The ladder that led up to the deck was justa couple paces away, but the square hole in the deck that enabledmovement from below acted like a funnel, and I quickly learned thatthe shrieking I had been hearing was not just from the securedshutter in the cabin, but from the wind howling through thatrelatively small square. There was at least three or four inches ofwater sloshing around my feet, but it was nothing compared to whatI was about to face as I finally shoved the door open then slowlyclimbed the ladder, clinging to each rung with all of my strength.My tunic was already soaked, and when my head emerged into the openair, I was immediately blinded by the spray that struck me withenough force that it was painful, feeling as if a thousand tinyneedles were being shoved into my face. It was only slightly lessdark than the cabin, but just as I pushed myself up the last rungsto emerge on deck, there was a flash of lightning that brieflyilluminated our world, such as it was, and I have never been asfrightened as I was in that moment, with one exception, when I waskneeling next to my father in his last moments.
In that instant of light provided bythe gods, I saw the upper deck stretched out in front of me, butwhat captured my horrified attention was what looked to my eyeslike a solid wall of water that towered what I estimated was atleast ten feet above the high carved wooden prow of theBrizo, the top of it curling in amanner that anyone who was watched waves crash onto a beach knows,seemingly heading directly for me. It was only because of thatglimpse that I managed to actually drop a couple rungs back downthe ladder, grabbing the top rung with all of my strength as whathad to be an immense amount of water crashed down onto the upperdeck. The entire vessel shuddered, almost as if it was a human whohad just been struck a mighty blow, and my ears immediately pickedup that deep groaning sound, which at least informed me of thecause of what I had been hearing earlier. An instant after the wavecrashed over the prow, the water trapped on the upper deck by thehigh sides of the triremecame rushing towards me, and I was drenched with icy waterthat reminded me of the plunge one takes in the frigidarium. Not surprisingly, I got a mouthfulof seawater, causing me to gag a bit, but understanding thatanother towering wave would be coming shortly, I scrambled up andout onto the deck, whereupon I essentially crawled over to theladder leading to the upper deck at the stern where I sawVellocatus standing, with the man I had been told was the second incommand of this vessel, his name Cador, both of them needing tocling to the steering oar. Timing it, I scrambled up the ladder,and it was only as I reached him that I heard from down below therhythmic thumping from the man I had learned was called theHortator, whose only job is to beaton a wooden drum with a cowhide cover stretched tightly over itthat gives the oarsmen the rhythm of the speed they are supposed tostroke. There was another flash of lightning, although this time Iheard the thunderclap whereas with the first one I have no memoryof hearing it, while the flash gave me a glimpse of the three banksof oars on the right and closest side of the ship to where I wasstanding, the water streaming from the blades looking like trailsof molten silver. What stuck in my mind was seeing that all threebanks of oars were well out of the water, and in fact it looked asif the heaving sea was several feet below even the lowest bank,making me wonder how in Hades Vellocatus could keep this ship undercontrol.
“What are you doing up here,Centurion?”
Even with all that was happening, Icould not miss the demanding tone, and honestly, I realized it wasa good question. What was Idoing out here? I thought. If this Gaul had suddenly appeared on abattlefield, I would have posed the same question.
“I…I just came to see if there’sanything I can do.”
Even with all that was going on, with thehowling wind and lashing spray, I could hear the lame tone of myvoice, and even in the darkness, I saw the bitterly amused look theship master gave me. I also noticed that he had a rope fastenedaround his waist, the other end of it lashed securely to therailing that only then did I realize actually served a purposeother than to give seasick Legionaries a place to lean on as wepuked over the side.
“Yes,” he shouted, his attentionreturning to the front of his ship. “You can get back…”
He might have finished, but Icertainly did not hear him because another wave came crushingdownward to slam onto our ship. This one was obviously morepowerful because it made the vessel slew so violently that, beforeI could react, my feet flew out from under me, and I went slamminginto the deck yet again. I felt myself sliding, much as I had inthe cabin below, except this time, I could see well enough tounderstand that the ship was tilted at such an angle that it was asif I was descending down a slope, except that what waited for me atthe base was a black sea, flecked with white, and I was certainthat I was doomed. I know how to swim; somewhat unusually, it wasmy mother Giulia who insisted that I learn, although now Iunderstand that, knowing me better than anyone, she knew my destinylay in a life under the standard, but I
