61 A.D. (Bachiyr, Book 2)
Read 61 A.D. (Bachiyr, Book 2) Online
Authors: David McAfee
61 A.D.
By David McAfee
Cover design by David McAfee
Cover Image provided by
iStockPhoto
This is a work of fiction. The events depicted in this story, though based on real events, are entirely products of the author’s imagination or are used in a fictitious manner and should not be construed as fact.
Kindle Edition, License Notes
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Visit David McAfee on the web at
www.mcafeeland.com
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mcafeeland.wordpress.com
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: David McAfee
Email: [email protected]
---For Cole, the part of me I never knew was missing.---
Other Books by David McAfee
Bachiyr Novels
Horror Novels
The Gallows Tree (October 2010)
Short Story Collections
Devil Music and 18 Other Stories
After: Taras and Theron, Beyond Jerusalem
The Dead Man Series
With Jeremy Robinson
Bishop (Coming Soon)
Table of Contents
This novel is set against the backdrop of the Iceni Rebellion of 61 A.D. The Iceni Queen—a fiery lady by the name of Boudica—led her people and their allies, the Trinovante, against the forces of Rome in an attempt to force the Romans out of Britannia. Her army demolished several cities, reducing them to ash and killing tens of thousands of people before falling to the Roman general Suetonius and his troops on the ancient road known as
Watling
Street. The Romans were vastly outnumbered, but they had the discipline and training of a great military empire. The Iceni and their allies were not especially disciplined or gifted strategically, relying more on sheer numbers than sound military tactics.
I researched these events while writing the book, and while some of it is historically accurate, such as the Roman treatment of Boudica and her two daughters after the death of her husband, other parts are less so. This is because I took a few liberties for the sake of the story. (To the layman, this looks remarkably like making things up.) Those who are more familiar with this point in history will no doubt spot these instances of artistic license (That’s my story and I’m sticking to it!) easily.
I had fun writing this book, and I even managed to learn a few things along the way, which made the experience that much better. I have been meaning to get it out to you sooner, but this January my wife and I welcomed our son Cole to the world. As any of you who have children can verify, kids change things. Especially infants. Cole has been a magical, wondrous addition to the McAfee household, and I love him very much. He has also eaten up a lot of my time over the last six months. Call it an excuse,
but I like spending time with him and he needs the care (I am a stay at home dad). I also like sleep, which is why you will not catch me up until four in the morning working on a book.
All that said, I am very pleased to present this book to you, and if you would like to say “finally!” under your breath, that is OK. I feel the same way. I hope you enjoy this story, and as always, please feel free to contact me with any thoughts or comments, good or bad. I love hearing from you, and your feedback helps make me a better writer. My email address is [email protected], and I am always happy to read and respond to your comments.
Lastly, I want to say thank you. You have helped make 33 A.D. more successful than I ever imagined it could be, and your support means everything. Your time is precious, and I can’t believe how lucky I am that you are willing to spend some of it with me.
David McAfee
August 14, 2011
Prologue
She enjoyed this part the most. The part where they started to scream. It didn’t matter how old or how strong they were, when she started to work her particular brand of magic, they all screamed. Even the tough ones; the ones who thought they could hold out and be strong. The ones who thought they were stronger than she was. Those types usually screamed loudest of all. Of course, that could be because she was harder on them than the ones who cooperated, but it didn’t matter.
In the end,
she thought,
all Bachiyr are cowards.
They all had their breaking point.
This particular Bachiyr hadn’t lasted long at all. His screams sounded long and loud, echoing off the walls of the keep and traveling the length of the hallways and through the chambers beyond. She couldn’t hide her smile as she realized that the humans in the valley below probably heard them, too. Good. It would give them yet another reason to stay away from her home, as if they needed further warning.
She watched her prisoner squirm, enjoying the burnt smell of his flesh while her fire scorched his toes. She controlled the flames with a simple psalm, but she had to constantly monitor it to make sure it maintained just the right temperature. If she allowed it to get too hot the fire burned away the nerves and the prisoner would feel nothing. If she allowed the fire to get too cool it lost its effectiveness. After several millennia of practice she had mastered the ability, much to her prisoner’s dismay.
He’d tried to resist her, even going so far as to tell her to go to the Abyss and calling her all manner of filthy names. He even spat at her, but he missed. She had seen it all before. In four thousand years she’d seen just about everything there was to see. Not much surprised her these nights.
After two minutes she cooled the flames—not out of any sense of mercy, but because she needed information. A prisoner who is screaming can’t speak.
The Bachiyr’s feet were little more than charred stumps. Even if she let him go—which she had no intention of doing—he would never walk again. But at times like these few prisoners ever seemed to think that far ahead. Mostly they just wanted the pain to stop. It made getting information much easier.
“There,
Agnor
,” she said when he stopped screaming, “is that better?”
Agnor
whimpered something in reply, but she couldn’t make it out.
“You’d better speak more clearly,
Agnor
.” She reached over and touched his cheek, running her nails along his
jawline
with enough force to break the skin. Blood dripped from a thin red wound, and he shivered in his bonds. It reminded her that she had not yet fed this evening. She would have to remedy that soon. “You don’t want to displease me. Your feet were just the beginning.”
“It is better,” he said, his teeth clenched against the pain.
“Good. I am glad you can talk. We have much to discuss, you and I.”
“I already told you, I don’t know where he is.” His voice had taken on a whiny tone. Not good. He already knew he would never leave her keep alive.
Damn.
It made it harder to get what she wanted, but the difficulty often made the getting more entertaining.
“
Agnor
,” she cooed, “You are a clerk to the Halls of the Bachiyr. No, no. Don’t try to deny it, I know it’s true. You have access to information that few others can get. If anyone outside the Council of Thirteen would know of his location, it would be you.”