Galeo (whose name means “helmet”) is the youngest child of
the well-known equestrian-class land owner, Caecilius. Galeo yearns to be a
great soldier like his elder brothers Nero and Valerius, who both served in the
Roman military. Ever since Galeo came of age, he fought under Julius Caesar,
one of the three members of the First Triumvirate.
The
story immediately starts off after Caesar emerges the victor in the last battle
of the Gallic Wars. Shortly after, news circulates that Caesar has been branded
a traitor by Pompey, and Caesar, willing to stand up for himself, begins a
civil war with only his Thirteenth Legion accompanying, whose members included
Galeo and his brothers. The thought of raising his weapon against his fellow
countrymen brought hesitation to his sword arm, and it was not until a
near-death experience did Galeo find the resolve to run his blade through his brethren.
For the
next five years, Galeo and his brothers fought under Caesar’s banner, cutting
and impaling soldiers of Pompey’s army to the point where he became one of the
most seasoned fighters in Caesar’s army. As such, he gained fame and status as
he worked his way through the ranks to become a centurion, a high-ranking officer of the infantry. Although Galeo
was able to live out his dream and return to Rome heralded as a great soldier
of the army, he did so at a great personal cost. Every time he sees his
decorated war helmet, he remembers what he lost in order to achieve a dream.
