An Inauspicious Start

Lucius thought that he was unnecessary.

It wasn’t the first time he had thought so, though the number of times he was reminded of the fact was getting old. As a young man of twenty, Lucius by now should have had plenty to keep himself occupied, and by all accounts he did. As a man, there were expectations for him to have enlisted in the military and lend his strength to the Boscarii Empire which he called home. If not, then he should have set up a business or started a family, so that he might lend his strengths to the fatherland.

And yet, he had done none of that. Lucius was born as the second son to a middling but well-respected senator. His elder brother, Julius, had already set some solid accomplishments as part of the emperor’s army, so the family’s honor and standing were essentially secure. Moreover, Julius had already proven himself adept at both politics and romance to such an extent that Lucius could get away with delaying his own achievements. Any further action on his part would likely just jeopardize all those hard-earned gains.

As for finances, there was no real reason for him to start up a business, seeing as his family was relatively well-off. They certainly weren’t in the top percent of imperial citizens, and they definitely couldn’t hold a candle to the imperial house, but neither were they strapped for cash. In fact, his family had recently acquired a third home on a freshly conquered island in the Southern Ocean. Once the natives were fully pacified, Lucius would be given the opportunity to live there during the winter months.

In terms of relationships, he had had a few, but none of them had sparked so much as more than a passing fling. Despite increasing pressure from his father to find someone halfway decent, he just didn’t have the motivation to put any serious effort into the endeavor. As far as he was concerned, there wasn’t much point in wasting all that time for so little payoff. Most of his free time was spent in various forms of training, though even those had begun to lose their luster.

Lucius was well-muscled and athletic, much of that owing to the physical training required of nearly all imperial youths, and he showed some aptitude for weaponry. He practiced every other day with a respected swordsman and ex-adventurer who acted as his tutor, and had received plenty of praise for his abilities. As an imperial man was expected to be multi-faceted, he practiced with instruments and poetry, finding himself to be more than adequate at both. One of his tutors had off-handedly mentioned that he could be a good playwright if he put his mind to it. Nor was he particularly bad-looking; though his skin was darker than most people from his home region, seeing as his mother hailed from a tropical island, not that he remembered her very well. He kept his dark hair short and neat, and he preferred to be clean shaven.

Yet despite all of these talents and attributes in his favor, Lucius had yet to find any real enjoyment in life. He was never exceptional at anything, nor was he terrible at much of anything. There was always someone better, and there was always someone worse. His elder brother would likely take over his father’s position in the Senate once he got too old to run for office, though Lucius could certainly could try for a seat at some point in the future. If he just let things be, he could have the comfortable and lackadaisical life that so many people worked their whole lives for.

Instead, he made the decision to run away.

Well, running away was a very strong way of putting it. As a sovereign citizen, he had the right and ability to go wherever he pleased within imperial borders. Going beyond that would require more paperwork and good diplomatic ties with the other nations, which the Empire didn’t always have. But the direction didn’t matter, he just couldn’t stand to be in the house anymore.

Rolling out of the reclining couch that he had been sprawled out in, Lucius tightened the belt around his waist and strode off the veranda. His house was average for the upper crust, two floors and four wings spread out over an acre, with at least six more acres dedicated to private cultivation. He strode off down the hallway towards where the stables were, passing by some of the household servants, who always stood to the side and inclined their heads respectfully as he passed them. His family didn’t have a particularly large staff on hand, but it was a decent enough size to keep the place from falling apart.

Seeing as nobody stopped or asked him where he was going, he made good time down into the grounds. His father, or more specifically the servants, had cultivated a fine garden complete with statuary and a small pond with colorful fish swimming about. If he were to go the other way, he would enter the orchard where apples and pears grew. There was no fruit yet, as it was still early spring, but some buds were appearing which would soon produce flowers. Approaching the stable, a voice called out to him from behind a nearby hedge,

“And where might you be off to, young master?”

Lucius froze, instantly recognizing the voice and offered a brusque reply, “Out.”

“Mhm. Any particular destination?”

Lucius turned to face the speaker, a middle-aged man with fair skin and dirty blonde hair, well-muscled from a life of manual labor. His name was Darno, and he was the head of the mansion’s grounds keeping detachment. He had also known Lucius since he was a young boy and was well aware of his habits to wander off. Though still technically subservient to Lucius, the old hand was not the kind of person to mince his words, no matter who he was talking to. Lucius simply shrugged,

“Not sure yet.”

“Will you be back by dark?”

“Probably not.”

Darno sighed the same way an exasperated father might, “Young master, you really ought to think these excursions through more carefully. I see you don’t have your travelling cloak, a pack of any kind, do you even have a coin purse? Beyond these grounds, you must pay for all your services. You realize that, yes?”

Lucius took the admonishment to the jaw, looking away in embarrassment. Seeing the young man deflate, Darno smiled empathetically,

“Ah, to be young and impulsive again. So, what's the big ambition this time?" A shrug was Lucius' only response, as he was taking great interest in the flower bed near his feet. Darno's smile thinned, "Should I inform your father that you are taking a leave of absence?"

A rush of heat warmed the back of Lucius' collar and his tone sharpened slightly, "No need. I doubt Father would notice my absence, even if he was at home..." Darno pinched the bridge of his nose, slowly shaking his head, "Come now, young master, surely you're being a bit harsh on your old man? It's bad luck to speak of family with such ill tones." 

Lucius felt his jaw clench, biting back a retort on how he wasn't being harsh enough. He knew that Darno had no real choice in how he treated the master of the house, but it still irked him enough for it to show on his face. Darno, realizing that he wasn't about to change Lcuius' mind, tried to change the mood,

"If you are still serious about taking your leave for a time, there’s a pack at the rear of the stable. Should hold you for a couple of days at least.”

Lucius brightened, “Really? Thanks, Darno! Wait…how did you know what I wanted to do before even I did?”

Darno offered a wry grin, “One of the girls saw you squirmin’ around on one of the couches and looking longingly into the distance. Best be careful, young master, or you’ll grow predictable in your old age! Ha!”

Lucius returned the cheerful jab with a smile of his own. It was then that he was reminded of an old desire of his, back when he used to have them. He recalled hearing stories of people who left their old lives behind and created new ones; filled with daring and adventures, dashing heroes, terrifying monsters, and brilliant exploits. The old stories were fresh in his mind when he discovered the pack that Darno had left for him. It contained a spare set of clothes, traveling cloak and a purse with a few dozen silver pieces inside. Lucius stared at the money then stormed back outside, brandishing it like a weapon towards Darno,

“Is this your money, Darno?”

“Well, it was, yes. But seeing as I’m giving it to you…”

Lucius felt heat rise behind his collar, “Hells no! I have plenty of my own, and you barely get paid at all! You need this more than I do!”

Darno’s eyes flickered with emotion, but he held his ground, “While I respect that sentiment, young master, need I remind you of my station? By all rights, folk like me shouldn’t be paid at all. Your father is generous enough to provide me and the rest of his staff with a pittance, which is far more than most of our kind. And seeing as that money was given to me, seems it should be my decision about what to do with it. Now if you command me to take it back, I will do so. But it won’t do anyone good by just sitting there gatherin’ dust.”

Lucius paused, stunned, as he stared down at the generous gift. He knew for a fact that he didn’t deserve such things, that this was several months of pay that Darno was giving up for him. The young man wavered briefly, then closed his fist around the purse,

“Thank you, Darno. I’ll be sure to put it to good use.”

Darno beamed and clapped him on the shoulder, “Good man. Be sure to get me a nice souvenir, alright? And remember, you always have a place here, and there's no shame coming back home.”

Lucius nodded in agreement, brimming with confidence, "Don't you worry, Darno. Next time you see me, I'll be somebody worth celebrating. So be sure to keep some of the good liquor in reserve for when I get back!" 

 Within minutes of their goodbyes, he had mounted the roan and begun trotting along the carefully maintained road connecting his home to the network of highways that crisscrossed the imperial heartland. Waving a final goodbye to Darno as he faded into the distance, Lucius faced the open road that stretched out into the distance. He really had no idea where he was going, but that hardly mattered now. All that mattered was that he was on his way to somewhere.