrast to the elegance and beauty of most other symbols of Rome, this was a simple raised wooden block, built for no other purpose but death. The executioner was already there, dressed in a simple long black tunic and with an ax balanced in both hands, waiting for me. Of course he was already here. The outcome of my trial had been settled before the first word was even spoken.

Aurelia pushed forward through the crowd. In her hands was the same satchel as before. I had a guess what was in there now, and it concerned me. Although Brutus had been taken away, dozens of other Praetors still surrounded her. I hoped she had not brought the amulets into the forum, even if they were meant to save me. It wouldn't matter anyway. As long as Diana's band remained locked on my arm, the bulla and the Malice were useless.

She got close enough to grab me around the shoulders but was quickly pushed away by one of the emperor's guards. "You cannot save him!" he shouted at her.

The look in her eyes told me otherwise. Saving me was obviously her plan. She definitely had the amulets with her. Even if she meant well, she could find herself in more trouble and still fail to do anything for me.

Even as the soldiers pulled me onward, I looked back at her and firmly shook my head. Revealing she had the amulets would endanger her life, and certainly she'd lose them before they ever got into my hands. It wasn't worth the risk.

Crispus caught up to me, and since he had defended me in the trial, he was allowed to continue walking at my side.

"You only need enough magic to break that armband," he whispered. "I know it's in you somewhere. Please just find it and use it!"

I was stumbling against the fierce hold of the soldiers and their insistent march forward. With my still injured back, and the exhaustion and hunger of the past two days, I found it hard enough simply to remain on my feet. The idea that I might summon magic where there wasn't any was an utter joke. But I wasn't angry with him for asking. We both knew it was my last chance.