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Ties That Bind
Date: 9/18/2015, Categories: Historical, Author: bad_mann_ers, Rating: 5, Source: LushStories
late, soldiers from his own command arrived. "The chief tribune has attacked me in my own apartments, and I fear I have not long to live. Bring me a witness," he commanded. "Bring the physician," the soldiers yelled. Time raced by as no one appeared, and the darkness crept in closer. Marcus wondered if he would manage to live long enough to give his dying orders. The magistrate's witness appeared with the medic on his heels. "Listen," Marcus called to the witness. The medic pushed forward to attend his shoulder. "I know my time has ended," Marcus stated. "It is my will that this slave woman be made free. I grant her this freedom not for the pleasures I have taken from her, but for the service she has given the Empire. Her ability to speak to the traders in their own language has greatly benefited the Empire, and she is now free." Marcus made one last effort to see that the witness had marked his words. He wished he could see her face one last time, but the darkness swallowed him, and he let out his final breath. --- Mors is a cruel god, sparing some while others must die. Marcus never realized how cruel Death could be until he opened his eyes in the afterlife, and saw that she was there with him. He struggled to voice his objection. She gently kissed his brow, and told him he needed to rest. She gave him a cool drink, and the darkness took him again. Several times, Marcus woke in the afterlife, and she sent him back into the darkness. It took him far too long to realize that ...