Secret Histories: Prologue

This work aims to tell stories from real people I have met in my journeys of all social classes regarding our Emperor and living Myth, Pomerlane. Though he is still alive as this work is being written and many more are still to be told about him. However, the real man behind the myth still remains a mystery to all. He stands before us as both an unspeakable cruel and an incredibly benevolent Prince. He represents both all evil and all good at the same time to many, including myself before I undertook this work, but through this work and the ones to follow it; it is my goal to show to the reader the true man behind the myth.

But this work must also start with my own experience with the man, which I am glad to tell. I was just a young man, of 31 years of age when Pomerlane entered my home city of Aquileia as a liberator. I remember fondly him speaking from the town center, and the words written in the Saga about what he said are indeed accurate as was the reaction. And indeed, I came to know the man briefly during that time myself. For I was born a member of the Claudii family, one of the leading families of Aquileia, and I was an advisor of the Grand Mayor himself, Arcanius the Wise.

The day after Pomerlane came into Aquileia, the Grand Mayor introduced me to Pomerlane. He was below average in height, roughly 1.7 meters tall and walked with a cane. His face was traditionally handsome, with a giant scar from a sword slash going down from his right brow to his nose. He was clean shaven and wore his golden blonde hair which came to the earlobes slicked back with Pomade, likely from his homeland. His eyes were not a Light Brown that is attested to but a beautiful bluish green. That day he wore fine silk garments and looked truly like the Prince that he was by birth.

When I was introduced, Pomerlane smiling turned his head to me and shook my hand, telling me "Ah, it is good to finally meet you Caudex, from what the Arcanius told me and from what I have personally seen, you are quite the well-read man yourself and a prolific writer. It is always a pleasure to meet a man like yourself, perhaps one day we can discuss poetry and writing ourselves?" His deep voice was filled with an air of sincerity in it. I replied with "It would be my pleasure my Prince, and truly an honor for me to be able to discuss such things with you. I know that I have much to discuss myself."

Nodding at me, Pomerlane smiled and said "Indeed, I shall make this promise to you that when this war is over and I can rule in peace, one day... in the future, I will make sure to arrange this myself." Sitting down he said to me "You are a good man Caudex, I can tell by the way you carry yourself and speak. Do you write Poetry yourself, Caudex"

"Yes, Prince, although I do not believe myself to be particularly good at it." Laughing, Pomerlane would reply to me "I am sure you are better than me, and are underselling yourself dear Caudex."

At this point, I was rather puzzled at why this Prince, who had an aura about him that is hard to describe, almost as if he was divine himself, would make such effort to praise and make plans with someone that was truly a nobody. You see, I was not any of the things he described me as. My writing was relatively unknown, being about the city's history, and I doubt he had ever read it. Furthermore, I had never had a man of such statue, save the Grand Mayor himself, show me such interest and respect before. This was not the first time I had encounter prominent men, indeed I had meet many Patricians from Atalanta myself during my study at the University of Cumae; not one of them showed an regard towards me, a mere Aquileian. I may have been among the elite in my own city but to them, I was little better than a Plebian from Atalanta. They stuck their nose up at me for this and I was never accept amongst many of my peers because of this. But Pomerlane, a man by blood and ability of a class higher than any of them, treated me with astonishing respect and honor.

I had to know why so I asked him "My Prince, i must ask why you have taken such interest in a relative nobody like myself. I may be of high status in my own city but that is nothing compared to those of Atalanta. Surely, you would find those of greater ability and renown as both writers and poets in those places rather than Aquileia."

Pomerlane looked up at me, seemingly staring into my very soul, and calmly replied "You are correct in stating I could and I would find such men in other places, but I value a man of humility in his own works over the prideful boasting that these men most certainly have." after pausing to take a drink, he said "Caudex, I have read your history on the city of Aquileia myself. I did so a few years ago when I was no more than a wandering Mercenary Prince, at that time in service of the city. I had asked Arcanius if there was a history of this city that I could read, because I had grown to love the city in my short time there and he recommended your work as the best. When I read it, I was impressed by the scholarly research you put into it as well as your effort to seek out the oral history that the commoners have as well. It reminded me much of the work conducted by Nicias, the father of history as I am sure you know, because of those matters. You undersell yourself, Caudex and I have longed to meet you ever since I finished your work."

I was shocked that Pomerlane had compared me to my own idol, Nicias of Pendoria. I stammered to reply "Than- Thank you for such praise, my Prince, Nicias is an idol of my and inspiration for my own works. I do not think I can compare myself to him though be-" Pomerlane interrupts me "Sorry for the interruption, but I can tell that you have a lot in common with him in your writing and personality even from what I know of Nicias." As he stands up, he approaches me and says "Keep up the excellent work my dear Caudex, I will keep my promise to you, and we shall find the time to discuss literature and poetry one day. As much as I would love to continue this converation, I must attend to other affairs. May Pomu bless you." I bowed my head, and he left the room.

I was left in shock at the whole encounter and in retrospect, could hardly believe that Pomerlane had shown such grace and magnanimity to me. It surely was not out of ulterior motives that some cynics may believe, but it came from a genuine place in his heart, that he truly was impressed by me somehow. Indeed, he would keep his promise to me but that is another story for another day. Furthermore, this encounter itself is one of my personal reasons for writing this work, because the Pomerlane I met and know is also this ruthless and merciless conqueror. I could not justify in my head how a man of such a temperate spirit could do what he did to Atalanta and Poseidonia to name a few cities. I do hope that the collection of tales I have found will give you, the reader, an understanding of the man that I could not understand until I had heard them and recorded them.

A. Claudius Caudex