IC-Ep 1-A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum(All)
Posted: Mon Aug 31, 2015 5:58 am
Forum Romanum- Rome, Italia
Morning - March 14, 44 BC
Story, Elizabeth Young, Lucius Verres, and Brook Davies emerged from the alley and entered a large open marketplace. Lucius immediately recognized it as the Forum Romanum, the very heart of Roman life. Nestled between the Capitoline and Palatine Hills, it was paved with stone and lined with temples, shops (all closed), and other prominent buildings. One of these was the Curia, where the Roman Senate would meet. Though none of the shops were open, which Lucius knew meant it had to be one of the many Roman holidays, the forum was still full of people mingling, talking, and enjoying entertainment. There were singers, dancers, jugglers, and people playing musical instruments. A man with a proud bearing who wore a white toga with a broad purple stripe made his way across the forum, a hideous figure of a man limping along at his heels in a brown hooded cloak not unlike Lucius's, only obviously customized to fit the man's misshapen form, over a plain brown toga. Ahead of them walked two tough-looking men, each carrying a long staff. Lucius identified them as lictors, bodyguards for prominent Romans. Also nearby was a man in his mid-thirties with auburn hair in a tattered gray toga with a red overcloak. Age had not been kind to his features, but he looked all right in comparison to the deformed man. There was also an absolutely stunning woman in her mid-twenties, wearing a toga that was clearly in much better shape. In addition, an old man wandered through the forum, frequently looking around.
The people in the forum saw the new arrivals enter the forum. The older man looked to be in his forties and had Brittanian features, as did the woman in her early twenties and the teenage girl accompanying him, though they all wore togas and sandals as Romans did. Their clothes were decent enough, if a bit out of style. Perhaps the ladies were his daughters. Also with them was a tall, muscular Roman man in a toga, with a brown hooded cucullus over it.
Senator Tiberius Tullius Germanicus walked through the forum, gladhanding and chatting with the crowds. After the salutatio, where he met with his clients, he often mingled with the people in the mornings outside the Curia. He recognized a couple of his clients here as well, which was no surprise. Today was the festival of Equiria, one of the few dedicated to Mars, the god of war. For the next couple of weeks, every day was a holiday of one sort or another. However, all of the shops were closed today, and would be again tomorrow. Instead, people took in entertainments such as plays and chariot races. It was a day off for Romans, and even slaves weren't allowed to work. Still, Claudius Marcius followed him faithfully as always, and his presence was...useful. Claudius was relieved to have the chance to relax and enjoy himself. Most of his life was full of pain and drudgery. Holidays were his few chances to take a breather.
Titus Iunius Philo often found people in the forum who wanted the future foretold. Senators, priests, or ordinary Romans would come to him to see what the omens said. While things appeared to have been settling down since the end of the war, the omens he had been seeing in recent weeks were getting darker and darker. Bad times were coming, but you wouldn't know it from seeing everyone enjoying the holiday. What was that old proverb? Eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die? Something like that. That old man looked vaguely familiar to him. Where had he seen him before?
Caelia Alba was glad for the holiday. It gave her the opportunity to celebrate and have fun. While she did enjoy her work, it could also be very stressful. People's lives were literally in her hands, and it was not an easy burden. A festival dedicated to Mars didn't feel right to her, as war had claimed her husband. On the other hand, it had also been good for business. There had been no shortage of wounded soldiers, and some had even sought her services in spite of the fact that she is a woman. A number of them had known her late husband, which may have been why they came to her. Still, it was good that the war was behind them, and she wouldn't be sorry if there was never another one. However, she knew human nature all too well. There would always be another war.