CarolinaC

A baby? On a battlefield?

Marcus is a clerk in the Imperial army. When he finds an abandoned baby on a battlefield, he has no idea what to do with her. His best friend is no help; he thinks Marcus is a sucker for taking the kid in. The slave who ends up babysitting the child is no better; she thinks Marcus has ulterior motives - bad ones. Not only that, but two mysterious female assassins appear on the scene. Whether they intend to harm the baby or protect her, Marcus isn't sure. It doesn't help that the assassins have magical cloaks that allow them to turn into birds at any time. Marcus and his friends soon find themselves caught up in things they doesn't understand: the child has some connection to an ancient prophecy, one that could have implications for fate of the Empire itself.

The Baby and the Battlefield

I dreamed there shall be a union of the empires, and that the child of this union shall bring peace to our peoples, knowing them both. I thought perhaps one of my own children might fulfil such a role, but they show no signs of Ability. My lord says it is good enough that they learn to rule wisely, but I cannot help but think that it would be different, were I from one of the great families, where Ability runs deep. Then it would be our children who would hold this power, and rule from the seat of reckoning as well as the throne of wisdom.    


Being an excerpt from "Personal Reminisces of the Reign of the Emperor Ferrius"