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on_holy_groundIt had been far to quiet in the camp, as though everyone was waiting for something with baited breath, and Darius was not someone to simply overlook such a change.
Normally, his men would be laughing and telling stories of their past conquests around the fires as they cleaned and sharpened their weapons. There would be fighting among them as they let off some of the nervous energy that was always just below the surface on the long treks that would often come before a battle. There would be much blustering and talk of how many men they would kill and what riches they would amass for themselves, and for their General.
However, it seemed that whenever he walked among them now, all he heard was faint whisperings that would stop as soon as he came close. The only things he saw were the guarded looks of his men as he walked past the fires, most of them not even bothering to acknowledge him as they once did. It was time, Darius thought, to see what exactly was going on.
So he dressed in some of the cast off rags of some of the slaves his men had taken in a previous raid, dirtied up his face with mud and filth, and walked among the men. He slowly moved through the camp, doing a slaves work, and quietly listening. They didn’t look twice at him, and barely even noted his existence other than a few cuffs here and there that Darius made note of in order to deal out the proper punishment later.
And they talked, whispering among themselves about how Darius was a fool for allowing himself to be taken with Alaric’s sister. How he was setting himself and them up for failure and worse if Alaric should find out what was going on. There was even some talk about outright betrayal, where they would help one of his second’s take command of the army.
Darius had heard more than enough, and he made his way back to his tent in order to make plans. The next day, he personally killed a dozen of the most outspoken of his men.
There were no more whispers in the camp.
Normally, his men would be laughing and telling stories of their past conquests around the fires as they cleaned and sharpened their weapons. There would be fighting among them as they let off some of the nervous energy that was always just below the surface on the long treks that would often come before a battle. There would be much blustering and talk of how many men they would kill and what riches they would amass for themselves, and for their General.
However, it seemed that whenever he walked among them now, all he heard was faint whisperings that would stop as soon as he came close. The only things he saw were the guarded looks of his men as he walked past the fires, most of them not even bothering to acknowledge him as they once did. It was time, Darius thought, to see what exactly was going on.
So he dressed in some of the cast off rags of some of the slaves his men had taken in a previous raid, dirtied up his face with mud and filth, and walked among the men. He slowly moved through the camp, doing a slaves work, and quietly listening. They didn’t look twice at him, and barely even noted his existence other than a few cuffs here and there that Darius made note of in order to deal out the proper punishment later.
And they talked, whispering among themselves about how Darius was a fool for allowing himself to be taken with Alaric’s sister. How he was setting himself and them up for failure and worse if Alaric should find out what was going on. There was even some talk about outright betrayal, where they would help one of his second’s take command of the army.
Darius had heard more than enough, and he made his way back to his tent in order to make plans. The next day, he personally killed a dozen of the most outspoken of his men.
There were no more whispers in the camp.
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no subject
Date: 2006-02-25 03:15 am (UTC)Walk down memory lane?
no subject
Date: 2006-02-25 08:09 am (UTC)Something like that.
no subject
Date: 2006-02-27 02:13 pm (UTC)Always good, from time to time.