A Twist in Time

The sun was high in the sky as a man and boy sat by a quayside. There was little shade but neither the boy or man minded. In their hands were rods with lines that were dunked into the sea, the water lapping at their skin. The boy was mimicking the man and the water barely covered his toes but the boy was oblivious to this little thing. They were both enjoying some fishing regardless of whether anything would take the bait. The rods were simple and useful, something both boy and a man with only one arm could operate.

The boy's line tugged, "Papa!" and he tried tugging back.

The man laughed, "Easy son. Let it think it has the bait. Let it eat, then pull and gently. Remember what I said?"

"Pull with it?" the boy smiled when his father nodded and the boy focused on his line, his tongue set between his teeth with concentration. The line tugged harder and it was soon clear to the man the boy had caught something strong. Transferring his rod to his thighs, the man reached to help the boy pull it in.

Fins broke the surface and the man chuckled, "You have aimed high today, a shark no less." The shark was small but strong and after a moment they brought it flipping to the wood of the pier they sat on.

"Papa! Your rod," the boy pointed and the man shook his head.
"I'll make a new one. Look at your catch, it's a young'n"
"He's amazing... Look at them teeth!"
"Ha! This one's a girl shark," the man pointed out, and the boy smiled. "You are right though. She's very pretty"
"Can we let her go... I know you wanted fish but look at her!" the boy felt the skin of the shark and marvelled at it, the skin was course and rough, catching his skin.
"Of course, lad. Sharks don't make for good eating anyway. Let her swim and hunt,"

Man and boy made to return the shark to the sea but the female thrashed suddenly in her bid to return to a world she knew. Her teeth bit into the boy's arm but it was a glancing wound at best. It was enough to make the boy jolt back. The man pushed the shark back to the sea quickly.

Kaeso woke suddenly not much longer after Valerie had placed her fingers to his throat. He blinked uncomprehendingly for a moment before Hazel eyes moved and rested on her face. He frowned, he felt horrid; sluggish and he felt sick. He hadn't felt like this for a very long time and gave an audible groan reaching to rub his face. His arm felt despondent but it moved.

"My head... is killing me..." he muttered before he focused on her face again. He frowned, and he tried sitting up but had to stop as soon as his head protested.

He looked about, his senses finally returning to let him know he was somewhere damp and cold and dark. It wasn't quite unlike the few prison cells back home that he had seen during his time in the Legion. He had been fortunate till now to never run ill of a prison cell. Is that where they were?

"What happened... Where are we?" he asked peering at her but he suspected she didn't really know much more than his mind was able to produce. He looked her over, she didn't look harmed.

"You all right?" he asked anyway.

He remembered the dart then and his hand moved to where he had felt it before. It was no longer there but he knew this was no accident. Someone had assaulted them and brought them here. He wondered if Shane was behind this but then questioned why he would do his to one of his own assistants. There were easier ways. Kaeso frowned as his body underwent a wave of nausea and he turned to his side, his frame curling as he tried to not empty his stomach. His body decided it was going to retch anyway. Nothing came out and he spat on the floor, groaning somewhat.

"Gods, the fuck is this place...?"
 
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Valerie sighed with relief as his eyes opened a crack, the pupils lying in pools of hazel going from dilated to contracted as he focused on her. She closed her eyes for a moment, just relishing in the fact that he was alive and that the idiotic use of animal tranquilizers hadn't killed him. For a brief moment, she had thought that he might be dead. The female didn't quite realize it until now, but the thought of losing him was gut-wrenching. She felt the sudden urge to hug him, but knew from her own experience that the first few moments being awake were hellish. Not only that, but her reaction to almost losing him had confused her somewhat and she wished not to worsen the blush that threatened to crawl into her cheeks.

"As far as I can tell, we're somewhere underground. The air isn't musty and stale though, so there must be some sort of door allowing fresh air in. As to where exactly our prison wardens have taken us, I'm not sure." The female rubbed at her eyes, trying to remember any minuscule details that might tell her who had brought them here and why. She could understand the draw for someone wanting to have Kaeso here. He was an anomaly and a miracle of a science that was yet to be understood. Her reason for being here was less certain though, the girl wracking her brain for answers that wouldn't come. He asked about her condition, drawing her out of her own head and back to facing the situation they were in.

"Yeah, I'm fine. A little sore and sick, but other than that I'm just confused." Kaeso suddenly wrenched over to the side, his body curling in a distinctive manner Valerie was familiar with. She was careful not to get in the way, inching just a little closer to place her hand on his back. However, the Roman ended up not being sick and instead just heaved. Valerie swallowed hard, trying not to let his actions make her want to take up the same position. His statement after that made her laugh though, the chuckle echoing against the stone walls. "The old Gods don't have much of a foothold in this time. Most of them died with the dwindling of your civilization."

No sooner had she spoken than the sound of feet ambling down stairs greeted them, the female hurriedly turning and sprinting to the bars, pushing her face against the metal to try and see who was coming their way. The echo of the steps grew louder, until the sweaty face of a man the same height but twice the width of Valerie came into the frame of the cells front. The crackling sound of electricity made Valerie jump back, just in time before the man swatted a cattle-prod taser against the bars and made the air spit with white sparks.

"Oi, I was told to bring you water but you aren't allowed near the bars while I'm here. The mister will come and see you soon, so just hang tight while you wait...the heli should be landing any minute now. Also, try not be sick 'cause none of us will be cleaning it up." He threw two bottles of water at them, the plastic containers clattering against the floor before coming to a rolling stop. The man turned his beady eyes on Kaeso, pointing the taser at him threateningly before saying "You especially big boy, don't try any funny business."

"He doesn't understand you, you idiot. Tell us why we're here." Valerie said, inching closer to the bars but still out of reach of the taser. The man turned to leave, but Valerie stretched out between the bars and grabbed a hold of his pants leg. "Tell us! There will be people looking, you can't just keep us locked up for no reason!" The man swung so fast she didn't see it coming. The back end of the taser, thankfully turned off, came flying straight through the bars and struck the side of her face. She went reeling back, bringing up a hand and touching her mouth to see blood. The man had split her lip and a red mark was already forming across her cheek.

"Sweetheart, try anything like that again and you'll get more than a swat from me..." He turned and left then, hurriedly going round a corner that hid the stairs he had used to get down here.
 
He nodded as she spoke , somewhere underground was not something he relished. He disliked being underground in confined space. This cell wasn't that spacious but it wasn't tiny either. He glanced round slightly and estimated it could have easily held twenty or so men. Perhaps more. He rubbed his face and Kaeso glanced back to her. He wondered at the who and why and quite frankly he would not be surprised if their captors were those responsible for the stolen notebooks and her home invasion.

His body expunged all it had to, his mind vaguely away of a warmth to his back. In this cold place, the source was welcomed. The floor was freezing to his touch and reminded him of cold nights in Britannia. He turned back over slowly and sat up, finding her laughter strange on the damp walls of their cell. The experience was entirely new to him. He had never found him on the wrong side of one before. First time for everything, he mused.

Kaeso shrugged, "I don't know... I'm not one for superstition. Haven't the time for that bollocks but if there are people upstairs watching... well, I don't want to piss them off."

He frowned when he heard movement and he forced himself to his feet not wanting to appear as weak as he currently felt. Let them think he was worth avoiding. The cowards evidently didn't deploy honourable methods if they had drugged him to sleep. "Valerie," he warned gently not knowing who was coming down the stairs. He doubted they'd be friendly towards them and he was concerned for Valerie's safety more than for his own.

Kaeso flinched when the stranger touched the prison bars with a stick and white sparks flew about in reply. What kind of magic was in that thing?! Even though he did not know or understand what the stick was for or did, he moved towards Valerie on legs that felt like they'd fail him. Thankfully they held him up as he moved and glanced at as something was thrown into their cell. Clear bottle shaped things. He looked back at the man with a scowl. He didn't trust anything he was being given and much less when the stick was pointed at his chest. The man said something and though he didn't understand the words, he knew it was about him and he could pretty much guess what the threat was.

Valerie spoke again, the words a flourish of garbled nonsense to his ears though he understood the odd word here and there. She was trying to ask something, he wasn't sure what but the man wasn't seeming to take her questions all that well. Before he could protest, the man struck at her. He looked back at the man as the stranger spoke and moved off. "You leave her alone, or I'll kill you! Got that, you fuck?!" he yelled after the man's retreating form. He didn't care whether his words were understood or not. The threat was clear enough.

The Centurion spat to one side before he turned to Valerie and moved to her. "You all right? Let me see..." he asked, concerned for her and angry that she had been hurt. He didn't care what they did to him as long as they left her alone. Why was she even here? What had she done to deserve being locked up? He didn't understand any of this.
 
Her cheek stung, the female still reeling from how sudden the strike from the man had been. The taser had been quite bulky and the weight of it had been enough for the impact to leave a small purple bruise already blooming on the side of the girls face. It would be gone in a couple of days, but the lesson Valerie had learned about the type of people who were holding them would last much longer. She hissed as she brought her hand up once more to the now stinging wound, almost unable to believe the red splotches that graced her fingertips.

Kaeso moved closer, the female almost flinching before realizing it was him who approached and not another attack. She tried to stay as he examined what had happened, his aggressive threat he had shouted after the other man leaving a ringing in her ears. "It's fine, I'm fine....just a busted up lip and a swollen cheek. I'll live. It was a dumb move to make, demanding answers from a man holding a weapon. I should have thought that through before acting." She sucked in abreath as Kaeso looked over her face, the female swallowing hard to keep any yelps of pain burrowed deep in her chest. The last thing she wanted now was to appear weak.

The girl picked up one of the water bottles, the cool feeling of the condensation clinging to the sides of the container somehow different to the damp that clung to the walls. After their earlier experience of being drugged, she dared not drink the liquid inside but the coolness would at least be of some use to her. She placed the bottle against the side of her swollen face, closing her eyes at the small rush of relief it brought. "We need to find out what's going on...do a recon of sorts to assess what exactly we're facing here. First off....do you have anything on you? In your pockets or something like that?"

She wiped at her bleeding lip with her sleeve, noticing that they had removed her lab coat. No wonder she felt so cold in here, when all she had was her thin jumper she had been wearing underneath. Valerie checked her own pockets, coming up with nothing except a plastic wrapper from the milkshake straw they had used at lunch and a pen.
 
Kaeso raised his hand slowly. She seemed jittery and he could not blame her after what had been done. His fingers rested underneath her jawline as he made sure she wasn't greatly harmed but it appeared to be nothing more than swollen cheeks and the split lip. He lowered his had again and calmed himself down. It wouldn't help either of them if he allowed his anger to grow the better of him. No matter how much he wanted to yell and try to pull the cage bars down, it would be better to be calm.

He watched her turn away to pick up one of the bottles and grew apprehensive but she simple rested it against her cheek. Kaeso did not want to drink out of them, for all they knew it was laced with something to keep them docile or put them back to sleep again.

She spoke and once again he marvelled at her with a smile about his lips. She could put some of the men he had served under to shame with how she thought. "Uh..." he checked his pockets though he would have been surprised to have anything. Unless the people had kidnapped them did not follow usual protocols when dealing with captives, he would have thought they'd have been searched and stripped of anything useful. He turned his pockets inside out but there was nothing within them. Nothing but lint which floated down and soaked up a little of the damp before it was overwhelmed.

"Doubt these people made this place.... It looks old. Older than me," what he said was something of a major understatement. Everything was older than him. This place though looked old, older than one human life time at least. He frowned and moved to inspect the walls. Sure enough there were inscriptions made in the walls. The language he couldn't understand and he figured it was the language of the modern age he was in but there were some crude drawings a little more familiar to him. He sniffed and wiped his nose before moving to inspect the bars.

"Whoever took us... They damn sure don't want us getting out... These are well made," he muttered aloud before looking back to her see what she had found from her own pockets. He had seen her, Shane and others use them and he had assumed them to be some sort of stylus as they produced a word on a page much in the same way he did with his stylus in his wax tablet that he used for reports or notations from superiors.

"Think that could turn into a lock pick of some kind...?" the pen looked clear and a little fragile. Plastics in general were strange to him so he had no idea how strong or how weak it was as a material. He looked back to check the locking mechanism over but it was like nothing he had seen before. Kaeso ran a hand through his hair frowning when he found it damp and a little too long in length. Something loud suddenly sounded from somewhere above him, the sound reverberating off the walls but he also felt a tremor go through the ground.

"You feel that?" he asked, wondering if it was just him or not but he had no way to know what a 'Heli' was. Man made flight was not something that had even been thought of in his times. All he had known was the Roman Legion and the Navy that had brought him to British shores. Whatever the source of the sound was, it didn't fill him with hope. They had to find some way of getting free from here... wherever 'here' was.
 
He smiled after she asked him about searching his pockets. The gesture was strange, contrasting sharply with their dark and dreary surroundings. It was an odd thing to see, but somehow it also motivated Valerie to keep her hopes up despite the depressing situation. Their meager 'supplies' they each found...if they could even be called that...was a sad collection that Valerie, for the life of her, could not think of a way to use in order to escape. She knew she had had her phone on her when they were captured, but the kidnappers had been smart enough to remove that very helpful device from her person. She pulled her fingers through her hair, feeling a little more hopeless at the lack of anything helpful. Kaeso's remark at least gave her something else to think about.

"It is quite archaic. It might very well be older than the Roman era. The stonework is rough and unrefined...but I think the bars were a recent addition. They have marks of sophisticated technology. My guess would be that they replaced whatever gate used to be here with these, which means this was a planned kidnapping rather than a spontaneous event. They have been organizing for people to be kept here...and they didn't want them getting out because of a small flaw in some really old architecture." She said softly, removing the water bottle once the coolness had died down.

She shook her head sadly at the mention of using the pen as a lock- picking tool, the girl taking the pen into her hand and spinning it gently between her fingers. "There's no chance of this holding up against the metal making up the locks. Even if it could, the most I know about picking locks comes from spy movies I watched as a kid...." She realized he might not understand what she meant by that, the girl throwing the pen angrily against the nearest wall before adding "What I'm trying to say is that I don't know how to get us out of here, not yet anyway. It just seems like the universe is making things as difficult as possible for us right now and- "

The earth suddenly began to rumble, the walls seeming to almost vibrate while the metal bars clattered a little in their sockets. The distinctive, far- off whirring sound of helicopter blades was familiar to Valerie, the sinking feeling in her stomach making her feel like pacing the cage. She knew in her gut what this meant, that the man in charge of this all... the one responsible for their kidnapping... had arrived. Rather than feeling frightened, she felt tense and wound up, like the locked animal she was wanting spring free of her prison.

The sound stopped eventually, the cell and their surroundings returning to normal. It wasn't too long after that the sound of a door opening and people heading down the stairs of the underground cell block greeted their ears. "You'll see, we got 'em all locked up just as you asked..." one voice said, another cutting him off before he could finish. "Ohhh yeah, I came and made sure they were awake and breathing before you got here, like you said I must." Valerie recognized the second voice, it was the man who had bust open her lip. His voice was different now though, less full of bravado and instead held... fear?

"Of course you two did as I asked. You wouldn't still be alive let alone getting paid if you didn't do what you were told. I like my dogs loyal, leashed and obedient. " Valerie recognized that voice, the familiarity was scratching at her mind like an itch she couldn't reach. It was only when he rounded the corner to stand in front of the cage that she realized who he was. The man from the zoo.

Rage filled her, the girl remembering arriving home to find her apartment trashed after running into him. There was no doubt in her mind now on who had been responsible. She was beginning to piece things together. The man watched her recognition grow, relishing in the anger he saw in her eyes. However, it wasn't her he addressed, but his two lackeys, all the while not breaking eye contact with her. "I told you two not to hurt them. Compromising their appearance might complicate later steps in the plan. You idiots seriously can't even get the simple things right." He turned to Kaeso next, shocking Valerie when he said in perfect Latin "... It's a pity to mar such a pretty face, don't you agree?"
 
Kaeso listened as she spoke and sighed softly, rubbing his face with a total loss as to what to do. He had never known what it meant to be locked up and behind bars. He had never known the life of a prisoner or slave who had no choice about what future their life took. 'Archaic' , his mind scorned the word as he peered around and wondered at who exactly had built it. His stomach tightened at the thought that this place had been rectified with prisoners in mind. Chiefly them, he supposed. It meant their kidnapping was entirely intentional and whoever their captor was, they must have had plans for them. The Centurion did not like to think what those plans were.

He looked at her as she spoke and subsequently threw her pen, the sound clattering with small echos before everything grew still again. He nodded with understanding. No one liked being locked up much less with no idea as to who their captors were, why they were here or when they might see the light of day again.

The sound of whirring blades was completely alien to the Roman and he stared about the cell as the walls reverberated the sound . It almost felt like the world was going to fall in around him but after a while the sound stopped and things returned to the silence and cold damp that had filled their ears before. He looked to Valerie for a moment before looking towards the cage bars. There was movement, a door being opened and the sound of feet soon followed. His lips thinned to a frowned line as he contemplated who these people were.

There were voices and their tones spoke of those who were subservient. It was clear that their master had arrived then and he squared off his shoulders. A voice replied to the other two and it was far more confident and arrogant in nature than the first two combined. The faces to the voices soon showed themselves and he glanced at Valerie to see her face was full of emotion. Anger and hurt. He looked sharply back to the leader of the group as he moved closer to Valerie. No matter what happened, he wasn't going to leave her behind to these bastards.

The man was familiar but Kaeso never had a good look at him before until now so he couldn't be too sure but from Valerie's reaction, he wouldn't be surprised if this man had been the one to have invaded her home and stolen her notebook. He wondered if it was the same man who had stolen Shane's too and whilst that didn't clear Shane's name from the picture, it made the Centurion a little more sympathetic.

They spoke in Valerie's tongue and he had a hard time following on in the same way Valerie could but when the man looked directly at him and spoke perfectly in his own mother tongue, he frowned back. He advanced in one quick and sudden step, "Come in here and say that." His tone stated clearly what Kaeso would do if the man chose to do so and he doubted the man would attempt it. Not without some form of protection for himself.

"What do you want?" he asked, aware now the man could understand him.
 
He spoke Kaeso's language. Yes, it was not uncommon for someone to choose to learn how to speak Latin....but it was still rare enough that finding someone who did was rather unusual. The fact that this man though had been behind so many strange 'coincidences'...such as bumping into her at the zoo (probably to distract her, as Valerie now guessed)...and now being the one behind having them locked up, meant that it was anything but fate.

Kaeso lunged forward towards him when he spoke, the sudden space between them making Val's stomach lurch and her fear heighten. He didn't know what a taser was, or what it could do. He didn't understand a world where guns were now used to fight wars and the multitude of violent and cruel things which had been imagined up since the fall of the Roman Empire. She did though and it made her worry about any sort of backlash he might get for his bravery.

The man on the other end did now react though, simply chuckling before a grin spread widely on his face. Valerie couldn't help but grimace, trying to tug Kaeso away from the bars and out of reach of any weapons they might have to subdue or weaken him. The boss looked smug, like a cat watching a bird flutter about in a cage before eating it.

"No need to make threats. They're rather weak and meaningless when I have steel stronger than any sword you used in your time separating us. I just wanted to see exactly how protective you are of her and she of you. I've been watching you both for a long time now, since a little after you arrived and I have the answers I need. Not only do you two have the biological aspects I want to make my project work, but the mental skills and ability to work together, which makes my life easier."

His smug look turned to one more menacing, eyes like a predatory bird making his gaze feel as if it would burn right through Valerie. Her grip on Kaeso's arm tightened when he spoke again. "She has no one else who would look after her and anyone who cared for you has long since had their bones become part of the earth beneath our feet. If you don't cooperate, I'll just make her life a misery. You won't crack under torture, you're too well trained for that....but I'm sure her tantalizing screams would come quick and easily. I know Brutus and Max here have been itching to have some fun after being locked up in a vehicle for several days with nothing to do but watch you...but especially, watch her. So, keep in mind, a threat made to me, is a threat made directly back to her."

With his position as superior among all of them made, the man straightened up and felt it was time to produce some tidbits of why they were here. "You two weren't picked at random. Valerie has the DNA that is viable for this project, we know this thanks to other experiments courtesy of her brother-" Valerie's grip suddenly weakened on Kaeso's arm, her face going a stark shade of white. "- and because you came from the time we need, we already know you have no problem going through time fluxes. You'll find the rest out soon enough, when the last preparations are made. Speaking of which..."

He switched back over to English, barking at Brutus and Max, the the latter of which had been the one who had brought them the water. "Get the equipment set up. When it's done, you two are to bring them up to the room, restrained. I'll be waiting in my study. Call me on the intercom when it's done." The two men quickly left to do his bidding, hurrying away to wherever they needed to be. The man turned back to the two of them, tucking his hands into his pockets while speaking. "Any last questions? Keep in mind that I probably won't answer it anyway...I'm enjoying this view too much to leave just yet."
 
Kaeso could feel Valerie's hand tighten around his bicep and he read the warning within her hold. He could imagine what the warning contained but ultimately the man before them wasn't wrong in what he said. he did feel a strong need to be protective of her. Valerie had taken care of him in a world he did not understand without making him feel like a little child. She had been patient with him, allowed him inside the sanctity of her home and wear the clothes of someone she had known that she was still grieving for. They had developed a relationship of trust and he had vowed to himself that he would not betray that trust. He knew what it meant to have friends and he had so few friends that he felt he could trust. All his friends were now long forgotten, nothing but shadows and dust.

He did not like this man at all, the arrogance was clear in their captor's features and it was evident that he knew he had Kaeso exactly where he wanted him. The man was creepy and hard to follow as any of the insipid Freedmen of the Imperial Palace. They were a social rank beneath his own but they wielded far more power, wealth and influence than he would ever be likely to obtain in his lifetime. It was never a good plan to get on the wrong side of those kinds of people. He had heard rumours about Narcissus and Pallas alone and that was enough to steer him clear of those kinds of political games as best as he could. However, it appeared that he was not going to escape the clutches of like-minded individuals that reminded him of such men and he soon realised that he had a distinct lack of options available to him. What made it worse was that this man knew it too.

The Centurion's gaze hardened even as he felt Valerie's fingers dig into his muscled flesh. Here it comes, he mused expectantly and sure enough he was given an ultimatum of his expected behaviour. The man had understood what role Kaeso had obligingly fallen into and played him completely for it. The man knew exactly which buttons to press. His fingers curled and his hands clenched with anger that he tried to keep at bay more for Valerie's sake but he was angry and frustrated with the situation. He was starting to wish that Briton had cleaved his head in two after all. There was nothing in the manuals about any of this. It was bad enough that they had been kidnapped but for this greasy bastard to threaten him using Valerie as his crux was taking the piss. Centurion Marcellus had borne witness to a few torture sessions but never had the misfortune to experience it for himself but he had seen enough to know that every man had their breaking point.

He glanced at Brutus and Max and wondered if those were their actual names as he peered back at their master. His jaw shifted as it clenched and freed itself. He really wanted to punch this man's lights out and the bars were in the way not just the threats. Kaeso knew he would do what he could to lessen the harm taken out on Valerie and this dog knew it.

DNA? The fuck was he talking about? Kaeso's confusion was clear on his face having no idea about DNA. That had not been discovered or fully realised until the Victorian age and later in the 1950's under Watson and Crick. He spoke of her brother and his heart sank as he looked towards her fearful of what they had done to her and her family. She looked horribly pale and his anger towards this man and what masters he served increased tenfold. Kaeso looked back at the man and frowned. What were they going to do?

Kaeso scowled when the man spoke again but in the language he could not understand beyond a couple of words. It was not the words that made him nervous but how quickly his two lackeys scurried off at what he had told them to do.

"You do what you have to bastard, but you leave her out of this. You've made your threats clear. That's well enough. Till then, kindly fuck off," he returned, he wasn't going to ask this bastard anything, not if there was no point in asking them. He stared at the man for a goof few minutes before he moved away again wanting time to process, gently pulling Valerie along with him. He didn't use force, she could easily get out of the hold if she wanted to but he didn't think it smart for either of them to talk to this bastard.

He waited for the man to leave before he looked at Valerie to see how she was coping.
 
Valerie remained silently during the man's rant. Before, when she had seen him at the fair, she had found his appearance to be mediocre. He was not someone who had stood out from the crowd, which is why she had not remembered him until now. However, watching him as he laid down the law and provoked Kaeso to anger, she could see small nuances that she hadn't the first time around. There was a way the man held himself, shoulders pulled back and small downturn on one side of his mouth that made him look like he was sneering. There was a menacing aura that radiated off of him, but the other thing she noticed was how his clothing had changed. Before, he had been in a coat and hat at the zoo, but now he wore a tailored suit that spoke of money and influence. He had power, the type attached to status as well as mannerisms.

Kaeso's dismissal of him had pissed the man off, his sneer twisting into more of a glare which made his distinguished features sharpen in an ugly manner. He had been expecting something more than that, especially after his eloquent words on the type of punishment that might await Valerie as Kaeso's companion. This man knows how to play the game almost as well as I do. He will make a great adversary and pawn in the greater scheme of things. I do so love it when everything just falls into place as I need it. Valerie however, had a few more things to say.

"How do you know my brother? Do you know more about what happened to him? Please...please tell me..." Her voice cracked as she spoke, soft tears pooling in the corners of her eyes before creating wet streaks along her cheeks. The same grief she had felt those few months ago, the sadness that filled her when she had taken the box of his things out for the first time when Kaeso had needed them, was all flooding back. She thought she had buried it, kept that emotion hidden away and quelmed it for good. Now she was finding out that there might be answers she had given up hope of finding and it made everything feel raw again, like a scrubbed and salted wound.

The man's sneer returned, glad to see that at least one his points had hit a soft spot. "Rest at ease....he is no longer, ah, with us. Your funeral was not for nought...even though the casket had been empty. He served his purpose well. After all...it got you here." That was all he was willing to say, turning and leaving even as Valerie shouted after him: "No! That can't be all! Come back and tell me, I deserve to know!" It was no use though, her cries just echoed off the walls. Valerie gave a short and sudden scream, giving a solid pull at the bars as if she could wrench them right out of the place they had been embedded. Her outburst was short-lived though, the female wiping at her face with her sleeve before turning to Kaeso with anger burning in her face.

"That man will taste the dirt floor of Pluto's palace if the universe will let me have my way." Her hands clenched into fists, the female closing her eyes and dragging in deep breaths to calm herself down. She had done this none-too soon than Brutus and Max's voices could be heard approaching. "Why do you get to hold her, the other one is so much bigger..." Max snarled angrily back at him, a sudden zap of electricity letting Kaeso and Valerie know before they even saw him that he had the taser. "I'm holding her because I also need to hold the taser...that way, if anything happens she'll be easily dealt with so that I can help you with him."

The two finally came into view, Max throwing handcuffs and other restraints into the cell. "Girl, pretty sure you know how that works. Help the Roman, don't want this too take too long. The boss gets impatient." Valerie looked back at them, saying to Kaeso in Latin "They don't understand us. I say we go up, check out the layout of this place and take a look at what we're dealing with. Might help us come up with a better escape plan." She did his handcuffs first, then her own. After that, she picked up the last strange buckle and lock system with confusion. Brutus offered up what it was for. "Those are for your ankles. Two go around your legs and the other two go around his." Valerie grit her teeth together, attaching the strange thing as instructed. Only then, did Brutus take out the keys for the cell. While he turned the lock, Max added "Move out slowly. Anything too quick, and I send a couple of volts straight through you. Just for reference, the last time I did that the bloke was on the floor writhing for three minutes after I touched him." Valerie relayed all their instructions to Kaeso exactly, then stood and slowly made her way towards the entrance.
 
Kaeso wasn't too surprised when she had shrugged out of his hold and he half turned to watch her interaction with this greasy individual. For him, it had been plaintively clear what had happened to her brother. Perhaps not so much the manner of it but the man had spoken in such a way that it could have left no other result. His heart went to Valerie but he couldn't help but feel this man had said precisely what was needed to goad a reaction. The amount of hurt he wanted to pay the man in kind with was nothing short of murder. He knew that killing was his stock and trade but this was a different kind of murder and that was far removed from honour and rules of war.

Kaeso's frame turned completely to face the man when he replied and watched with a scowl as he walked away. "Bastard," he intoned again. There had been no need for that. None at all He rubbed his face and sighed bearing her scream with an innate understanding that she needed to let it out. He could only have imagined how it was for all the fathers, mothers, sisters and brothers of the soldiers he had commanded that had gone missing in campaigns and were either assumed dead in action, deserted or had died on a mission of confidentiality where he had not been allowed to tell them the manner of their death. There was no closure in that and it seemed Valerie never got it with her brother either.

He wanted the bars to suddenly give way finding their steadfast manner an insult and he looked as she turned back to him with a look that could have killed anyone she looked at. He had heard of the Grecian tales of Medusa who could turn men into stone with just one look and he shivered in response. Her look of fury matched the Gorgon's hate of man.

"I can't speak for Pluto... but I'll do my best to help you achieve that end," he replied quietly as he moved towards her. He didn't want to be the object of her anger, he was glad he wasn't and that man whoever he was sure had hell of a lot to answer for. He was about to move to hug her but sounds of voices and footfalls interrupted him and he gave pause, peering towards the cage bars. He didn't like these two either and he was contemplating how well he could take the both on. They held those strange and loud sticks again and one of them brandished it as if to make a point of it. Kaeso didn't understand what it did but he had gotten the impression that it was some sort of weapon. He couldn't help but flinch at it again, the sound was alien and sharp.

He rolled his shoulders trying to put his nervousness aside and that was easy enough to achieve. A nervous Centurion was not something most saw as a good thing, they often were just as likely to get their men killed as themselves. Most Centurions learned quickly to stem the flow and bury it. It wasn't long before he did exactly that and his face was implacable. He knew Valerie might be able to read him, guess at his feelings in all of this but he didn't want these two to catch on.

Kaeso glanced as something heavy thudded into the cell and he peered at them before he frowned. He recognised them for what they were. At least part of them. His gaze fell to Valerie when she spoke and nodded finding no fault in her line of thinking. It spoke of her intelligence and strength of character to suggest such a plan amidst her grief and anger. He set his jaw but he raised his wrists for her even though he wasn't happy about being restrained. It made him feel so much less of his rank despite being in a time where being a Centurion no longer meant anything to anyone but himself. He scowled even further when it turned out the other set were for his ankles, "Not taking any risks, are they?" he muttered as he felt it slide round and click into place.

He heard a jangling of keys and he glanced towards Max with a hardened gaze that watched as one key was selected and slid into the keyhole. Valerie explained what the man had said and he frowned as he learned what their alien sounding sticks were for. He didn't fancy giving them that pleasure of seeing him in the position. Kaeso followed albeit a little hesitantly. The restraints to his ankles as he soon learned did not allow for the long stride he was used to and he had to slow down somewhat to accommodate the chain. He realised quickly that was exactly for the purpose they existed. He supposed they were suitable for when your prisoner didn't have to go very far but it would never have served the Legion's purpose. Keeping prisoners on the move meant keeping them on the move quickly. These would only slow them down.

Kaeso felt his arm being taken with a force and meaning behind it. He snorted, it wasn't as if he could run anywhere. He understood he'd only fall flat on his face and that would not suit him at all. No, better now to behave and bend with the wind rather than break.
 
When Kaeso was wrenched forward, it caused a chain reaction for Valerie who was linked to him at the ankles. She tumbled forward as well, catching herself by grabbing ahold of Kaeso's shirt before making the full journey to the ground. Brutus yanked her up, setting her back on her feet like she was a porcelain platter that had shifted out of place on a display shelf. The man-handling made her uncomfortable, the female scowling even as he grabbed onto her arm and gently tugged her around the corner while Max pulled Kaeso at the front.

The stairs were short and the wooden door separating them thick and sturdy, with iron hinges that creaked as it swung open. It too had been locked before Max used his jangling set of keys to pry it open. The entrance however hid an entirely different world to the one they had woken up in, the light that came streaming through making Valerie squint against the brightness. What she saw next made her wish she could have stopped for a little longer and admire it all, but the two lackeys kept pulling them along at a decent pace.

The walls, designs and furnishing were an amalgamation of styles from different centuries and continents. Mayan-style gold bowls held succulent fruit, while Renaissance paintings taller than Valerie and Kaeso combined ordained the walls. High-backed Victorian sofas and patios that had been removed from Tuscan villa's made the room appear bigger than it was by extending it outside through a small door. Although it was all different, it all fit together somehow. Not only was the furniture remarkable, but the room itself appeared to hold a collection of art and artifacts from different periods. Roman statues stood on pedestals, while African masks and rolled scripts that appeared to be written in Arabic were protected in class cubes that dotted the room. The one wall was purely shelves, with books of every width, colour and binding stuffing every corner. The house itself stood out beyond the collection of oddities, the high-ceiling crosscrossed by beams as thick as tree trunks and stone walls speaking of medieval architecture.Lastly there was the large windows allowing light to pour into the space. Through this Valerie could peak what appeared to be an endless field and forest, with no other buildings in sight.

They couldn't have picked a more isolated location if they tried...Valerie spoke to Kaeso, saying in Latin "This man appears to be a collector of sorts. There's things in here that are older than you I think. What sort of mad man hunts for items like this all his life and what use does he have for them." He barely had time to talk, Brutus growling at Valerie angrily "Ay, no talking! It's bad enough when we can't understand Mister Hugo when he speaks it, but we can't tell him to shut up like we can you." Valerie would have relayed this to Kaeso, but she had no idea if what they had said also applied to her relaying instructions to him. She decided to keep her mouth shut, Max's itchy finger near the 'on' button of the taser less than a meter away was all the motivation she needed for her silence.

The pair led them into an adjacent room, one which was somehow also so different from the one they had passed through. While the other room had been all soft light and artistic impression, this one was all hard steel and sharp edges. There was machinery every, strange panels filled with two many buttons, meters, gauges and switches for Valerie to count.

What stood out the most though was what was in the center of the room. Valerie recognized it immediately, but didn't understand how it could be there. It was the 'time machine' that had brought Kaeso here, but different. If the one that had brought the Roman to them had been version one, then this machine was the eightieth upgrade of that. It was newer, sleeker and less obnoxious.

Valerie wondered if Kaeso would recognize it, not looking at his face until Brutus and Max had chained them to a nearby post in order to leave them long enough to use the intercom on the far wall. When they were far enough away, Valerie spoke. "Do you know what that is?" She motioned her head towards the machine, eyes wide as she quietly tested the restraints around her arms by tugging at them. All her tugging earned her was a red welt across her wrists.
 
Kaeso winced as the shirt pulled whilst they were moved roughly to wherever it was that they were taking them. The chain was too loud and clinked as they were forced onward and upwards at a pace even Kaeso struggle to follow. Either the pair were that eager or they feared their master that much. It flattened out after the stairs and Kaeso paid attention to whatever details he could lay his eyes on. The jangle of keys forewarned them as a stream of brightness nearly blinded him. He blinked and squinted before he was pulled along again, being lead through the rooms beyond.

Within were items from all over the place and whilst he did not recognise a good portion of them, there were some he did find distinct familiarity with as he glanced at the Roman statues as if they had a pride of place alongside all the other strange artefacts. He almost missed seeing green field through the windows if it hadn't been for Valerie.

She spoke and he listened and frowned when she said they were in some isolated location. No chance of anyone coming to find them then he realised. He wasn't sure anyone would know or even care. He didn't exist as far as their time was concerned. He was a man out of time. Valerie however... he frowned, he workplace was surely going to miss her at some point and inquire about it. A bitter thought and he wondered if they weren't in on the whole ugly affair.

He was about to reply when Brutus reacted and he frowned. What kind of name was 'Hugo' anyway? It was not a Latin name, that much he could derive for himself and it sounded oddly befitting of such an arrogant prick as the one who was their captor. They were pulled along further to another room with no further time or opportunity to talk through their situation or comment about their surroundings. He frowned when he taken through a doorway and was met with a harsh room of sharp edges and there was a coldness to the room he did not like.

It was like the room he had first arrived into when all of this had began and as he found himself being led to a post, the chains jangling as the chain was connected securely to a post with her alongside him. He stared at the interior of the place, taking it all in carefully whilst keeping a lid on his buried box of nervousness. He had never seen anything so white or cold never mind clean of clutter. It looked familiar somehow and he racked his mind trying to remember.

He glanced back at Valerie and he then looked back at the machine before the sestertii dropped. "Isn't that ... your machine...?" he asked speaking equally quietly not wanting to attract undue attention. He could hear Brutus' voice and assumed he was contacting 'Hugo'. He didn't know what the man was planning and that was starting to eat at him.

"Do you think...?" he trailed off as Brutus glared at him and he offered a frown back.
 
Valerie nodded her head slowly, eyes widening at the fact that it must be true of Kaeso had made the association too. It was strange, seeing what they had imagined as being the future of the prototype her, Shane and the team of people back at the university had built. This was what had laid in store for them if they ever managed to fix what had been wrong with the project. Shane would actually faint if he had to be here now. He would keel over and have a heart attack at the prospect that someone managed to beat him too it.

The girl rattled a bit harder at the handcuffs, biting her lip before giving up with a sigh. "So, do you have any ideas on how we're going to get out of here. My plan hinged a bit on getting these restraints loose but I feel like that was quite a pipe dream." A voice bleeped back to Brutus on the intercom, Max tossing his taser up and down as if it was a marching band baton. The sight made Valerie uncomfortable, even more so knowing that the answer back on the intercom meant that the mysterious 'Hugo' would be here any second.

Her assumption was correct, since not even a minute later the door opened up to reveal the man who had gone through a lot of trouble to have them here. Valerie had a lot of questions, but after his tight-lipped approach about her brother she knew that probing him for answers would get her nowhere. Bide your time. He seems like the type who likes to boast. Goad him into speaking without him knowing. He approached them, hands tucked into the pockets of his suits blazer. "Like what you see?" he asked in Latin, showing that he was including Kaeso in his query as well.

"Your improvements....they're astounding. I wish I could meet the men who helped you accomplish that. It's years ahead of whatever we were doing." Valerie said, bolstering his pride in order to loosen his lips. Her words did just that. "I find that money can motivate people to work way faster and smarter than mere fame can. When you can pay for the best, it gets handed to you on a silver platter-" he motioned outward, throwing his hands in an arc to encompass the whole room and his masterpiece that lay within it. "It does what you lot have been trying to achieve for months and it does it better than any other project that's been trying to achieve the same thing. They wouldn't have told you, but the ultimate goal of the project you had been working on was time travel. Except, mine won't be used for such petty nonsense as saving a loved one or talking to Ghandi. I have plans on a much bigger scale than what most can think of. I'm not a small-world thinker."

He walked over to one of the panels, expertly flicking switches and pushing buttons. Things began to whir to life, lights flickering and machinery buzzing. In the centre of the room, the circular rings began to spin and the temperature in the room suddenly dropped. Goosebumps rose on Valerie's skin and a slight wind began circling around them. Her hair whipped around her face, Hugo shouting louder in order to be heard among the noise. "That's where you two come in. I need people with the right characteristics. I don't have the right blood, tissue or anything biological in fact to go through the time flux. After many experiments, we've found out exactly what they physics does and does not like. Your brother, Valerie, was the pinnacle turning point to that. He thought he was signing up to a classified military project testing new weaponary. It's not completely false, since some of this project will go towards military superpowers. He was the first successful entry through the portal, but since we lost contact with him on the other side, we needed to have someone go in and finish what he started. Luckily, he has a sister with similar genes. As for you, Roman, you are our insurance policy. What would make this successful is if we have someone who knows the lay of the land in the first historical change we want to make. Anything look familiar?"

He motioned towards the middle of the circles which were spinning so fast they were a blur, a picture beginning to form in the centre of them. It was fuzzy, as if they were looking through a mist. However, if Kaeso looked closely, he would recognize the Roman city he had grown up in....except, it was not in ruins, but rather complete and standing tall in all it's splendor. Valerie's mind was spinning, the girl trying to grasp exactly what was happening.
 
The answer to his way back home was there right before him and that much was plain to see now for the Centurion. if a machine like that had brought him into this time, then surely it was capable of sending him back? As much as he had enjoyed Valerie's company and the time he had spent in her time despite all its confusing ways, he missed the routine and the daily life of the Legions. However, he doubted 'Hugo' would be so accommodating. Kaeso had learned quickly that for some reason he was useful in some way to their captor and and 'Hugo' had the leverage to ensure Kaeso behaved himself. If he was less than a good man, he might not have cared about her welfare but he had been raised properly by his father and in the routine life of a soldier, Optio and Centurion.

Valerie spoke and he stared at the machine blankly as he tried to think, "Too well made. We need to see what he wants first," he realised. Only then could they find some way of escape through working out any loophole of Hugo's plans for them. It depended entirely on what those plans were however and he doubted they would be kept long in finding out.

Hugo returned and Kaeso's ball of unease returned within his gut. He blinked and stopped staring at the machine, peering at the man he was coming to earn a healthy dislike for. Kaeso didn't really want to interact with him more than he had to but knew equally they needed to establish some kind of basis from which to use. It was Valerie who spoke and it seemed she had been thinking along similar lines as she stroked the man's ego. He kept back the little smirk as Hugo seemed to puff up like a peacock and the more he spoke the more he seemed to sit on a high horse of illustriousness.

Kaeso didn't understand or know who Gandhi was but the talk of bigger plans worried him completely. Valerie had expressed Shane's wish for him to not be exposed to much of anything of their time. At the time, Kaeso didn't entirely understand the reasoning behind that but now that he was here and with the presence of the machine, he was starting to realise why a man of one time was a dangerous thing to exist in another's time. If Hugo had ideas for his time then Kaeso knew that could have ramifications.

The Centurion looked at Hugo questioningly as the man spoke and watched as the man was free to activate the machine. It came to life and he blinked at it somewhat, straining to hear anything through the noise it was producing. It also got colder and he tried to ignore the shiver than ran through him. He was Italian born and bred, used to much warmer climates even though he had spent a few months in the cold winters of Britannia already. He had already forgotten them since. The cold was a chill reminder. He stared at it as he listened, longing to return to a time he knew and understood. He tried to follow what Hugo was speaking about and most of it still read as Greek to him despite the Latin used.

Kaeso glanced at Hugo when he found himself being addressed and felt his gut tighten, "First historical change?"

He hoped that did not mean what he thought it did. It seemed this bastard wanted them to go through and do something for him. Whilst it was true that he wanted to go home and back to a Legion and a family, what Hugo had said left him with a strong sense of foreboding.

Sighing slightly and shifting his weight, the chains to his restraints jangling slightly, he stared and squinted at the image the machine was producing. Sure enough, he could recognise the Palatine Hill where the Forum lay and the Senate house stood. He swallowed and nodded, "Roma," he replied simply knowing that he could not deny what his eyes made out in the hazy image that showed. With difficulty, he tore his eyes away from the image of the Roman capitol and looked back to Hugo with an expression that demanded an answer more than he asked for it. Despite his absence from the role itself, he was still a Centurion and he was still used to giving orders.

"What is it that you want of us?" he asked frankly, his arms straining slightly with his restraints, "You say you want the 'lay of the land' from me but how am I to know that is the Rome I know. I wasn't exactly in Rome when I was pulled through to the future. " He was too busy trying to survive against the natives at the time. To his own time's understanding, he had not seen Rome for a good few years now having been stationed within the lands of Germania before they had been ordered to cross the channel into Britannia.

Kaeso didn't entirely understand what it was that was wanted of him or Valerie. All this talk of blood types and what not was completely over his head but he understood he was being used with the idea of getting them through the Roman time. As some sort of scout or guide he assumed. That didn't exactly reassure him about the whole wretched affair.
 
The man knew that Kaeso would not understand much of what he was saying, kneeling down before him and looking him dead in the eyes. "You're something of a military hero. A few ballads speak of your heroics, how you led your men against all hopes of survival during the battles for Britannia. I have a couple of carefully guarded manuscripts singing your praises. You might not think it, but you hold sway over the people that matter most...the soldiers under your care. Soldiers outnumber any senators by more than twenty thousand to one. Any stirrings started by you or other Centurions would gain the listening ear of someone in power. That is why you are important. Your other value comes in that you know the people there. Who are the snakes in the grass, who will bite you in the back. Who is easy to manipulate and where their weaknesses lie. No one gets to the position you hold by not being observant, not just in battle tactics but in the world of politics too."

He took a piece of paper from his pocket, the page's yellow colouring and faded ink telling of it's age. "I know you long for a return home. I'm offering you one. You need not fear being called a deserter and this will help you with that." He tucked the page securely into Kaeso's jean pocket,then stood before dusting the knees of his pants. "You might be wondering what exactly it is that I need you to do. Information for that lies on that page too. To summarize it up though, I need you to do a little favour for my pal Caesar. He's something of an ancient ancestor for my family...which is why this mission is priority number one. As for your question about the Roma you are returning too...time has passed the same way as it has in the present. The Roma through there is only a few days older than when you left it behind while in Britannia."

He motioned for Max and Brutus to come over, the two clearly already knowing what they had to do by the surety of their gait. Brutus grabbed something off the table as he went, removing something from the unzipped bag that had been lying on the table. "Now, you may wonder why it is I need both of you. Other than her suitability of going through the portal, Valerie's schooling records are public. I know she knows more than most about the civilization you come from....how else could she have made you feel so at ease in a world so different to what you had known. Her knowledge of Latin proves that."

Brutus and Max closed in, the bigger of the two grabbing Valerie's arms as the other unlocked her restraints. As soon as she could she began kicking and writhing, trying to get free of the steadfast hold that Max had on her. "Hold her still dammit, don't want to go and jab myself with this needle!" Brutus complained, Max wrestling the girl to the floor with ease where he pinned her down. "Do it now! That's as still as she's gonna get!" If Kaeso had only been concentrating on what was unfolding before him, he would very quickly be forced to turn back to Hugo as he knelt down before him again. "She has one more role though, Roman - "

Valerie yelped as an injection was thrust into her calf, Brutus hitting the plunger before she could kick it out of his hand. She fought until the very last second, the girl going limp in under a few breaths. The struggling had only made the drug cycle through her system faster. Once she was still, Hugo finished his sentence. "- her first role will be to act as motivation for you." Max threw Valerie's unmoving form over his shoulder, walking towards the portal as Hugo placed a key only just in reach of Kaeso. He would need to struggle to get to it though. Max carefully walked through the spinning circles, disappearing for a moment into the world beyond where he lay her on the ground. The scenery there looked like a country road, one which was placed a small distance outside from one of the city gates. Next went through Brutus, the man placing a satchel beside her before exiting along with the other male. "The portal closes in 2 minutes. Choose to defy my wishes and remain here, but your friend will be trapped on the other side. We can only open the portal every seven days, so she'll be on her own until then. Or else, you could go now...but better hurry, time is ticking."

Anything Kaeso had to say after that fell on deaf ears, Hugo and his two minions leaving the room and locking the door behind them while leaving Kaeso to contemplate the decision.
 
Kaeso shifted uncomfortably as the other drew closer and frowned as the man continued to speak to him. He wasn't comfortable with this line of information and he was not really all that sure he wanted to hear it. It was a Centurion's duty to lead from the front and get the best out of the century they commanded and Kaeso had done that to the best of his ability. It was his duty and nothing more. Yet 'Hugo' boasted of owning manuscripts that praised his name. It did not sit well with him and he didn't know why. He would have been missing and therefore marked as a deserter which was a shameful thing for any soldier to go through, willingly or not. The conversation shifted a notch and Kaeso frowned in return as it continued. The man liked to hear the sound of his own voice. That much Kaeso had concluded and scowled when he was told the extent of power he had apparently held with his rank.

He was about to chew the man's ear but a rustling of paper distracted him along with the apparent offer of being saved the title of deserter. He wanted to move away when the other reached towards him but for starters the chain did not present him with much of a choice and secondly he didn't want to give any sort of idea of fear or dislike the man may use against him, or Valerie. She had been through enough, at least in his estimations. There was no telling what this man had cooked up and despite the suggestion that he would in fact be going home, he didn't like where it was heading. "Caesar? You?" The question did not reference the man but more Hugo's relation to him. This seemed far too jumped up already.

Kaeso glanced when Hugo made a gesture of some kind and knew his two lackeys were on the move like hounds after bait. He scowled and looked back at Hugo, his shoulder squaring off thinking this guy was fortunate that he was restrained with him standing so close. He had wondered that and his heart beat faster as he struggled to control his breathing, to remain calm. He breathed heavily but deeply as he glared back. So they were equally using her as they were using him... Hadn't she been through enough? "What... wh... Hey!"

He felt the chains shift and soon realised what the other two were doing though he didn't know precisely what they were going to do to her. He just understood it wasn't going to end well for her. "Stop that... Let her go!" The pair spoke amongst her struggling and his chains grew taught before a hand forced him to turn his gaze away from her. It squeezed a little too hard as he looked back at Hugo facing him at his level. Kaeso's neck felt thick with anger and his hands were held stiffly and clench, as if ready to pounce but Hugo's words help their poison and the hands never inched further than the few millimetres of shaking fury. He stopped hearing her struggles and for all he knew she was asleep or dead. "Bastard," his voice was low, quiet and full of promise.

He knew he had no choice as soon as he saw her limp form over Max's shoulder heading for the machine. Knowing the language was indeed one thing, knowing the time quite another. Hugo was right enough in that he knew how to read people. He looked back at Hugo and then noticed the key. A key that looked like it could free him from his restraints. His head arched back as Hugo spoke outlining the details of the Roman's choice. He frowned in response, it wasn't much of a choice. They both knew what outcome Kaeso would go for. He heard a lock click before he growled, "Fucking..." he trailed off as he threw his weight into reaching the key conscious of the time he had left. He didn't know how much exactly as he fumbled with the key. It took a few moments before he held it and quickly focused on releasing his ankles and more awkwardly his wrists. He almost dropped the key twice but after a few moments he was free from the bindings and he wasted little time in rushing for the damned machine.

The Roman paused in front of it for a second or two, staring with wide eyes and a heavy breath before he swore again. It was alien and strange and he didn't know what he was doing. It was almost like how he had come to walk the future and yet it was duller going back. The only real difference was that the ride was smoother through this machine than the pull of the one that had brought him to Valerie's time. He stumbled forwards and eventually fell hard into a road filled with dirt and stone. He grimaced as he pushed himself up, a hand briefly rubbing at his shoulder before he looked around. The sun was high and he could hear the life and breath of Rome beyond the gates. It was a far cry from the cold of Britannia and the coolness of Valerie's time.

He looked about, pushing himself to his feet as eyes searched for her. He glanced and he could see a window where he could see the cold harsh white room. After a minute, it shimmered and fizzled out leaving no trace of it presence. "Jupiter's stone.." he muttered before he looked around again and saw Valerie lying on the ground. He sighed and moved towards her quickly, his fingers moving to her neck fearing that she was dead but she was still warm and he could feel her heart pound gently. He glanced down at himself and then at her before he gently lifted her and moved off the path a fair ways after stooping to pick the satchel. He found a hedgerow that offered a little covered from the sun and he carefully laid her back down.

"Come on, Valerie. Wake up..." he sat down next to her if only to rest his own beating heart which pounded about his ears as his emotions ran thick in his veins. He held a hand out and it shook a little. He dropped it back to his thigh, thinking as he waited for her to come to. They would need to find fresh clothes. He blinked before he pulled the satchel close, looking inside it.
 
The loculus was small and leathery, one which Kaeso would have been familiar with. Extreme care had been taken in crafting it, every detail from the material used to sew the leather together to the buckles being authentic. No one would know that this bag had indeed not been made in this century but one far into the future. Inside, the Roman would find a few more notes, carefully inscribed with instructions that had been translated into Latin. They read:

"Inside here is a couple of supplies to get you started. It would be against my plans for you to look so strange when you arrived that you might be killed before doing what I need you to. There is a tunic for you both as well as sandals. Your toga is optional, but Valerie is to wear her toga without question. She is not known to this world and therefore needs it for the protection that comes with it. There is no stola or palla for the purpose of the story you will spin about your sudden reappearance. This story will suit the outfits I have chosen. You will also find a meager supply of food and water as well as an injection to wake Valerie up. Insert it carefully, in the leg or arm as shown below.

Your story is simple: You disappeared during the battle in Britannia because your Praefectus castrorum sent you on a specialized mission. Your orders were to retrieve a noble family who had been kidnapped and smuggled out of Rome before being taken to Brittannia. There, they were used as hostages to ply the legion into retreating. Your mission was partially successful...you managed to save the only child of the family. The ring inside belongs to the father you could not save and the earrings belonged to the mother. They are authentic. Valerie will play the role of the daughter you saved. This should secure your return as a hero rather than a deserter. The letter I gave you before you left holds the original ring-bearers final words...they include mention of a daughter and how the bearer of the letter is made responsible as the person to look after her for the rest of her days. The letter is authentic and I made sure that the writer of it existed in your time, is well known in the city but most importantly did indeed die during invasions into Brittania. Those who survived the battle and thought you dead will welcome you easily after hearing your tale and seeing the letter. I suggest you start this return home with someplace where you can make sure the story is heard and spreads throughout the city. There is also a small device. Valerie will know how to use it. Make sure no one else sees it or it may cause quite a ruckus. Good Luck, the rest is up to you. Try not die, it would be a waste of my time and money"

The only other thing remaining on the page was a diagram showing Kaeso how to use the needle exactly.

Below the note lay what Hugo had promised in the letter. There were two tunics and two toga's, the smaller of the two a slightly whiter shade than the larger one meant for Kaeso. There was also leather sandals, strips of tanned hide to be used as belts and the set of earrings spoken of in the letter, gold with smaller pieces of the metal used to make them long and dangling. At the bottom of the bag was the signet ring, masculine in it's shape with a unique design stamped into in the top of it. The design belonged to that of an averagely affluent family in the city, the members of which were above the status of working class but not high enough that they would have more than an iota of power among the other superiors. Lastly, was the device. It was small and flat, with nothing but two buttons and a large screen which currently was blank.

Not too far off, the sound of a wagon approaching pierced the otherwise quiet of the countryside. A dust cloud churned up by the horses pulling the wagon showed just how far off they were, men whistling and urging the animals onward. The sun's position in the sky showed that it was early afternoon. Although it was edging into winter, the temperature was still roaringly hot with the heat of midday making the the air thick. The hustle and bustle of the city was audible even from their fair distance outside of it.
 
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Kaeso opened it with familiarity and despite knowing who had commissioned it, he could not help but appreciate its quality. He admitted to himself that he would likely keep it and use it again for years to come and no one would know or care the wiser as to its origin. He found pieces of paper inside and saw as he opened them that they had words written upon them. Words in his native language. It seemed they had been written with him as the main focus of reading them and he glanced at Valerie's still form next to him. He swallowed and read the contents, reading the words carefully and slowly as he secretly enjoyed the warmth of the sun. The comment about their clothes caused him to give a self conscious glance down at himself, peering at the shirt and jeans and he gave a grunt of begrudging agreement. Not only would his story be too wild to be believed by his peers, seeing the clothes with no way of explaining their existence would only raise further questions. He shook his head and continued reading what was written down on the sheets of paper.

As he read, he checked through the contents and he found the weird little device that was flat on one end and sharp and needle like on the other. He frowned and he reasoned that this was the device to use in reference to when it talked about waking Valerie with an 'injection'. It was an object of stark reminder of just how different his world was compared with her own. He paused and skipped ahead to where he found the series of diagrams showing how to use the syringe and where to use it. Kaeso shifted and carefully followed its instructions as gently as he could. He did not want to cause her any more harm than what those two lackeys had done to. He looked at Valerie as if expecting her to wake up straight away but he realised how foolish that notion was and instead remained hopeful that whatever was in the strange device did indeed wake her up with a look of cautious hope. His hand moved to gently rub at her shoulder as he returned to what Hugo had left for him.

Kaeso also found he could not argue against the use of a toga for her. Whilst it was not important for him to wear one, she would need it as a form of protection. Women were not classed in the same equal standing as men and thus without a mark of social standing, she would not be recognised as a lady of note. The toga was a mark of social status and one of lower rank would rarely be permitted to wear it unless they had moved up in the world. He read through it all twice before looking back to Valerie with a look of worry and concern when he heard and felt signs of movement next to him. He realised that it must be strange for her now to wake to a world not her own and one where she had only read about. This was all present for him but for her, he grasped the fact that she was now walking in the past.

"Hey... Welcome back... Easy, easy... take it slow, all right?" he spoken gently, very much aware that he had to be patient with her just as much as she had been for him. He didn't know how she was going to take it all in.

He shifted and carefully lifted the tunics, togas and sandals free from the satchel case before he separated them into two piles. He paused and glanced up when he heard whistling. he saw A man sat driving a wagon, the horses and the wheels driving uip a dust cloud from the dirt road that would eventually turn into a paved way. He saw the man was far away enough for them to not have been spotted in their place next to the hedgerow and the Centurion waited the wagon was past them before he breathed a sigh of relief. There was much to do before they eventually walked the way to Rome just yet. That much he did know. He turned back to Valerie and nudged her gently before holding out one of the tunics from the piles he had made.

"We need to get changed. We won't survive long in the clothes we're in now," he explained with a tone of regret. The clothes she had given him were lighter and more comfortable than the tunics he had worn in his thirty or so years. They also hadn't retained any scent of the urine in which was used to clean clothes. That had been one good plus about her time as well. He took the syringe and shimmied around before he dug a hole in the soil beneath the laurels, placing the syringe in the hole before covering it again. That was one thing he did not want to keep on them. It creeped him out. He turned back around again as he tried to deal with everything that was going on in his head before he wormed out of the shirt he was wearing and rather than dump it aside, he took care to fold it neatly before placing it down. He took the other tunic and shrugged into it already hating how much scratchier it was to wear. It would be a while before it was worn in but it was for better or worse not a bad replica for a military tunic. He stood and pulled it so that it wasn't rumpled and it covered down to just above his knees. It was a good fit.

He stooped to remove his shoes and the socks he was wearing and he then stepped out of the jeans. It felt good to feel the warmth of the sun on his legs and he flexed his toes a little, his calf muscles momentarily bulging out before returning to normal again. Kaeso sat back down and folded up the jeans as well and almost forgot about the pieces of paper that Hugo had been careful to place in the pockets. That had been a very uncomfortable feeling to have gone through at the time for the Centurion and he gave a sour grunt before he rummaged for the letter it supposedly contained. He placed the folded jeans on the shirt before he read it briefly.

"This is all insane..." he muttered, the letter itself seemed entirely genuine and there were orders included in the note that would validate why Kaeso was not currently with the Second Legion in Britannia right now. That was fortunate for him. He knew the penalty for deserters who were caught and it was not a pretty punishment to end one's life on. It did remind him briefly however of watching his men die around him and was lucky to have survived the slashing sword of the native through being pulled through time. However, he knew his disappearance would still likely raise questions. He put those thoughts aside as he lifted the white toga and presented it to Valerie, "You'll need this too." He would not be wearing the one provided for him. He was not of the right social class even if he was a Centurion of Rome. If he had been a Prefect or a Tribune, then as one of the Equestrian classes, he could have worn it without concern and gained respect for it but if he wore it now then he would be met with disapproval and even scorn. No, it was better for him to appear more the Centurion he was than to pretend he was anything else.

He strapped his sandals on and then made sure that the earrings and the signet ring were stored safely in the loculus before he lifted the other strange device free from its holding. He showed it to Valerie, "He said you would know what this is?" he said slowly, he didn't like how small or how smooth it was to the touch. He glanced back to where the dirt road lay knowing it would be a necessity to head for Rome. He would need to check in with the Legion administrative there to complete his orders, rectify any records that had made it back to Rome about his status and perhaps collect on some of his pay. That in turn would help to drive some word around about their supposed mission... He wasn't even sure where they both stood on that yet. He didn't want to push her too far too quickly. She was not a soldier. He considered her someone he had come to care for in the space of days. The rest of what Hugo had written down made it problematic and it was somewhat ambiguous in its wording. This father of the daughter in the letter had made it clear that whoever bore the letter was chiefly responsible for her care. If he was returned to a fighting front in his position of Centurion then it would mean she would be relegated to the follower's camp since women were not allowed to be in the camp reserved for military personnel. Kaeso reasoned she could safely reside with his father in Misenum if she so chose to do so but it was far from any social graces and it would be just as difficult for her there as it would be at any camp. The letter also didn't outright express it but he couldn't help but wonder if it was suggesting marriage in some way and that too would raise problems. Centurions were not allowed to marry, not unless they had permission to do so.

However, for the moment, it was something they could worry about later. For now, they needed to think and discuss the situation. He found he appreciated her line of thinking and knew she had just as much say in matters as he did right now. He looked through the letter again, he was vague as to the favour he was supposed to do for Hugo's supposed relative. It certainly matched his arrogance and pomp if he was indeed related to the Emperor. Claudius had only one natural son that he knew of, the other was son of his new wife from a previous marriage. Why him though? Surely the Emperor had enough men in his retinue of spies and freedmen to ensure his safety at the head of office.

Kaeso turned and showed Valerie the letter Hugo had left in the satchel and patiently waited for her to read through it all before he spoke, "What's your thoughts on this?" He also showed her the letter too. He wasn't going to keep her in the dark about anything. This was both new ground for them.
 
Waking up this time was much different than it had been back in the cell. Before, it had been a slow and arduous process whereas now Valerie woke with a loud gasp while she lurched up to be sitting in a stick- straight position. Her eyes were wide and terrified, the girl's heart beating so hard her pulse was visible in her neck. Her hands curled at her sides, fingers digging into dirt and grass. The sensation confused her, the female pulling up the ground and bringing it up to her face to investigate it further. "Where?...where are we? Are we dead? It's so hot..." Kaeso's words suddenly penetrated her panicked state, the female turning towards him swiftly. Her gaze zeroed in on him, the Roman the sole intent of her focus as she spoke again. Seeing him somehow helped to calm her down, the girl dragging in a deep breath through her nose "Did they kill us? Did they move us outside? What's going on?" Her heart was still beating fast though, the female seeing the needle in his grasp. She pried it gently from his hands, bringing it closer to read the label along the side. "Those idiots made you shoot me up with adrenaline...the kind meant for waking up zoo animals after they've had a surgery. No wonder I feel like my heart is going to burst from out my rib-cage." She gave it back to him, then closed her eyes and focused on her breathing to get her heart rate down.

She ducked low at the sound of the wagon hobbling down the road at quite a speed. Everything was assaulting her senses, from the stones she sat on to the sounds around them. It was like she was needing to adjust to a whole new set of white noises. Back in her present, things like traffic and birdsong had become things her ears were used to, but out here things were very different. When he handed her the toga and tunic, she raised a questioning brow. "If I knew that the tunic wasn't completely necessary by the serious look on your face, I would have flat out refused."

It suddenly dawned on her that unlike back in her time, there was no bathroom just around the corner she could use to change. She would have to do it here, out in the open. The thought brought a bright red blush to her cheeks, Valerie using the opportunity of his turned back while he buried the syringe to remove her top and pull the tunic over her upper half and her jeans. She then used the same technique as him, removing her pants and then shoes before folding everything together.

Hugo had made a small error though...her tunic was slightly too long. Valerie spotted the tanned hide strips, wrapping it around her waist to use as a belt to cinch the material up a bit higher, then suddenly froze when she realized there was no buckle like on all the other belts she had used in her life. Right. First disadvantage of no modern fashion. She grimaced, tying the strip as she would a shoelace before making adjustments to the tunic length. Kaeso then offered her the toga, the girl just draping it over her arm at first as she instead focused on putting on the sandals. They at least were comfortable, a lot more airy for the hot weather compared to the sneakers she had put on that morning.

She had just tied the last sandal strap when he handed her the device, the girl putting the toga down on top of the satchel to take it in both hands after sitting down on the ground. She knew instantly what it was, her nimble fingers idly pressing one of the buttons with the 'power' symbol on it. The screen lit up for a few seconds, confirming Valerie's suspicions when she saw what flashed on the screen. "It's a pager...like the television I showed you, except it can receive messages. This one though runs on power from the sun...it had solar panels on the back. The machinery is also weird...it doesn't have an antennae so I'm guessing it receives messages in some other way."

She powered it off again, pushing it into the loculus before retrieving the notes and letter he offered up. It took her some time to read the note first, a deep frown forming on her face. "I'm supposed to act like some single-surviving heir to a noble family? Huh, here I thought I had the mannerisms unbefitting any sort of aristocracy. Guess I have no choice but to sharpen up my act I guess. " She moved on to the letter next, not reading into the possible meanings behind it as much as Kaeso had. She was already just trying to focus on hiding the panic setting in at what she had been thrown into. The signs were all there though, from the way she would pause to read so she could occassionally look around, or by the way her hand not holding the letter would nervously bunch up the tunic fabric draped over her legs into her fist. She was scared, there was no denying that.

"So I guess my life is in your hands huh?" She looked up at him then, giving a small smile to play off her negative emotions before adding "I think I like my odds." She placed the letters in the loculus too, retrieving the toga before standing. Valerie made an attempt to wrap it around her, trying to mimic the way she had seen people do it for costume parties. This fabric was different though, proving to be more of a challenge. She got flustered, swinging her arms around her to try and pull the toga into the right place to no avail. The blush which had started to vanish brightened once more. Not even twenty minutes being here and I can't even drape cloth properly. How am I not going to get us both killed? She felt her eyes burn, tears threaten to breach the corners of her eyes as her composure began to crack slightly. The panic she felt in tidbits at first was growing to become more noticeable and less easily shoved to the back of her mind.
 
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