Short Story | from-glory-to-gods

Rho

- Religion

Why the Fire Burns Bright

“He saw the fire, heard the screams, and sensed the impending danger before many of the others. As he searched desperately for his mother to escape before it was too late, he watched as they cornered a defenseless teenager and proceeded to tear him open with flash after flash from the glinting steel of swords and helmets. Bolting towards the center of town where his mother had been earlier today, he saw as they entered the building of records, with torches held high, making it clear what their intentions for entering the edifice were. Realizing that he had to get out before it was too late for him, he saw his best friend as he was cut down by one of 'them' on horseback. He ran towards the gate, not looking back, not noticing the rider that quickly descended on him...”

Servius opened his eyes and sat up in the rolling fields just south of his city of Carthage. He had spent another day lounging around and relaxing from the hard days of harvest that he had endured only a week before. Servius had the “luxury” of being able to help his mother gather food for the coming months. Being only 11 years old at the time, he was not enlisted to fight with his father and brother as they departed for the war with the Romans in what would be the Third Punic War. As he now recalled as he wandered back to the town,

it had been almost three years since his father and brother left to serve their country. They told his mother repeatedly over the years that her husband and son “ are fighting the oppression of the Roman bigots” and “will be back soon, a peace treaty will be signed before the end of the year.” Alas, news of a treaty never came back, and neither did Servius' father and brother. Servius had progressively learned as the time passed that it was his responsibility to protect his mother and to make sure that they were properly nourished in case of extreme conditions. As he returned to the town square, upset with himself for slacking off once again, Servius saw a man dressed in the armor of a common soldier, screaming at people as they passed him. As he walked by, the man yelled, “You must get out of here! We have been defeated in our last defense, and now 'they're' coming this way! You must listen to me, please!” However, Servius, just as everyone else had done, merely scoffed at the man and continued on his way, he had no time to listen to the ravings of a madman, there was work to be done.

By his bedtime, Servius had finally completed his daily chores at the house, after a strict reprimand from his mother for his laziness earlier that day. He begged and pleaded with his mother to allow him to stay up a little longer and have her tell him stories about his father and his heroic deeds before becoming a soldier. “No, you need to sleep, I will be going to the square for a meeting, but in the meantime, you must stay here and get your rest for the day's work tomorrow.” said his mother. Just as Servius had nodded off into a deep sleep, he heard a rumbling, much like the gallop of a horse, but slower with each separate sound spaced evenly apart, much like the sounds of the Carthaginian army as they left the city to leave for battle. Servius ran to the door and flung it open, with hopes of seeing his father and brother returning home with their brethren, to greet their families and tell of the challenges that they had faced during the war. But then he saw the fire, heard the screams, and sensed the impending danger before many of the others. Rome had won.