“Snob,” Casca grinned briefly to rob the offense from his words. Then he grasped Mattias by the forearm. “Good luck. I hope you find happiness and a long life.”
“I’ve got one. I’ll pray for the other.”
Casca embraced Greta and kissed her on the cheek while Flavius grasped arms with Mattias, then kissed Gretasuntha as Casca stepped back.
“What about you two?” Mattias asked.
Casca looked at Flavius. “You going to return to Massilia?”
Flavius shrugged and looked once more over Gaul. “I don’t know. There’s more wars coming here, and I’m not much good at anything else. The trick is picking which side is going to win.”
“Pick the side you think is the right side,” Mattias suggested.
Casca snorted. “The ‘right’ side is usually the one that wins. They do, after all, write the histories. But I’m with Flavius. There are wars coming and they call to me too. May the gods help me, but I think I’ll fight for the rightful emperor, even though he’s a feckless fool. Constantine is doomed, as you say, Greta, and I just can’t see the Burgundians or Alemanni taking all of Gaul; they’re not strong or numerous enough. Besides,” and he looked to the east, over the dazzlingly white peaks of the Alps, “we all know there’s a storm coming from that direction, and we need to have a united empire to withstand it, or we’ll all fall. I know the Huns; I’ve fought them before. They won’t come through these mountains if they can help it, but they will flood into Italy or Gaul if they are facing a divided and weak opposition. To me, the only chance we have is for the empire to retake Gaul. That’s who I’ll be fighting for if push comes to shove.”
“I hate to be fighting you, Casca,” Flavius commented. “I think I’d best stick with you in that case.”
Casca smiled briefly and clapped his companion on the shoulder. “Then Italy it must be.”
“Italy.” Flavius drew in a deep breath and exhaled. Decision had been made.
“Good luck to both of you then,” Mattias nodded, then looked to the east. “It’s the mountains for us. Plenty of places to settle down in. I just hope everyone leaves us alone.”
Casca nodded, then jerked his head to Flavius and the two soldiers began tramping down the slope towards Lugdunum, the nearest city of any size. As they went, they looked over their shoulders at the two others who were making their way slowly up the other side of the high valley towards the trees, and as they reached them they turned and waved. Casca and Flavius waved back, then turned and concentrated on making their way down without falling over.
“So you’ve fought the Huns before?”
Casca nodded. “A long time ago. A place far away. I won’t say when or where, but I can tell you what they’re like and how they fight.”
“Fair enough. It’ll pass the time.”
The two men made their way slowly down off the mountains towards whatever fate destiny had in store for them, both men knowing that soon another battle would have to be fought.
Continuing Casca’s adventures, book 38 The Continental
The war in the Colonies continues, and for Casca his personal battle with Sir Richard Eley has to take second place as the British close in on Philadelphia. Taken captive, the Eternal Mercenary must endure the brutal conditions of a prison hulk outside New York city, before the enigmatic Irish woman Claire Kelly engineers his escape.
Given a second chance to defeat his arch-rival, Casca travels south to take part in the Battle of Guilford Courthouse before closing in on the British baronet. Outside Yorktown, the two adversaries finally come face to face in a climactic encounter in a battle-scarred redoubt.
For more information on the entire Casca series see www.casca.net
The Barry Sadler website www.barrysadler.com
THE CASCA SERIES IN EBOOKS
By Barry Sadler
Casca 1: The Eternal Mercenary
Casca 2: God of Death
Casca 3: The Warlord
Casca 4: Panzer Soldier
Casca 5: The Barbarian
Casca 6: The Persian
Casca 7: The Damned
Casca 8: Soldier of Fortune
Casca 9: The Sentinel
Casca 11: The Legionnaire
Casca 12: The African Mercenary
Casca 13: The Assassin
Casca 14: The Phoenix
Casca 15: The Pirate
Casca 16: Desert Mercenary
Casca 17: The Warrior
Casca 18: The Cursed
Casca 19: The Samurai
Casca 20: Soldier of Gideon
Casca 21: The Trench Soldier
Casca 22: The Mongol
By Tony Roberts
Casca 25: Halls of Montezuma
Casca 26: Johnny Reb
Casca 27: The Confederate
Casca 28: The Avenger
Casca 30: Napoleon’s Soldier
Casca 31: The Conqueror
Casca 32: The Anzac
Casca 34: Devil’s Horseman
Casca 35: Sword of the Brotherhood
Casca 36: The Minuteman
Casca 37: Roman Mercenary
Casca 38: The Continental
Casca 39: The Crusader
Casca 40: Blitzkrieg
Casca 41: The Longbowman