Cassius, The Life Stealer

Asper is driven to find the legendary solo fighter

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‘‘Success…is a sometimes thing, but growth is forever.’’

— Martin Sheen

91 A.D

Asper grew up to become a great fighter. The glory-hungry Greek, in his early 30s with oily skin and a rugged exterior, had slain his opponents in solo contests across various towns near Rome and Sicily ever since he made the conscious choice to be a fighter in his early 20s.

He had gained a following because of his fighting brilliance in small rings; however, in the last three years, he had heard of another fighter, Cassius, who commanded the fear and respect of many fighting fans.

Cassius, or Cassius, The Life Stealer.

The words from Cassius’s fans echoed in his ears during his travels in Italy.

‘‘Cassius is the greatest warrior ever!’’

‘‘He’s an unbelievable fighter.’’

‘‘Asper is good, but he’s no Cassius.’’

Each praise for the legendary fighter only increased Asper’s hunger for wanting the same kind of love that a lot of Romans, Greeks, and Sicilians had for Cassius, and to be considered the best fighter ever.

So, one day, he decided to find this Cassius and take him down, so that he could have the title of… best fighter ever. He had heard from strangers during his travels that Cassius lived in a Sicilian town called Ragusa. Asper would walk past many hills and valleys until he finally found Cassius’s home.

The day his eyes saw Cassius’s small home surrounded by a tall hill, Asper felt nervous but also thrilled to finally have a shot at chasing greatness by killing the great Cassius. Asper slowly walked with his medium-sized sword in his right hand and a Roman scutum shield in his left hand, along with the battle armor he had on his chest.

Along his walk, he saw two people come out of the house. One looked to be an old person, filled with gray hair under his chin and on his dark brown face, with piercing eyes that had seen many obstacles in his long life. He had on a grey shirt that looked battle-tested in the sun, brown pants, and black boots.

The person behind him was a younger woman who looked to be in her 20s with brown skin and black hair, wearing a purple Tunic. Her face looked peaceful as she followed the older man in the front yard, which was filled with hay.

Asper was near the two within walking distance. The old man quickly saw Asper standing still near me. His face went from a relaxed joy to barely contained concern for the younger woman.

After pondering for a few seconds, he took six steps towards Asper to see what was on his mind.

‘‘Greetings,’’ he uttered to Asper.

‘‘Greetings,’’ Asper said in a lighter voice.

‘‘Are you looking for someone?’’ the old man asked with a slight side eye on Asper.

‘‘Yes, I’m looking for who they called Cassius, the Life Stealer. I was informed that he lives here,’’ Asper uttered.

‘‘I see.’’ the old man pondered with his head down. ‘‘Nunzia, go inside,’’ he said to the young woman.

‘‘You sure, father?’’ Nunzia asked concernly.

‘‘Yeah…yeah, get you some garlic bread,’’ the old man replied.

Nunzia slightly nodded her head at her father, then took a glance at Asper before going inside the house. The old man returned his attention to Asper.

‘‘I’m so proud of her,’’ the old man said proudly. ‘‘I found her on the outskirts of Rome when she was seven or eight years old. She was such a frightened child, one without a home. She made me realize that I indeed…had a heart.

‘‘Since that day, I raised her to be the great young woman that she is today,’’ the old man added while his head leaned slightly towards the ground. ‘‘Of all the things I’ve done in my life, she’s my greatest achievement.’’

‘‘I’m not here to cause harm to you or your daughter. I’m just here for Cassius. I need to prove that I’m the best solo fighter in the land.’’ Asper said with slight humility. ‘‘Where is he?’’

‘‘You’re looking at him.’’ Cassius slowly said.

Asper was taken aback at Cassius’s answer.

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‘‘You’re…Cassius?’’

‘‘That I am.’’

‘‘That’s not possible. You don’t look like a solo fighter.’’

‘‘You were expecting someone your age or younger?’’ Cassius asked with a playful tone.

‘‘Well, yeah, I was. You’re the…Life Stealing solo fighter?’’ Asper asks in disbelief.

‘‘I used to be. I gave up my fighting days years ago. It was the best thing I ever did.’’

‘‘Uh huh.’’ uttered Asper.

‘‘Sometimes, I think about all the men I killed in those solo rings. If only I had a better upbringing, I could have been a healer or a priest, something more honorable.’’

Asper still stared at Cassius with bewilderment and fear.

‘‘Ah, you’re still young. You’ll probably understand what I’m saying when you get older.’’

Asper remained silent at Cassius's words.

‘‘Or not.’’ mumbled Cassius.

‘‘Maybe,’’ Asher said softly.

‘‘Well, anyway, I don’t steal life anymore. Now, I’m about putting positive life into others… in any way I can.’’

‘‘That’s…very honorable.’’ said Asper. ‘‘You’re not what I expected.’’

‘‘Oh? What were you expecting?’’ asked Cassius.

‘‘I was expecting a younger, arrogant, egotistical solo fighter with a huge head.’’

Cassius burst out laughing at Asper’s perception of him.

‘‘Sounds like a lot of solo fighters I killed when I was around your age,’’ said Cassius. ‘‘I never had those traits when I was fighting. I think that’s why I’m still alive now.’’

Asper nodded at Cassius calm words.

‘‘But I have seen a few of your fights,’’ added Cassius.

‘‘You…have?’’ marveled Asper.

‘‘Certainly, a few years ago. You’ve developed quite a reputation for solo fights. A good number of Romans, Greeks, and Sicilians have compared you to me when I used to participate in those contests.’’

Asper felt pride from Cassius’ words, then slowly… shame and dishonor.

‘‘My whole life, I felt I had to prove myself, to my parents, my past classmates, to… everyone, so that people would take me seriously. Now, I’m not even sure I want to solo fight anymore.’’

‘‘It’s not too late to get out of the killing game and begin a new chapter in your life. I can testify to that.’’ Cassius said with a welcoming smile.

‘‘Indeed.’’ said Asper.

‘‘If you like, you can come inside, and we can discuss this some more over some garlic bread,’’ said Cassius.

‘‘Mmmm, delicious, I can’t say no to garlic bread.’’

Asper felt a lightness flow all over his body, a feeling he hadn’t felt like that since his first kill as a solo fighter.

Nunzia saw her father and Asper walking to the wooden door. She felt a huge relief as she slowly released her medium-sized Roman Gladius sword from her hands and watched the silver steel fall towards the wall, in front of where she stood.

Another day would pass by without having to use the fighting skills her respected father taught her.

Thanks for reading!