Ascendant

PROLOGUE

"You're supposed to be in the fields, aren't you?" one of them barked.

"I was injured. Liberius told me to get out of his way," Appius lied.

"And the boy?" the other asked, seeing right through him.

There was a small moment of silence before the child cringed from hearing the sound of Appius being punched hard and his body hitting the dirt.

The Vicarii kicked him on the ground once... and then again. "Don't forget who's in charge of whether or not you live or die, you worthless drudge!"

"You poison my ears with the same sentiment that labels yourself, Vicarii," he spat in reply. "Don't you forget that."

He was kicked again from what the boy could hear and the child's eyes shut tightly as he huddled, listening to the way his friend was being beaten mercilessly by their superiors.

Listening.

Always listening.

Where he belonged; in hiding, trembling and scared. This was a home he knew well. Ever since he was taken as a prisoner of war and sold to Viventius, he was nothing more than a terrified child, knowing only scarcity rather than any kind of plenty.

And here he was again... unchanged.

After Appius had passed out, they shoved him and a voice said, "Find the boy!"

At this, the child widened his eyes and got up, sprinting in the other direction to escape them, hearing their footsteps searching for him from behind as he ran.

His palms hit the sides of the slave huts as he fled, sandals kicking the dusty ground with force. He turned and continued to weave between houses when he heard shouting behind him and mens' footsteps in pursuit.

Looking over his shoulder, he spotted them not far behind and he hurried, almost tripping over a basket by the doorway of a house as he did so. His eyes searched for a place he could slip in to hide before he was noticed but they were too close and a hand grasped his shirt, yanking him to the ground as he was almost choked by the collar of his tunic, his back hitting the brown-beige dirt and throwing a puff of dust into the air as he coughed.

"Where do you think you're running off to, huh?" one of them said before he took out his whip.

The kid tried to jump to his feet but he was outnumbered by them and one grabbed his arm, dragging him before the kid tripped the man, causing the Vicarii to fall on his back. The boy jumped atop him to punch him in the face but just after he did this, his head was kicked by another and he saw stars, falling to the ground again.

"Abandoning your responsibilities again and assaulting a superior?" the one with the whip questioned.

They took the boy's arms and held him up as he glared at the man from under his bloody brow.

"I think it's time you knew your place," he added and struck the boy with the whip, getting his arm with it as it stung, leaving behind a bright red mark that threatened to bleed.

When the man did this again, getting his other arm, the kid let out a small cry of pain through his teeth, trying to hold it back but his skin was practically on fire with pain.

One more time, the last one was across the face, causing him to pull his hands to the wound and fall to his knees, trying his hardest not to cry in pain as it felt like his flesh was torn from his face.

The whip wielder walked slowly forward and grasped the kid's jaw so he was forced to look at him. "This is your last warning, boy..." he spoke in a slow and threatening manner.