Richard
Corlett
7326853
2/3/12
Assignment
4: Character Description
Appius abruptly woke
from a night’s rest; images from his dreams were still fresh and burned into
his eyes. Death, destruction, and the scent of burning villages slowly faded
away as the room came into focus. He stumbled across the room to a wooden bucket
full of rain water and rinsed his face. As the water dripped from his chin he
saw an old man in the water. Appius was 25 years old, but scars from battle and
tired eyes seemed to add decades to him. It had been 9 years since Crassus was
defeated and killed by the Parthians at Carrhae, but Appius would not soon
forget the brutal images of battle.
He had once been a young man free of scars training
with other legionary soldiers of Caesar’s army. He was youthful and energetic
and at the time could barely feel the weight of the chain mail over his undergarments.
His brass helmet focused his vision on the task at hand. Whether he was using a
sword or spear, he quickly gained the upper hand on the competition. It was
this natural ability that ultimately positioned him with Caesar’s elite
soldiers.
Appius shook his head
in attempt to rid his mind of his bloody past. Although it was early in the
morning and the sun was not up yet, he felt that it was best to get dressed and
begin with the day’s tasks. He put on his sandals and reached for his work
clothes only to realize they had been moved. He had a toga which he wore when
preparing Brutus’s meals, but he did not want to risk getting it dirty while he
did his morning labor. Luckily, in the corner he found a bed cloth which was
about 5 meters by 2 meters in size and quickly folded it into an appropriate toga.
