Heir of Aurelian

Frank sat in a bar, within the city of New York. In his hands was an IPA of a reputable brand, and by his side was a beautiful young woman listening to his emphatic lecture on the dark ages, and the few technological achievements that were made during this period. The young woman seemed interested, if only because she found the grad student to be decently attractive in appearance.

“You see, following the Collapse of the Western Roman Empire in 476 AD, we have what is commonly referred to as the Dark Ages, but in reality, it was just one of several throughout history. For example, the Greek Dark Ages following the Bronze Age collapse immediately comes to mind.

Generally speaking, a Dark Age is a period of time, often centuries, where little historical record exists, and there is substantial evidence of societal stagnation, especially in terms of technology. Following the collapse of the Western Roman Empire, the Germanic tribes which were partially responsible for its destruction fought and built various kingdoms.

Some of these were built using the skeleton of Rome, and others had to start from scratch. During this time period of several hundred years, a critical piece of military technology was developed, or at the very least introduced to western civilization, most likely from Asia. This was the stirrup, which as you should be aware if you know anything about horses, is generally speaking two pieces of metal connected via leather strips to the saddle. However, early on, evidence supports that they were made of wood.

Stirrups provided enormous military advantages. For example, they made it easier for cavalry to mount their steeds and maintain their balance while on horseback. Because of this, we see the invention of shock cavalry after stirrups were created. After all, stirrups allow the rider to stay on horseback, at full speed, even if they were to collide with an enemy soldier with their lance. This was something that was unfeasible before its invention.”

The woman simply nodded and smiled at Frank’s lengthy summary about stirrups, pretending like she actually cared. When Frank had finally found his breath and took a sip from his beer, he handed over a crude outline of the device drawn onto a cocktail napkin. The woman looked it over for but a second before placing it on the counter and asking the question in her mind.

“So, do you want to go back to your place or mine?”_.

In the next moment, Marcellus awoke from his slumber with a start. Lying next to him on the thick bedding was his slave girl, Sigefrida. He was struggling to come to terms with the strange dream he had just endured. His mind was all over his place. During his sleep, he had taken on the identity of the man who was killed in the snowy street on that fateful night. Everything this man said, everything he saw, it was as if Marcellus had personally witnessed it. Just what was happening to him?

Still, there was something more important on his mind. In this dream, it was said that the Western Roman Empire collapsed in 476 AD. Just what did that mean? Marcellus could not decipher that there were only roughly 70 years left before the Empire faced its destruction. After all, the modern calendar would not exist for at least another hundred years, let alone be widely adopted.

As he processed the information, which was now engrained in his brain, Marcellus recalled the image of the stirrups drawn rather poorly upon the napkin. While it may just be a dream, the technology appeared to be feasible at first glance, and was nothing complicated. Perhaps if he were to introduce such a thing to his cavalry, it would give him as a big as an advantage as his dream persona had said.

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As he was trying to understand the comments of his dream, the busty Suebi beauty who lied next to him opened her eyes and noticed that her master was drenched in sweat. She immediately propped up out of bed and latched onto his side like a lamprey as she placed a palm on his head, checking for a fever.

“Marcellus, are you okay? You look ill?”

It was only after he had Sigefrida’s voice that Marcellus finally awoke from his daze. He quickly kissed the woman on the forehead before assuring him everything was alright.

“I’m fine, thank you for your concern, but I just had a strange dream is all…”

Sigefrida could tell by the glimpse in his eyes that the reality was more than what her master had claimed. Thus, she leaned her head onto his shoulder before gazing into his deep olive-green eyes while asking a simple question.

“Do you want to talk about it?”

Despite the woman’s concern, Marcellus most definitely did not want to talk about the visions and dreams he had started having ever since that club collided with his helmet during the first days of his campaign. For if he did, then Sigefrida would surely worry about his condition. Instead, he merely petted the girl’s silky platinum-blonde hair and reassured her that everything was alright.

“That’s not necessary, I just need to get some more sleep is all…”

When Sigefrida heard this, she climbed back under the fur covers and nodded her head, provoking Marcellus to do the same. He quickly wrapped around the woman in a spooning position as he fell back into the sweet embrace of sleep.

Whatever he had seen during his dream, he would address it in the morning when he had the time. After all, a General’s rest was of vital importance to his ability to command. Thus, Marcellus quickly drifted back to sleep. This time, his dreams were of the normal variant.

When the light of dawn shone through the villa’s windows, Marcellus rose from his seat as he rubbed his weary eyes. The first thought on his mind was once more about the strange dream he had the night prior. He gazed over at the spot next to him and witnessed Sigefrida smiling while peacefully asleep. Upon seeing her so defenseless, a rather crass idea formed in his mind, and he instantly leaned in to give the woman a kiss.

When their lips were only inches away from one another, Sigefrida opened her eyes to see her master’s shameful actions. She immediately began to panic but calmed herself as a brief moment of clarity reached mind. She reflected on her choices as her mind outpaced her surroundings.

“If I let him kiss me while he thinks I’m asleep, then surely that woman can’t blame me for it?”

Thus, she had steeled her resolve and closed her eyes once more, believing this to be her only shot to act intimately with her master. In the next moment Marcellus’ lips collided with hers, and she pretended to be completely asleep, allowing him to passionately take advantage of her “sleeping condition”.

In the end, Marcellus made his move and then withdrew, too frightful of what would happen if she awoke during his advances. When it became apparent to Sigefrida that Marcellus wasn’t taking it any further, she opened her eyes and yawned, acting as if their first kiss had never happened, instead gazing over at Marcellus who sat at the corner of the bed with a warm smile. She instantly latched onto his side and hugged her master as she greeted him.

“Good morning, Marcellus! I will get started on breakfast right away!”

Sigefrida quickly got dressed in her ragged attire. She would spare no time as she began preparations for breakfast. Or so she thought. However, the moment she opened the door, Aeliana stood there in disbelief. It took a few moments for the woman to swallow her rage before gazing sternly at Marcellus.

“Marcellus, my son, do you mind explaining to me why this lowly slave was in your quarters so early in the morning?”

When Marcellus heard this, he chuckled before responding to his mother nonchalantly, as if the whole thing were some minor issue. Completely unaware of how spiteful his mother truly was towards his beloved slave.

“Sorry mother, I forgot I was back home. When we are on campaign, we usually share the same bed for warmth and security…”

When Sigefrida heard her master openly admit this to his mother, she felt as if her life was over. She immediately stammered as she tried to explain to the woman that nothing serious had ever happened between them.

“Dom… Domina… I s-swear that the Dominus has only ever asked me to cuddle with him for warmth. Nothing has happened between us!”

Aeliana glared at Sigefrida with a frightening gaze. It was as if she was searching the girl’s soul to determine if what she was saying was true. A terrifying smile appeared on her face as she interrogated the woman as if she were a common criminal.

“Oh? So nothing has happened between the two of you? Can you swear on your life that such a thing is true?”

Scared beyond measure, Sigefrida could only tap her fingers together and look away as she lied to the woman she was most afraid of, dreading whatever punishment she may receive for allowing Marcellus to kiss her.

“I swear on my life…”

Aeliana was a wise woman and could tell that Sigefrida was lying to her. She had the desire to kill the harlot who had seduced her son then and there. However, after several moments of clarity, she ultimately sighed before addressing her son, who still lie comfortably under his covers.

“Marcellus, get dressed, and meet me in the dining hall for breakfast. I am sure that Sigefrida would be more than happy to cook us breakfast, isn’t that right?”

In response to this, Sigefrida merely nodded her head silently before rushing off to the kitchen. Not wanting to spend a single moment alone with her master’s mother. As for Marcellus, he was more concerned about the strange dream he had the night before. He swore that later in the day he would have to experiment with the device he had seen in his dreams to see if it was really lived up to the hype.