Ancient Rome – Page 4 – THE LEGEND OF THE GREAT HORSE trilogy

#51- The Emperor’s Chariot

Caesar stood as riders in green tunics rode forth between columns of marching men. The first chariot to appear was pulled by four black horses, their manes woven in matching emerald ribbon. – Eclipsed by Shadow (excerpt)

19 centuries ago …

“How are the omens, my Master of Horse?”

A puny man near the front of the platform jumped as if prodded. He stood quickly, his oversized garments in disarray. “Very good, Caesar, very good. The horses are ready and the omens are with us, favored son of gods. Victory should be ours.”

The platform’s audience clapped dutifully. The man called Caesar shifted in his seat. “So you always say, Master of Horse. So it never is.”

Trumpet blasts sounded across the stadium. On the oval sand track below, men in red tunics marched forward pounding drums and cymbals. Chariots entered, appointed in red and drawn by surging teams of four horses. The drivers turned and saluted the platform as they passed. Anxious as she was, Meagan was stirred by the pageantry flowing across the track.

Cheering rose for a new entering color. Caesar stood as riders in green tunics rode forth between columns of marching men. The first chariot to appear was pulled by four black horses, their manes woven in matching emerald ribbon.

A gasp went up from the spectators as one of the horses rose in his traces. The animal was satin black with the thick crest of a stallion. The horse struck his partner and the team swerved out of line as kicks hammered the chariot. Dull thuds echoed across the field. Men flooded the track and stretched ropes before the fighting horses.

From the raised center of the platform, stone-faced Caesar watched.

As those on the track worked to subdue the fighting horses, the man called the Master of Horse groaned piteously and covered his face. Caesar gave the shriveled man a long, chilly stare, then abruptly stood and made his way across the deck, followed by his guards.

“Emperor Trajan…” the olive-skinned man beside Meagan called respectfully. “We have the slaves you pardoned. Will you assign them?”

Meagan felt a hand at her back as she was pushed forward…

Excerpted from Eclipsed by Shadow, the award-winning 1st volume of “The Legend of the Great Horse” trilogy. (Hrdbk pg. 121)

Book II: The Golden Spark will be published soon.

Read the 1st Chapter online!

#50- Captive

FOR A LONG time Meagan remained in the position the soldiers had left her, stunned and afraid to move. She huddled alone in a cold, gritty underground cell, buried in catacombs beneath the amphitheater. – Eclipsed by Shadow (excerpt)

FOR A LONG time Meagan remained in the position the soldiers had left her, stunned and afraid to move. She huddled alone in a cold, gritty underground cell, buried in catacombs beneath the amphitheater. Her shoulder ached from her fall, and her forearm was raw from a soldier’s hard grip. Her nightgown was torn and filthy.

Muffled cheering surged at intervals, coming from all sides of her prison. Meagan hugged her knees and rocked when the sounds came, reliving the images in her mind. I’ve seen the worst that people can do, she thought numbly. People can do anything. She rocked as another roar rose to surround her. Things could never be normal again.

In time the cheering ended. Long hours passed in silence. Scurrying cellmates skittered around her, tiny shadows in the gloom of flickering torchlight. This isn’t real, Meagan still told herself, making it a mantra. Promise will come back for me. She will come back…

The scraping of a latch startled her. “Salve!” a voice greeted her gruffly. Two men entered, their armor gleaming dully in the torchlight.

Excerpted from Eclipsed by Shadow, the award-winning 1st volume of “The Legend of the Great Horse” trilogy. (Hrdbk pg. 117)

Book II: The Golden Spark will be published December 2010.

Read the 1st Chapter online!

#49- In the Shadow of the Coliseum

Even in this dark dream, Meagan did not want to see another death. She forgot danger; she reached over the stricken horse and touched the soldier’s arm. The eye in the scarred face fixed on her. The granite look of victory flickered as the crowd fell silent. –Eclipsed by Shadow (excerpt)

THE CROWD BEGAN laughing at the terrified girl clinging to her fugitive mount, the only entertainment remaining. Spectators pointed and mocked her frantic ride. Meagan tried to coax her mount down to a slower pace, but the frightened horse fought every pull. The animal’s breath came in short, explosive bursts. Flecks of foam covered Meagan’s legs.

The crowd’s roar surged as her mount stumbled and pitched. Meagan’s shoulder hit the sand as the horse fell, and she rolled to escape being pinned. She pulled herself to her knees.

The fallen horse lay heaving. Going to the animal’s head, Meagan spoke gently, huddled against the sound of the crowd. Around her were only the dead and dying and panting soldiers leaning on spears. The crowd clamored for more blood, but the sound receded into the background of her mind.

A uniformed man strode towards her and the fallen horse. He wore no helmet and his hair was plastered in sweat. Scars slashed his face, and one slash intersected the place his left eye should have been. The man ignored Meagan and stood over the horse’s head. His living eye was filled with hard passion. She shouted to him but the man did not hear. He was savoring the moment, the glory. He lifted his sword over the horse’s neck.

Even in this dark dream, Meagan did not want to see another death. She forgot danger; she reached over the stricken horse and touched the soldier’s arm. The eye in the scarred face fixed on her. The granite look of victory flickered as the crowd fell silent. The stricken horse lifted his neck and rose in a series of well-timed jerks. Shouts began to rise across the stadium as the pardoned horse jogged stiffly away to find his partner.

The disfigured soldier pulled Meagan to her feet. She half-jogged to keep up with the man’s purposeful strides as he brought her to the side of the arena. On the platform above her, a robed man stood. He waited a moment, listening to the ovation, and thrust his fist into the air.

Excerpted from Eclipsed by Shadow, the award-winning 1st volume of “The Legend of the Great Horse” trilogy. (Hrdbk pg. 116)

Book II: The Golden Spark will be published soon.

Read the 1st Chapter online!

#47- Savage Nation

Meagan knelt in her tattered nightgown, barefoot on wet, cement-like flooring. This is not happening, she repeated, keeping her eye on the soldiers. The group was forced to its feet and she was shoved forward with the others. Sweat, garlic and leather mingled with the scent of animals and dung. – Eclipsed by Shadow

“HABES SPEM NATANDI!”

An icy blast of water filled Meagan’s eyes and nose. She tripped among wet bodies as she was drenched by another downpour. A crowd of ragged people crouched around her, soaked and shivering within a circle of steel spears. Men in rags stood close with brimming buckets.

Where am I now?

Another bucket was tossed. Meagan gasped under the spray and stood to escape. Metal-tipped points blocked her way. Bronze-helmeted men came closer, shouting furiously at the people cringing within the circle of spears. The prisoners were men and women both, mostly young, and all were filthy and sodden. A few bled diluted streaks into the rags they wore. Sweat, garlic and leather mingled with the scent of animals and dung.

Meagan knelt in her tattered nightgown, barefoot on wet, cement-like flooring. This is not happening, she repeated, keeping her eye on the soldiers. The group was forced to its feet and she was shoved forward with the others. Incredibly, Meagan heard something she understood just as another bucket drenched her. It was a fragment of a language heard only in a classroom, but the words were well-formed and clear: the words were Latin and they meant, you have hopes of swimming.

Soldiers forced the group against a wooden wall until splinters pressed into Meagan’s forearm. Suddenly the wall gave way, swinging open. She was pushed into open space.

Sound rose and shook the air. Filled bleachers banked a vast four-story amphitheatre. Tall masts soared to spread a high awning over the stadium. A moat circled the inner arena floor, and beyond it smooth marble walls were topped with elephant tusks and netting. Cherub-winged boys suspended by rope swooped over white sand and arced high above the audience. Near the opposite end of the stadium, a team of mules was lashed to something dark and slack. It took a moment for Meagan to recognize the shape of an elephant.