(picture thanks to Jo)

It was a perfect summer day, with the sun shining high in the blue sky and casting its warm beams on the peaceful countryside spread on the gently rolling hills. A light breeze caused the wheat and oat fields to wave, their swollen spikes dancing in the wind, as cattle and sheep lazily drove away the flies with their tails and dozed off under the olive trees.

Maximus was resting in the shadow of a big poplar, his back against the tree trunk as he munched a blade of grass. Selene, his wife, was lying on a blanket, with her head on his lap, her dark hair spread on his thighs, as his fingers caressed it tenderly. They were not speaking to each other, but they were communicating their joy to be together in other ways, like a contented sigh or a smile or a light hand squeeze, while they watched Marcus, their son, play with a group of wild ponies. Now and then the child broke the stillness of the country with excited cries, "Mama, Papa, look!", to which husband and wife replied with words of approval, before grinning proudly to each other.

Suddenly a figure covered Maximus' line of vision and all of his sleepiness disappeared at once, as he pondered how relaxed he was if someone could arrive so near to him without him noticing them sooner.

"Caesar!" he exclaimed, recognizing the newcomer and trying to scramble to his feet, as Selene hastened to cover her bare legs.

Marcus Aurelius reached out a hand. "My Lady, Maximus, stay as you are, there is no need to rush."

The couple nodded, but Maximus rose anyway. "How can I serve you, Caesar?" he asked.

The older man shook his head in mock reproach, "I've told you many times to not call me so in this place. There is no need for formality here."

"As you wish," Maximus bowed his head. "So, Marcus, what can I do for you?"

"I would like for you to meet some people... They are friends of mine, just arrived. They have heard a lot about you and would like to meet you."

Maximus' eyebrows were raised high on his forehead. He looked down to where Selene still sat and questioned her, "Would mind if I go to see these people?"

"Not at all, darling. Go and enjoy yourself, I will take care of Marcus." His wife smiled to him, her eyes betraying her curiosity about the mysterious persons come to see her husband. Maximus laughed softly and bent down to give her a soft kiss. "I will be back soon."

"I know." She kissed him again.

Marcus Aurelius watched the scene with a tender expression on his old features and then he and Maximus walked away and vanished from her sight.

*****

Their trip did not last long.

"Here we are," commented Marcus Aurelius, pointing to a gray stocky building sitting atop a little hill.

Maximus nodded, surprised he had never noticed that villa before.

They walked along a grassy path between two vineyards and soon they reached the house, but Marcus Aurelius did not lead Maximus to the main door, instead he circled the building till they reached its rear, where there was a large veranda, with five men sitting at a table. They were all dressed with white tunics and togas, and some of them were sipping wine from golden cups. They all rose to their feet as they saw the newcomers cover the three steps that lead to the porch, and their eyes stopped on Maximus.

Marcus Aurelius nodded to the others, then motioned the younger man to precede him into the room. Maximus did so, and the others stepped away, letting him pass, even if their eyes never left him.

"My friends," Marcus Aurelius said, "let me introduce you Maximus Decimus Meridas." All the heads bowed almost in unison. Then the old man took the Spaniard by the elbow and proceeded to introduce him his guests.

"This is Gaius," he began, indicating the smallest man of the group, who, however, emanated such a charisma, he seemed to be the tallest of the group. He had gray eyes and fair hair, and such a commanding aura, Maximus felt the irresistible pull to call him ‘sir’. "This is Titus," went on Marcus Aurelius, leading him to a stocky man with a neck as strong as a bull, a balding head and the tenacious expression of a mastiff. "These are Marcius and Publius: they are both Spaniards like you." Maximus shook hands with both the men, one of whom, Marcius, looked like a warrior with shot cropped black hair and a fierce expression, while Publius seemed a Greek philosopher, with his long and curly beard. "And finally, here there is another Titus." Marcus Aurelius said with obvious affection for the last man, who looked as old, gentle, and wise as Marcus himself.

The introductions complete, they sat at the table, with Gaius taking place at one end and motioning Maximus to sit at the other. The Spaniard obeyed, but he could not help but think he was under some kind of examination, even if he could not understand the reason. However, he trusted Marcus Aurelius and thus tried to relax and see what would happen. There was a moment of silence, then the younger Titus pushed a cup of wine in his direction, smiled, and said, "So, General, I’ve been told you are very fond of your farm and love to work the land with your hands."

Maximus nodded, happy to have been questioned about one of his favorite topics. "That’s true, I love to see Nature grow around me, and to be able to nurture life, instead of killing it. I love the sweet smell of the wheat...of the earth." He stopped, afraid to have been too emotional in front of perfect strangers, but Titus smiled and nodded, "How right you are. I think a soldier needs to see things grow, because he is too used to seeing them die. And I always thought dirt washes away better than blood."

Maximus’ eyes widened. "Are you a soldier?"

Titus laughed, "I was. A long time ago. I commanded legions in Britannia and Judea."

"Quite different places, eh Titus?" commented Marcius, his thick Iberian accent sounding like music to Maximus’ ears.

"Indeed."

"Well, at least the warm sands of Judea healed you from the rheumatism you suffered in Britannia."

Titus grinned and Maximus smiled; he liked that simple man who seemed always so cheerful, even if he suspected he could be deadly serious when he wanted.

"And you Maximus? Did you suffer the damp German climate?" asked Marcius.

"Sometimes, especially during the winters, when it was almost impossible to keep warm."

"I hate Germania; it has always been a source of problems," commented Gaius from the other end of the table, his voice cutting the air like a knife and causing the others to fell silent at once, "I lost three legions in the Teutoburg woods and I still suffer from nightmares because of it." His eyes assumed a far-away look and he whispered, almost to himself, "Oh Varus, give me back my legions!"

Maximus frowned at the strange comment but his attention was claimed by Marcius, who nodded and said, "It is always hateful to lose men, even if it is for the glory of Rome. I lost many of them in Dacia," he sighed, then added, "What do you think about this, Maximus?"

"I agree; it is horrible. But what troubled me most was to send them to die knowing it in advance. I hated it and always tried to avoid suicide missions, as much as possible. I always thought a general should fight with his men, and be ready to do everything they do."

"A bit risky, don’t you think?" asked Publius.

"Perhaps, but it was the only way for me. You cannot pretend to earn your men’s respect by sending them to fight while you stay safely away shouting orders. You can gain their esteem only with the force of your example." Maximus said with certainty, and Publius nodded in approval.

"You are wise beyond your years," he said, causing the other man to blush.

"Thank you."

"And do you think such behavior could work in politics too?" It was Gaius, again.

"I don’t know, sir. I think the life of a soldier is simpler, black or white, while in politics gray is the dominant color."

"So you say a soldier could not be a good ruler?"

"Not at all, sir, just that he should learn to move in different ways, and choose good advisors to help him."

"Good thinking, but how to choose the right persons to trust?"

"I know, it is not easy," commented Maximus. Marcus Aurelius and the two men named Titus nodded.

"But a soldier could use his army to rule...." said Gaius again, his gray eyes never leaving Maximus’ blue-green ones.

"A ruler needs to be backed by the army but cannot rely only on it, or he will end up establishing a reign of terror. He would be feared, not loved and esteemed, and that would sooner or later cause his downfall."

"And you, Maximus? Would you have liked to be a powerful man?"

"No." The answer was short and direct. "But I would have done it for Rome."

"Would you do it again?"

"Yes- because Rome is the light. Even after everything I saw, I still believe in her dream. Sir." Maximus’s voice choked a bit and he stared hard into the other’s eyes, until Gaius smiled.

"That’s good," he said, and the Spaniard noticed all the little group seemed to relax at once, as everyone reached for their cups. After that the conversation continued, but its tone and intensity changed completely and Maximus soon forgot the sensation of having been examinated, and lost himself in laughter and story telling.

*****

Time passed.

As the sun began its slow descent behind the hills, Maximus put down his cup and said, "I am sorry to interrupt this pleasurable talk, but I must go home. My wife and son are awaiting for me."

"Of course," replied Marcus Aurelius, "We have taken you away for too long. I hope Selene and Marcus won’t be upset."

Maximus smiled. "There won’t be any problem...if I go now."

"Then go," said Gaius, rising on his feet. "Family is all important for Rome and the Empire. We won’t take you away longer, but I hope we could meet again in the future."

"It would be most pleasing, sir," the Spaniard replied, and he was telling the truth. Starting from Gaius, Maximus shook hands with all the assembled men, promised to be back again, then stepped down the stairs and walked away.

As he moved along the grassy path, he felt the other men’s gazes fixed on his broad back, but he did not care, his mind already thinking about how he and his family would spend the evening.

*****

On the porch the men looked till he vanished from their view, then Caesar Gaius Octavianus Augustus broke the silence and said to Marcus Aurelius, "You were right, he would have been a worthy Emperor for Rome."

"A most worthy one. Plato’s perfect reluctant ruler," commented Caesar Publius Aelius Hadrianus. "He would have ruled with firmness and justice, with temperance and strength, and made Rome even greater."

"Really," nodded Augustus.

"Yes, but he had no chance," Marcus Aurelius closed his eyes in despair, "I should have known Commodus was too immoral to accept my decision! I was so stupid! And Maximus and his family paid the price of my mistake! I cannot bear to think about all the pain I caused him."

"Stop Marcus!" exclaimed Caesar Titus Aurelius Antoninus Pius. "You committed a mistake, son, we all did, because none of us is perfect."

"You acted in that way because you were a father concerned for his son’s future and feelings. Love can blind even the smartest man. I learned it in the hard way with my own son, Domitian," Caesar Titus Flavius Vespasianus said, his strong face transformed in a mask of sadness.

Marcus Aurelius nodded. "Thank you Father, Titus."

"Maximus doesn’t hold a grudge against you, so you should learn to forgive yourself, too," Caesar Marcius Ulpius Traianus added quietly and all the rest of the group nodded in approval.

Marcus Aurelius sighed, his eyes fixed on the spot where Maximus had disappeared. "At least he is happy now," he murmured, almost to himself. "He has his wife, his son, his home. But it is still a pity he will never see his boy grow up and give him grandsons. That is the greatest joy a man can have, but it will be forever denied to him."

The five other former Emperors looked at each other and Augustus commented, "Well...that’s not exactly true."

"What?" Marcus Aurelius turned around to face the founder of the Roman Empire with a curious look, "What do you mean?"

"Have you forgotten, Marcus?" Augustus smiled, "When we died the Roman people declared all of us gods, and I think we can grant him this little gift..." The other men nodded with approval as Marcus Aurelius’ old face widened in a smile.

"Oh yes, we can truly do so...."

*****

Some time later, somewhere in the infinite expanse of the Elysian Fields, in a place that looked like a pink stone villa on the hills around Trujillo, Maximus Decimus Meridas was already in his wife’s warm arms, telling her about his strange meeting, as their son waited not too patiently to tell him about his progress with the wild ponies. Then Maximus turned to face his boy, a gentle smile on his lips, and said, "All right, young man, tell me everything."

As Marcus began to talk excitedly, Maximus frowned as he looked at the boy with more attention.

It was so strange, but he would have been ready to swear that he had grown up some inches since the last time he had seen him that afternoon......

THE END

PS Before someone accuses me of breaking my promise – because Maximus is obviously dead in this story – I wish to remind everyone that I promised to never let Maximus die if he is alive at the beginning of my story. And this time he was not.

HISTORICAL NOTES:

Augustus (b.63BC – d.14AD) Heir of Julius Caesar and founder of the Roman Empire. He remodeled every aspect of the Roman society, from the army organization to the division of the empire in provinces, from Rome architeture to the moral and social rules. During his reign, Rome suffered one of her most terrible military defeats, when three legions under General Varus’ command were wiped away by the Cherusci tribe in Germania, causing Rome to stop her expansion for a while. Augustus was shocked by such a disaster and it was reported he repeated the line "Varus, give me back my legions!" till the day he died.

Vespasian (9-79AD) A very humble, simple man, founder of the Flavian dynasty, he became emperor after the civil war exploded after Nero’s death. A very competent administrator and soldier, he participated in Claudius’ conquest of Britannia and was governor in Judea. He had two sons, both of whom became emperors after his death- Titus, as good a ruler as his father, and Domitian, a madman like Caligula, Nero, and Commodus.

Trajan (53?-117AD) The lastest great Roman conqueror. Under his reign, the Roman Empire reached its greatest extention, with the annexion of Dacia. He was the first Emperor to come from a province- the Hispania Baetica.

Hadrian (76-138AD) Adoptive son of Trajan, he too came from a Spanish family. He stopped the military expansion of Rome, because he believed the empire had reached its limits, and worked to consolidate the lands already in Roman hands. An admirer of the Greek culture and philosophy, he worked hard to improve the condition of the inhabitants of the empire, poors and slaves included. He was also the first emperor to sport a beard.