Air and Darkness Read Online Free
Author: David Drake
the Danube; he was made a Knight of Carce when he retired.
The other factor in Cispiusâ success in the army was luck: all the intelligence and skill in the world couldnât always keep a soldier alive, and courage was a negative survival factor. Choosing Pulto as his servant and bodyguard might have been the luckiest choice Cispius had made in his military career.
Cispius had led his troops from the front. Pulto was always there, anticipating dangers and putting himself between them and the Old Man. On one memorable afternoon Pulto had thrown himself over his master, unconscious on the frozen Danube, while Sarmatians thrust lances at him.
When Corylus went to Carce to finish his education with the finest rhetoric teachers in the empire, Cispius had sent Pulto with him. The dangers of a large city are less predictable than those of the frontier, and in many ways they are greater for a young man who has grown up in the structure of military service. Pulto would look out for the Young Master, just as he had for the father.
Corylus hadnât thought he needed a minder, and perhaps he hadnât: he was an active young man who avoided giving offense but who could take care of himself if he had to. In the army, though, you were never really alone, even when you wereâunofficiallyâon the east side of the Danube with the Batavian Scouts.
Early in his classes with Pandareus of Athens, Corylus had intervened when Piso, a senatorâs son, and several cronies had started bullying a youth who was both smaller and obviously smarter. Corylus could have handled Piso and his friends easily enough, but he hadnât thought about the retinue of servants accompanying the bullies.
The servants hadnât gotten involved, because Pulto stood between them and the trouble with his hand lifted just enough to show the hilt of the sword he wore under his tunic. The weapon was completely illegal within the boundaries of Carce, but nobody made a fuss about it, since the youth being bullied was the son of Senator Gaius Alphenus Saxa. Saxaâs influence couldnât have saved his son from a beating, but it had been more than sufficient to prevent retribution on those who had stopped the beating.
Varus had been appreciative. He had as few friends in Carce as Corylus did, though in Varusâ case that was because he didnât have any use for hangers-on or any interest in the drunken parties that were the usual pastime for youths of his class. Corylus was scholar enough to discuss the literature and history that mattered to Varus; and because Varus gave his new friend use of the gymnasium that was part of the Alphenus town house, Varus started exercising also.
The sauce on the mullet was that the householdâs private trainer, a veteran named Marcus Lenatus, was a friend of Pulto from when they both served with the Alaudae. Quite apart from the good that exercise did Varus, Pulto had had a word with his army buddy. Varus never again left the house without an escort who were willing to mix it with three times their number of thugs, if that was what it took to keep their master from a beating. The youth himself was probably oblivious of the difference.
âI should have worn a toga,â Pulto muttered harshly. âI donât care what you say, I shouldâve worn one!â
âAbsolutely not,â Corylus said firmly. âThe senator wonât set eyes on you, and youâre not here to impress the staff by wearing a tent. Besides, they know who you are.â
In Corylusâ heart he wondered if Pulto might not be right, though. It was too late to change now.
The toga had been normal wear in ancient Carce, but now the heavy square of wool was worn only on formal occasions. Corylus wore a toga in class, because Pandareus was teaching them to speak in court, where it was the uniform of the day. Even when Corylus came straight from class to the town house, he doffed the toga inside before he
The other factor in Cispiusâ success in the army was luck: all the intelligence and skill in the world couldnât always keep a soldier alive, and courage was a negative survival factor. Choosing Pulto as his servant and bodyguard might have been the luckiest choice Cispius had made in his military career.
Cispius had led his troops from the front. Pulto was always there, anticipating dangers and putting himself between them and the Old Man. On one memorable afternoon Pulto had thrown himself over his master, unconscious on the frozen Danube, while Sarmatians thrust lances at him.
When Corylus went to Carce to finish his education with the finest rhetoric teachers in the empire, Cispius had sent Pulto with him. The dangers of a large city are less predictable than those of the frontier, and in many ways they are greater for a young man who has grown up in the structure of military service. Pulto would look out for the Young Master, just as he had for the father.
Corylus hadnât thought he needed a minder, and perhaps he hadnât: he was an active young man who avoided giving offense but who could take care of himself if he had to. In the army, though, you were never really alone, even when you wereâunofficiallyâon the east side of the Danube with the Batavian Scouts.
Early in his classes with Pandareus of Athens, Corylus had intervened when Piso, a senatorâs son, and several cronies had started bullying a youth who was both smaller and obviously smarter. Corylus could have handled Piso and his friends easily enough, but he hadnât thought about the retinue of servants accompanying the bullies.
The servants hadnât gotten involved, because Pulto stood between them and the trouble with his hand lifted just enough to show the hilt of the sword he wore under his tunic. The weapon was completely illegal within the boundaries of Carce, but nobody made a fuss about it, since the youth being bullied was the son of Senator Gaius Alphenus Saxa. Saxaâs influence couldnât have saved his son from a beating, but it had been more than sufficient to prevent retribution on those who had stopped the beating.
Varus had been appreciative. He had as few friends in Carce as Corylus did, though in Varusâ case that was because he didnât have any use for hangers-on or any interest in the drunken parties that were the usual pastime for youths of his class. Corylus was scholar enough to discuss the literature and history that mattered to Varus; and because Varus gave his new friend use of the gymnasium that was part of the Alphenus town house, Varus started exercising also.
The sauce on the mullet was that the householdâs private trainer, a veteran named Marcus Lenatus, was a friend of Pulto from when they both served with the Alaudae. Quite apart from the good that exercise did Varus, Pulto had had a word with his army buddy. Varus never again left the house without an escort who were willing to mix it with three times their number of thugs, if that was what it took to keep their master from a beating. The youth himself was probably oblivious of the difference.
âI should have worn a toga,â Pulto muttered harshly. âI donât care what you say, I shouldâve worn one!â
âAbsolutely not,â Corylus said firmly. âThe senator wonât set eyes on you, and youâre not here to impress the staff by wearing a tent. Besides, they know who you are.â
In Corylusâ heart he wondered if Pulto might not be right, though. It was too late to change now.
The toga had been normal wear in ancient Carce, but now the heavy square of wool was worn only on formal occasions. Corylus wore a toga in class, because Pandareus was teaching them to speak in court, where it was the uniform of the day. Even when Corylus came straight from class to the town house, he doffed the toga inside before he
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