Rome Must Fall

Chapter 7: Destination

This gave Maximus great confidence. He said loudly, As long as we defeat the Roman army a few times, demonstrate our abilities, and make the poor Romans aware of our existence, they, who hate the Roman Senate, will definitely join us. With their help, we can leave Italy and return to our homeland!

Sounds quite beautiful Crixus sneered, but Spartacus immediately said to him, Crixus, go and ask our brothers to release those priestesses and dont harm them again!

Spartacus, this guy is a traitor. Do you believe his words?! Crixus stood still and questioned Spartacus while pointing at Maximus.

Whether its true or not, as long as theres a glimmer of hope to strengthen our force and resist the Romans, we must give it a try! Spartacus said firmly. Besides, I dont want everyone here to view us as ruthless enemies, just like how we viewed the Romans who burned, killed, and looted in our homeland.

Crixus was slightly moved, but he still refused, I wont go. Our brothers are having fun, and I cant stop them.

Spartacus didnt insist. He turned to the others and said, Artorix, Oenomaus, you two go and tell our brothers that tomorrow we will head south to raid the Roman farming estates. There will be plenty of beautiful women for them to enjoy. No need to make things difficult for a few poor priestesses.

Alright, Spartacus, the two said as they left.

Maximus wanted to follow, but Spartacus stopped him, I remember you told me before that theres a volcano called Vesuvius to the south of Capua, and there are many large farming estates nearby with lots of slaves. There was even a rebellion a few years ago. Is that true?

Upon hearing this, Maximus felt a stir in his heart. Indeed, there was such information from the memories of the previous Maximus. He answered straightforwardly, Yes, thats right. Spartacus, are you planning to take us there?

Spartacus nodded and asked, Do you know how far Mount Vesuvius is from us?

The original Maximus had never been to the Vesuvius region and didnt have the opportunity to access maps. The current information he had was gathered from conversations between the original Maximus master and guests during meals. However, Maximus had looked up this information while watching the TV series about Spartacus in his previous life and later delved deeper into the map of Mount Vesuvius while watching the movie Pompeii. The memories were quite vivid. He tried hard to recall and said, Mount Vesuvius is in the southern part of Campania, not too far from Capua. If we march fast we should be able to reach it within a day. Uh, is there water?

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The last sentence was a bit abrupt, but Hamilcar immediately handed over a pitcher.

Thank you! Maximus said politely.

Hamilcar smiled kindly at him.

Hamilcar, a Thracian, was slightly old. It was said that he belonged to the same tribe as Spartacus, and they had a close relationship. In the original Maximus impression, he was friendly, sociable, and most gladiators had a good impression of him. He had assisted Spartacus in persuading the gladiators to participate in the rebellion.

Maximus squatted down, dipped his fingers in the water, and drew the coastline of the Campania region on the stone slab. Then he sketched the approximate location of Capua and Mount Vesuvius. After thinking for a moment, he drew three small circles on the coastline near Mount Vesuvius: This is Naples mentioned by the driver of the wagon earlier, a large town in the Campania region These are Pompeii and Herculaneum, both small cities

Maximus almost blurted out that both Pompeii and Herculaneum would be buried under the surging lava from Mount Vesuvius in a few decades.

Everyone gathered around, focusing on the simple map drawn by Maximus.

Even Crixus, who was very dissatisfied with him, had to admit in his heart: This damn guy is still somewhat useful.

After a while, Spartacus looked up at everyone. Does anyone have objection about going to Mount Vesuvius?

No one objected.

Then its settled, Spartacus made a decision. Tomorrow morning, if the Capuan army doesnt show up, well head south at noon. Hamilcar, have you made arrangements for our brothers on guard duty tonight?

Everything has been arranged.

You must remind them to stay alert, not to sleep, and to notify everyone immediately if they notice anything unusual! We are now opposing the Romans, so we must not be careless! Spartacus reminded solemnly.

Late at night, the physically and mentally exhausted Maximus entered the land of dreams amidst the sound of snoring from other gladiators, but he had a nightmare.

In the dream, the rebel army he was in engaged in a fierce battle with the Roman legions, and despite the intense fighting, the rebel army was ultimately defeated. He was captured by the Romans, nailed to the cross by the road leading to Rome, and died in a miserable and agonizing death

Maximus woke up from the nightmare, drenched in sweat. He touched the palm of his hand, which had been pierced by iron nails in the dream, and the excruciating pain he felt as if it had really happened

This is by no means a dream, this is a historical fact!

Maximus vividly remembered that in history, the uprising led by Spartacus, although grand in scale, only lasted for less than three years before it met its downfall. Over 6,000 captured rebel soldiers were crucified

Maximus gasped for breath and instinctively turned his head. The flames of the oil lamp in the hall flickered inconsistently. The once benevolent-looking statue of Flora, in the dim light, appeared somewhat eerie and sinister as it coldly overlooked a group of people sleeping below, with Spartacus presumably in the center.

Maximus gazed at the familiar silhouette, recalling the brief records in history: In fact, the rebel army had a real chance to escape the Roman pursuit and achieve true freedom. At that time, Spartacus led his army north, winning successive battles, and had reached the Po River area, with the towering Alps in sight. If the rebel army crossed the Alps and entered Western Europe inhabited by Gauls and Germanic people, the Romans would have had no power over them. However, Spartacus led the rebel army back south, ultimately leading to their demise Why did Spartacus suddenly change the marching route and abandon the escape from northern Italy? This has become one of the great mysteries in history, and people have been debating about it for thousands of years

Would he be able to persuade Spartacus and the others to change their tragic fate? Maximus clenched his fists, determined not to become a lifeless body on a cross!

Meanwhile, Spartacus in the hall was not actually asleep. He had spent a long time planning this rebellion, ultimately achieving success. However, he knew deep down that they had only temporarily gained freedom. Italy was the most powerful region under Roman control, and they were swimming in the vast sea of Roman influence. One slight misstep could result in defeat and death

The lives of over two hundred people weighed heavily on Spartacus

Dolus Vibius, an old Roman citizen. As his name suggests, his family was not a noble. However, his grandfather had a talent for business and seized the opportunity presented by Romes continuous expansion in the Mediterranean, accumulating considerable wealth, thus elevating their family to the equestrian class in Rome. His father had served as a financial officer, responsible for the least promising task of managing the treasury and documents, which he did for over a decade without further advancement. Nevertheless, he forged connections with many Roman elites.

In his generation, during the dictatorship of Sulla, new laws were enacted: All towns within Italy must be governed by administrative officials appointed by Rome.