Post by Arthas Vorenus on Nov 28, 2005 0:37:50 GMT
Name: Arthas Vorenus
Faction: None
Rank: Ex Senator
Species: Human
Age: 32
Gender: male
Height: 5'11
Weight: 150
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Blond
Skin: White
Credits: 1000 Credits.
Appearance: Arthas body is very well kept with a smell of full bloom lotuses around him. His body is still very well trained from his soldiering days even if he has a scar or two from it.
Family: Niobe- Wife(33) Vorena - Elder daughter(15) Vorenis- Younger daughter(10) Lucius-uh long story(3) Lyde- sister-in-law(36) Evander - Brother-in-law(34)
Force Powers:
None
Skills:
Persuade, awareness,
Lightsaber Forms:
None
Strengths and Weaknesses:
Arthas has a very strong quick temper and gives them no mercy when crossed. Arthas is also very honorable and honesty with anyone he meets making him a well like politician once upon his time. After Arthas first wife died he hasn't really come over her suicide and refuses to marry again making his political career into ruins.
Gear:
One long sword, one state of the art amour, one blaster pistol and some medic packs of ofcourse.
Ships:
The Marathon
www.starshipmodeler.com/b5/tbltiso5.jpg
Pets:
5 servants.
Personality:
The hard essence of a professional Republic soldier. Honorable and severe, he is unforgiving and pitiless when crossed. A dour and pragmatic man, with a tendency to wards self-interest at times. Arthas if anything is loyal to his friends and allies.
History:
After eight years of war, Julius Morita has finally completed his bloody conquest of several outter rim worlds. Just as he is prepared to celebrate a resounding victory and return to Rhinnal (a new empire emerging) with his army, he receives word that his daughter Julia has died in childbirth. The balance of power lies in the Senate with Pompey Magnus, who is counseled by Cato, Cicero, Scipio and other members of the old-guard to renounce Morita , lest his return and popularity among the masses challenge Pompey's ruling status-to say nothing of their own wealth and power. For his part, Pompey Magnus is torn between his own drive to maintain power and his long-standing friendship with Morita , the father of his recently departed wife. Pat Morita's 11-year-old nephew, Manelin. When his army's gold eagle--a symbol of his reign--is stolen, Morita 's cousin and commander, Antony, enlists two soldiers, Arthas and Titus Pullo, to track it down. Despite their differences (Pullo is an arrogant, rebellious with a moral of a pirate), the two make a formidable duo, and elevate themselves by retrieving not just the missing standard, but the head of its thief: Pompey Magnus's chief attendant. After anointing Antony the People's Tribune, Morita sends him to Rhinnal to negotiate a compromise with the Senate. Accompanied by young Manelin and his liberators, Arthas and Pullo, the new "protector of the people" is greeted by cheers as he enters the city, a crowd swarming around him to catch the coins he tosses to them.When Arthas and Pullo return Manelin to a grateful mother Atia, they are invited to dine with the family "as equals," but only after the young boy explains to his mother that the men ride with Morita 's standard. Several goblets of wine later, Arthas makes it known that he is a strict traditionalist who believes in "the divinity of the Rhinnal," even if it means siding with Cato and the nobility. It is Manelin, a member of the nobility, who appears to agitate for change - much to his mother's surprise. "The Rhinnal people are suffering," he declares in a burst of sudden passion. "Nobles have taken all control of the economy, leaving the streets full of the homeless and starving." Pullo, for his part, is all for Morita marching on Rhinnal and squashing Pompey and his supporters "with battle cruiser," if necessary. "Never mind the law. We need a strong man with new ideas." At the end of the feast, the two men eagerly depart for their long-awaited homecomings, Arthas to his family and Pullo to the cantinas.
When Arthas finally comes upon his wife, Niobe, she is holding a small infant, sending him into a rage.Stun from shock that her husband is alive, Niobe manages to defend herself. "This baby is your grandson," she says quickly, before leading him to their two young daughters, 13 and 8, who recoil at the site of their estranged father.With this the negotiations are over. Pullo's first mission does not go so well either. Finding his way into an cantina deep in the lower levels, he gambles away his credits, until he discovers that his opponent has been cheating, and thrusts a sword through his throat. He fights his way out of the bar and the neighborhood single-handedly - not without sustaining a few deep wounds of his own - and manages to find Vorenus's home. The next day, a doctor extracts shards from his brain before doing some implants onto his damaged skull. Arthas has not fared much better during his own homecoming. After threatening his daughter's young suitor, the boy who "seeded" his grandson, his wife becomes enraged. Later he overhears her how long she wept for him during his absence, only to have him return a cold, mean brute. When word of the events travels to Morita , he prepares his soldiers. "I am declared an enemy of the people...They have declared, in effect, that all of you also, are criminals...We have made mighty nations kneel. We have unhorsed a hundred kings and made them our servants for the glory of Rhinnal. And these are crimes?" Antony and his bloodied men arrive at Morita 's camp soon after, Vorenus still unconscious, and Morita seizes the opportunity to rouse his men. "Our beloved Republic is in the hands of madmen! This is a dark day, and I stand at a fork in the road. I can abide the law and surrender my arms to the Senate - and watch the Republic fall to tyranny and chaos. Or, I can go home with my sword in hand and run those maniacs into the ground!" The soldiers respond with a thundering roar of allegiance. The next time Arthas awakes, he is in a traveling medic's ship, in the middle of a long procession of soldiers, crossing a river. It is Pullo who explains they are heading back to Rhinnal, that he is now "a rebel whether you like it or not." As the bandaged Arthas erupts in anger, Pullo tries to assuage him. "Pompey did try to kill Antony, after all. Morita can't well leave that alone, can he?" Arthas calls his bluff, reminding him they both know it was Pullo who was being attacked. But he swears he will not speak of the truth again. As Rhinnal prepares for war while across the planet Niobe remains calm. Gathering the baby from her older daughter Vorena, she pulls out a breast, and begins feeding the small infant.
Thirty miles outside of the city of Rhinnal, Morita sends Vorenus, Pullo and some soldiers on a scouting mission to size up Pompey's defenses, with strict instructions to advance only until they meet resistance. "There will be no raping, pillage, or burning," he adds, handing Arthas proclamation to deliver to the civilians of the city. Inside the darkened planet, a man clad in a butcher's apron enters Vorenus's home, startling Niobe. "I had to see my son," he declares, staring at infant Lucius in his cradle. Niobe yells at him to stay away, but surrenders for a moment when he kisses her. "I never loved you," she tells him as tears come. "I thought Arthas was dead...you took advantage." When the man refuses to go, she picks up a knife to threaten him. "If you will not accept my love, then kill me," he tells her. Just as she gives in to him again, her daughter interrupts them, and the man finally flees. Vorena the elder sister urges her mother to tell her father the truth. "You thought he was dead. Dad will understand," she pleads, until Niobe sets her straight: "He will kill every one of us! Never speak a word!"Inching closer to the city, Vorenus, Pullo and their cavalry come upon a troop of Pompey's new recruits, blocking the road to Rhinnal. Ignoring orders, Pullo charges ahead with drawn sword, and a band of shrieking soliders follow him. Panic spreads among Pompey's young soldiers as they turn and flee. When a transmission later informs Pompey of the incident he is caught off guard, shocked that Morita 's men could have advanced with such speed. Convinced Morita will attack Rhinnal directly, Pompey tells Cicero and Cato that he will not have the forces necessary to defend the city in time, and they must make a quick "tactical retreat" to the south. "I can rally my legions there...once they are all gathered in good order, we can simply retake the city." With this a contemptuous Cato unfurls his rage at the general. "You have lost Rhinnal without unsheathing your sword!"Just outside the city walls, a officer and his fellow footmen come face to face with Pullo and Vorenus, who are suspicious of the man's soldier's shoes. A bloody battle happen as the Tiduis manage to kill and scatter the guards, but not before the officer escapes on a speeder into the woods. Committed to finishing their mission, Morita 's men leave the cargo ship and continue on. Arthas is baffled to see the city abandoned and undefended. "Soldiers of the Republic don't run so...it must be a trick." True to his orders, he reads it aloud, and pins it to the doors of the Senate: "Citizens, I have returned with the sole intention of claiming my legal and moral rights. I have no desire for unlawful powers..." Uneffected by the words, Arthas sheds his soldier's uniform, and announces to Pullo that he is quitting Morita 's army. "I have sinned enough." Pullo fails to convince him to stay on, and the two part ways. Heading home through the empty streets, Arthas stops at a shrine and prays that his wife will love him. When he finally returns to her, he begs her forgiveness, offering to leave without protest if she wishes. Niobe begins to confess but loses her composure. Arthas takes her in his arms. "The past is gone. We start again?" Pullo sees his good fortune continue when he returns to the cargo wagon his unit intercepted - only to discover it is full of Pompey's gold. Attached to the wagon is young servant girl, Eirena. He cuts her loose, cloaks himself in farmer's hood, and rides off with the wagon and the girl, just as Morita and his 13th regiment approach, anxiously preparing for their descent into the shuttered city.
Despite the quiet that has befallen the city, Arthas is anxious to start his new life as a merchant, and plans a party to enlist trading partners. He intends to import goods from Kuat- trading, ships, weapons, and wine - and to do this he must become friend local businessmen. As he prepares for his guests to arrive, Arthas receives a surprise visit from Antony, who confronts him about deserting Morita 's army. "I am no deserter! My time was served!" Arthas insists. "I am a citizen, not a soldiers. I could not legally do other than I did." "Foolish like a priest," says Antony, before making him an offer. If Arthas returns to the thirteenth legion, he will be inducted into the army as a prefect of the first grade, with a large signing bonus. Arthas declines the offer, angering Antony. Over at Vorenus's feast, Niobe's sister Lyde arrives with Evander the butcher, Niobe's erstwhile lover and the father of her infant son. "This is my husband, Evander Pulchio," Lyde says, introducing the tense man to an oblivious Vorenus. As other guests arrive, festively dressed merchants and neighbors, Arthas tries awkwardly to make small talk, while the infant Lucius reaches for Evander, who cuddles with the child -- tormenting his wife. Drinking down a great amount of wine, Lyde loses herself by dancing with a young man, until her husband tries to escort her from the party and she makes a scene. Terrified that Arthas will see the spectacle, Niobe pulls a knife to threaten her. "What good is a knife when you've killed me already?" Lyde cries. As Evander tries to wrestle his wife out of the party, the two knock over a shrine to Janus, god of beginnings - a terrible omen that fills Arthas with a sense of doom. As Arthas begins to recover from his hosting duties, he receives another surprise visit - this time it is Pompey's son and his men, in search of the treasury gold. Assuring them he knows nothing, they threaten him with swords, drawing blood from his throat. The standoff is interrupted by the sound of a raucous crowd outside Arthas's courtyard. They are carrying a Pullo who tosses coins at the beggars and urchins in the street. He does not see Quintus's men as he rushes to greet Arthas. But when they descend on their now-obvious culprit, Pullo throws a bag of golden coins in the air, and the beggars descend in force - allowing Pullo and Arthas to ambush their would-be captors.With Quintus bound and gagged, Pullo hatches a plan to escape with the gold to Nar Shada. Arthas wont have it: "By sunrise everyone in Rhinnal will know what you did, and where you are...My home was invaded and my wife near killed on your account." With this he convinces Pullo to hand over the gold to Morita , and hope that offering Quintus will earn him mercy. It earns him more than that, 10000 credits saying "I do not like to quarrel with Fortune, and clearly she has taken you for a pet." Quintus is sent back to Pompey with a written offer of a truce, despite the misgivings of Antony and even young Manelin, who speculates that the offering will divide Pompey from his men. This assessment pleases Morita. Pullo returns to Arthas's with his gold from Morita , only to find Niobe and Evander in a heated conversation. Arthas is elsewhere, praying for himself to a shrine , begging forgiveness.
With his workers due to arrive from Ryloth, Arthas announces to his family that he will soon have enough money for his daughter's dowry, allowing her to take baby Lucius to her young husband and start a proper married life. This thrills Vorena the elder sister while distressing Niobe, who stares anxiously at her infant son.But Vorenus's servants did not fare will on their journey - all but one of the 12 succumbed to the black blood flu, and the sole survivor is a sickly Twi'lek. Arthas has no choice but to take him home and nurse him to health, in the hopes that he can sell him and recoup some of his losses. Oblivious to any troubles with his family, Arthas is preoccupied with his finances, and approaches Erastes for a loan to buy more slaves. Instead he gets a job offer - to accompany the businessman on his trades as a sort of bodyguard. During his first assignment, however, Erastes asks Arthas to kill a man who has failed to pay him. He refuses and quits. At the end of his rope, Arthas returns to Antony to tell him he has reconsidered the offer to rejoin Morita 's army. Antony accepts, but only because Morita has left him in Rhinnal and he needs good men. Arthas is soon initiated into a local church by an elderly priest, who performs an ceremony at a temple. Meanwhile Niobe has taken in her sister Lyde since her husband's disappearance, and when Pullo callously informs them he heard the man was killed (over gambling debts, he suggests), both women become disagreed. Pullo urges Lyde to forget the past and get on with her life, looking instead to the people that love her, adding a stern "isn't that right?" in Niobe's direction. Later when Niobe tries to comfort Lyde, she will have no part of it, calling her sister a thief and a whore. Niobe insists that Evander came to her, that if Lyde has been a better wife - presumably, if she'd given him a child - their affair wouldn't have happened. She tries to take it back, but Lyde's rage is unfurled. She vows to keep the secret for the sake of the child, but insists Niobe never speak to her again. Across town, Lyde returns to Niobe's, still furious with her sister, refusing an offer for money. But when Niobe tells her Arthas is likely dead, Lyde softens. "You're all that I have left...I am tired of being angry."
A strom attacks the thirteenth army shuttle while trying to fly off to a local syteam making many doing a crash landing into the ocean. Lucky Arthas and Pullo manage to swim to a desert island. Desperate for their survival, Arthas and Pullo build a raft from the bloated bodies of their comrades, and paddle fiercely out to sea. They eventually collapse from exhaustion and dehydration, and awake to find themselves drifting ashore again - this time greeted by what's left of Pompey's camp. The fallen general tries to pass himself off as a civilian, but they are on to him. "Morita ' ll drown us in gold!" an excited Pullo tells Arthas, ready to pounce on their prize. But Pompey makes a heartfelt plea to Vorenus, asking him to consider the fate of his family and let him take them to Bakura. As a s believer in the Republic, Arthas doesn't have much stomach to watch the once powerful leader beg for mercy. He decides to let him be, enraging Pullo. When they finally return to Morita 's camp, Arthas must inform the general of their encounter, and explain why they failed to bring back the man's arch rival. "There was water in his eyes. He is broken. I saw no need to apprehend him." This explanation only enrages Morita . "As long as he can be propped on a horse, he is dangerous...I should have you scourged and crucified!" After pausing to contemplate his punishment, Morita dismisses the men, much to Antony's disbelief. Recounting the soldiers' many triumphs, he explains, "Those two have powerful Gods on their side. I'll not kill a man with friends of that sort."
Hoping to appease him, the governor's men present a "surprise gift" - Pompey's severed head. Instead of expressing his gratitude, however, Morita becomes enraged. "Cruse you for such barbarity!...He was a consul of Rhinnal!...To die this way? Quartered like some low thief? Shame!" The Bakuraian are stunned into silence, while their young leader kalfi refers to the leader as an "insect." Before making his intentions known to the Bakuraians, Morita sends Arthas and Pullo to the desert in search of Arly a rebellouis leader. Once they've set out, he returns to the govonor's chair to make his demands: they must present him with Pompey's murderers, and they must repay the debts incurred. When the young leader Kalfi throws a tantrum, Morita reminds him he is a "vassal to Rhinnal," which only infuriates him further. His advisers explain they will need time to come up with the money. "Then I will have time then to adjudicate your dispute with Arly," Morita tells them. "You and she will plead your claims before me, and I will decide." Realizing they must pay him or risk losing power, the king's men decide they must kill the princess. In a tent in the desert, lost in an spice stupor, the young Arly lies shackled to a bed, surrounded by attendants. A guard enters to inform her that she must "prepare herself for her journey to the afterlife." As three of the king's assassins prepare their swords, shrieks are heard outside the tent, and the men are soon enveloped in a battle - which tumbles back into the tent, a triumphant Pullo taking down the last of the would-be murderers as the princess and her slaves watch. Returning the princess safely to the capitol city requires a procession of men, lead by Arthas and Pullo. Exalting in her freedom, Arly contemplates Morita 's likeness on a coin. "As long as Morita 's a man, I will have him," she announces to her slave, Charmian."It's only a shame he is not here today. A child would come as sure as spring." With this the hazy princess gets an idea, and soon Arthas is summoned inside the tent, instructed by Charmian to "enter" the princess. "I cannot do what you ask," he says, flustered. "It is not our custom...men are not used by women in that way." When the slave insists and the princess poses seductively, he nearly gives in before stopping himself. "I am no slave to be commanded so. With all respect," he says, stalking out of the tent. Instead he uses his rank to summon Pullo: "report immediately to Arly, and do as she says." A soldierly order beyond his wildest dreams, Pullo takes to the task with "hearty enthusiasm" as the princess's attendants screams with joy awake.
Faction: None
Rank: Ex Senator
Species: Human
Age: 32
Gender: male
Height: 5'11
Weight: 150
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Blond
Skin: White
Credits: 1000 Credits.
Appearance: Arthas body is very well kept with a smell of full bloom lotuses around him. His body is still very well trained from his soldiering days even if he has a scar or two from it.
Family: Niobe- Wife(33) Vorena - Elder daughter(15) Vorenis- Younger daughter(10) Lucius-uh long story(3) Lyde- sister-in-law(36) Evander - Brother-in-law(34)
Force Powers:
None
Skills:
Persuade, awareness,
Lightsaber Forms:
None
Strengths and Weaknesses:
Arthas has a very strong quick temper and gives them no mercy when crossed. Arthas is also very honorable and honesty with anyone he meets making him a well like politician once upon his time. After Arthas first wife died he hasn't really come over her suicide and refuses to marry again making his political career into ruins.
Gear:
One long sword, one state of the art amour, one blaster pistol and some medic packs of ofcourse.
Ships:
The Marathon
www.starshipmodeler.com/b5/tbltiso5.jpg
Pets:
5 servants.
Personality:
The hard essence of a professional Republic soldier. Honorable and severe, he is unforgiving and pitiless when crossed. A dour and pragmatic man, with a tendency to wards self-interest at times. Arthas if anything is loyal to his friends and allies.
History:
After eight years of war, Julius Morita has finally completed his bloody conquest of several outter rim worlds. Just as he is prepared to celebrate a resounding victory and return to Rhinnal (a new empire emerging) with his army, he receives word that his daughter Julia has died in childbirth. The balance of power lies in the Senate with Pompey Magnus, who is counseled by Cato, Cicero, Scipio and other members of the old-guard to renounce Morita , lest his return and popularity among the masses challenge Pompey's ruling status-to say nothing of their own wealth and power. For his part, Pompey Magnus is torn between his own drive to maintain power and his long-standing friendship with Morita , the father of his recently departed wife. Pat Morita's 11-year-old nephew, Manelin. When his army's gold eagle--a symbol of his reign--is stolen, Morita 's cousin and commander, Antony, enlists two soldiers, Arthas and Titus Pullo, to track it down. Despite their differences (Pullo is an arrogant, rebellious with a moral of a pirate), the two make a formidable duo, and elevate themselves by retrieving not just the missing standard, but the head of its thief: Pompey Magnus's chief attendant. After anointing Antony the People's Tribune, Morita sends him to Rhinnal to negotiate a compromise with the Senate. Accompanied by young Manelin and his liberators, Arthas and Pullo, the new "protector of the people" is greeted by cheers as he enters the city, a crowd swarming around him to catch the coins he tosses to them.When Arthas and Pullo return Manelin to a grateful mother Atia, they are invited to dine with the family "as equals," but only after the young boy explains to his mother that the men ride with Morita 's standard. Several goblets of wine later, Arthas makes it known that he is a strict traditionalist who believes in "the divinity of the Rhinnal," even if it means siding with Cato and the nobility. It is Manelin, a member of the nobility, who appears to agitate for change - much to his mother's surprise. "The Rhinnal people are suffering," he declares in a burst of sudden passion. "Nobles have taken all control of the economy, leaving the streets full of the homeless and starving." Pullo, for his part, is all for Morita marching on Rhinnal and squashing Pompey and his supporters "with battle cruiser," if necessary. "Never mind the law. We need a strong man with new ideas." At the end of the feast, the two men eagerly depart for their long-awaited homecomings, Arthas to his family and Pullo to the cantinas.
When Arthas finally comes upon his wife, Niobe, she is holding a small infant, sending him into a rage.Stun from shock that her husband is alive, Niobe manages to defend herself. "This baby is your grandson," she says quickly, before leading him to their two young daughters, 13 and 8, who recoil at the site of their estranged father.With this the negotiations are over. Pullo's first mission does not go so well either. Finding his way into an cantina deep in the lower levels, he gambles away his credits, until he discovers that his opponent has been cheating, and thrusts a sword through his throat. He fights his way out of the bar and the neighborhood single-handedly - not without sustaining a few deep wounds of his own - and manages to find Vorenus's home. The next day, a doctor extracts shards from his brain before doing some implants onto his damaged skull. Arthas has not fared much better during his own homecoming. After threatening his daughter's young suitor, the boy who "seeded" his grandson, his wife becomes enraged. Later he overhears her how long she wept for him during his absence, only to have him return a cold, mean brute. When word of the events travels to Morita , he prepares his soldiers. "I am declared an enemy of the people...They have declared, in effect, that all of you also, are criminals...We have made mighty nations kneel. We have unhorsed a hundred kings and made them our servants for the glory of Rhinnal. And these are crimes?" Antony and his bloodied men arrive at Morita 's camp soon after, Vorenus still unconscious, and Morita seizes the opportunity to rouse his men. "Our beloved Republic is in the hands of madmen! This is a dark day, and I stand at a fork in the road. I can abide the law and surrender my arms to the Senate - and watch the Republic fall to tyranny and chaos. Or, I can go home with my sword in hand and run those maniacs into the ground!" The soldiers respond with a thundering roar of allegiance. The next time Arthas awakes, he is in a traveling medic's ship, in the middle of a long procession of soldiers, crossing a river. It is Pullo who explains they are heading back to Rhinnal, that he is now "a rebel whether you like it or not." As the bandaged Arthas erupts in anger, Pullo tries to assuage him. "Pompey did try to kill Antony, after all. Morita can't well leave that alone, can he?" Arthas calls his bluff, reminding him they both know it was Pullo who was being attacked. But he swears he will not speak of the truth again. As Rhinnal prepares for war while across the planet Niobe remains calm. Gathering the baby from her older daughter Vorena, she pulls out a breast, and begins feeding the small infant.
Thirty miles outside of the city of Rhinnal, Morita sends Vorenus, Pullo and some soldiers on a scouting mission to size up Pompey's defenses, with strict instructions to advance only until they meet resistance. "There will be no raping, pillage, or burning," he adds, handing Arthas proclamation to deliver to the civilians of the city. Inside the darkened planet, a man clad in a butcher's apron enters Vorenus's home, startling Niobe. "I had to see my son," he declares, staring at infant Lucius in his cradle. Niobe yells at him to stay away, but surrenders for a moment when he kisses her. "I never loved you," she tells him as tears come. "I thought Arthas was dead...you took advantage." When the man refuses to go, she picks up a knife to threaten him. "If you will not accept my love, then kill me," he tells her. Just as she gives in to him again, her daughter interrupts them, and the man finally flees. Vorena the elder sister urges her mother to tell her father the truth. "You thought he was dead. Dad will understand," she pleads, until Niobe sets her straight: "He will kill every one of us! Never speak a word!"Inching closer to the city, Vorenus, Pullo and their cavalry come upon a troop of Pompey's new recruits, blocking the road to Rhinnal. Ignoring orders, Pullo charges ahead with drawn sword, and a band of shrieking soliders follow him. Panic spreads among Pompey's young soldiers as they turn and flee. When a transmission later informs Pompey of the incident he is caught off guard, shocked that Morita 's men could have advanced with such speed. Convinced Morita will attack Rhinnal directly, Pompey tells Cicero and Cato that he will not have the forces necessary to defend the city in time, and they must make a quick "tactical retreat" to the south. "I can rally my legions there...once they are all gathered in good order, we can simply retake the city." With this a contemptuous Cato unfurls his rage at the general. "You have lost Rhinnal without unsheathing your sword!"Just outside the city walls, a officer and his fellow footmen come face to face with Pullo and Vorenus, who are suspicious of the man's soldier's shoes. A bloody battle happen as the Tiduis manage to kill and scatter the guards, but not before the officer escapes on a speeder into the woods. Committed to finishing their mission, Morita 's men leave the cargo ship and continue on. Arthas is baffled to see the city abandoned and undefended. "Soldiers of the Republic don't run so...it must be a trick." True to his orders, he reads it aloud, and pins it to the doors of the Senate: "Citizens, I have returned with the sole intention of claiming my legal and moral rights. I have no desire for unlawful powers..." Uneffected by the words, Arthas sheds his soldier's uniform, and announces to Pullo that he is quitting Morita 's army. "I have sinned enough." Pullo fails to convince him to stay on, and the two part ways. Heading home through the empty streets, Arthas stops at a shrine and prays that his wife will love him. When he finally returns to her, he begs her forgiveness, offering to leave without protest if she wishes. Niobe begins to confess but loses her composure. Arthas takes her in his arms. "The past is gone. We start again?" Pullo sees his good fortune continue when he returns to the cargo wagon his unit intercepted - only to discover it is full of Pompey's gold. Attached to the wagon is young servant girl, Eirena. He cuts her loose, cloaks himself in farmer's hood, and rides off with the wagon and the girl, just as Morita and his 13th regiment approach, anxiously preparing for their descent into the shuttered city.
Despite the quiet that has befallen the city, Arthas is anxious to start his new life as a merchant, and plans a party to enlist trading partners. He intends to import goods from Kuat- trading, ships, weapons, and wine - and to do this he must become friend local businessmen. As he prepares for his guests to arrive, Arthas receives a surprise visit from Antony, who confronts him about deserting Morita 's army. "I am no deserter! My time was served!" Arthas insists. "I am a citizen, not a soldiers. I could not legally do other than I did." "Foolish like a priest," says Antony, before making him an offer. If Arthas returns to the thirteenth legion, he will be inducted into the army as a prefect of the first grade, with a large signing bonus. Arthas declines the offer, angering Antony. Over at Vorenus's feast, Niobe's sister Lyde arrives with Evander the butcher, Niobe's erstwhile lover and the father of her infant son. "This is my husband, Evander Pulchio," Lyde says, introducing the tense man to an oblivious Vorenus. As other guests arrive, festively dressed merchants and neighbors, Arthas tries awkwardly to make small talk, while the infant Lucius reaches for Evander, who cuddles with the child -- tormenting his wife. Drinking down a great amount of wine, Lyde loses herself by dancing with a young man, until her husband tries to escort her from the party and she makes a scene. Terrified that Arthas will see the spectacle, Niobe pulls a knife to threaten her. "What good is a knife when you've killed me already?" Lyde cries. As Evander tries to wrestle his wife out of the party, the two knock over a shrine to Janus, god of beginnings - a terrible omen that fills Arthas with a sense of doom. As Arthas begins to recover from his hosting duties, he receives another surprise visit - this time it is Pompey's son and his men, in search of the treasury gold. Assuring them he knows nothing, they threaten him with swords, drawing blood from his throat. The standoff is interrupted by the sound of a raucous crowd outside Arthas's courtyard. They are carrying a Pullo who tosses coins at the beggars and urchins in the street. He does not see Quintus's men as he rushes to greet Arthas. But when they descend on their now-obvious culprit, Pullo throws a bag of golden coins in the air, and the beggars descend in force - allowing Pullo and Arthas to ambush their would-be captors.With Quintus bound and gagged, Pullo hatches a plan to escape with the gold to Nar Shada. Arthas wont have it: "By sunrise everyone in Rhinnal will know what you did, and where you are...My home was invaded and my wife near killed on your account." With this he convinces Pullo to hand over the gold to Morita , and hope that offering Quintus will earn him mercy. It earns him more than that, 10000 credits saying "I do not like to quarrel with Fortune, and clearly she has taken you for a pet." Quintus is sent back to Pompey with a written offer of a truce, despite the misgivings of Antony and even young Manelin, who speculates that the offering will divide Pompey from his men. This assessment pleases Morita. Pullo returns to Arthas's with his gold from Morita , only to find Niobe and Evander in a heated conversation. Arthas is elsewhere, praying for himself to a shrine , begging forgiveness.
With his workers due to arrive from Ryloth, Arthas announces to his family that he will soon have enough money for his daughter's dowry, allowing her to take baby Lucius to her young husband and start a proper married life. This thrills Vorena the elder sister while distressing Niobe, who stares anxiously at her infant son.But Vorenus's servants did not fare will on their journey - all but one of the 12 succumbed to the black blood flu, and the sole survivor is a sickly Twi'lek. Arthas has no choice but to take him home and nurse him to health, in the hopes that he can sell him and recoup some of his losses. Oblivious to any troubles with his family, Arthas is preoccupied with his finances, and approaches Erastes for a loan to buy more slaves. Instead he gets a job offer - to accompany the businessman on his trades as a sort of bodyguard. During his first assignment, however, Erastes asks Arthas to kill a man who has failed to pay him. He refuses and quits. At the end of his rope, Arthas returns to Antony to tell him he has reconsidered the offer to rejoin Morita 's army. Antony accepts, but only because Morita has left him in Rhinnal and he needs good men. Arthas is soon initiated into a local church by an elderly priest, who performs an ceremony at a temple. Meanwhile Niobe has taken in her sister Lyde since her husband's disappearance, and when Pullo callously informs them he heard the man was killed (over gambling debts, he suggests), both women become disagreed. Pullo urges Lyde to forget the past and get on with her life, looking instead to the people that love her, adding a stern "isn't that right?" in Niobe's direction. Later when Niobe tries to comfort Lyde, she will have no part of it, calling her sister a thief and a whore. Niobe insists that Evander came to her, that if Lyde has been a better wife - presumably, if she'd given him a child - their affair wouldn't have happened. She tries to take it back, but Lyde's rage is unfurled. She vows to keep the secret for the sake of the child, but insists Niobe never speak to her again. Across town, Lyde returns to Niobe's, still furious with her sister, refusing an offer for money. But when Niobe tells her Arthas is likely dead, Lyde softens. "You're all that I have left...I am tired of being angry."
A strom attacks the thirteenth army shuttle while trying to fly off to a local syteam making many doing a crash landing into the ocean. Lucky Arthas and Pullo manage to swim to a desert island. Desperate for their survival, Arthas and Pullo build a raft from the bloated bodies of their comrades, and paddle fiercely out to sea. They eventually collapse from exhaustion and dehydration, and awake to find themselves drifting ashore again - this time greeted by what's left of Pompey's camp. The fallen general tries to pass himself off as a civilian, but they are on to him. "Morita ' ll drown us in gold!" an excited Pullo tells Arthas, ready to pounce on their prize. But Pompey makes a heartfelt plea to Vorenus, asking him to consider the fate of his family and let him take them to Bakura. As a s believer in the Republic, Arthas doesn't have much stomach to watch the once powerful leader beg for mercy. He decides to let him be, enraging Pullo. When they finally return to Morita 's camp, Arthas must inform the general of their encounter, and explain why they failed to bring back the man's arch rival. "There was water in his eyes. He is broken. I saw no need to apprehend him." This explanation only enrages Morita . "As long as he can be propped on a horse, he is dangerous...I should have you scourged and crucified!" After pausing to contemplate his punishment, Morita dismisses the men, much to Antony's disbelief. Recounting the soldiers' many triumphs, he explains, "Those two have powerful Gods on their side. I'll not kill a man with friends of that sort."
Hoping to appease him, the governor's men present a "surprise gift" - Pompey's severed head. Instead of expressing his gratitude, however, Morita becomes enraged. "Cruse you for such barbarity!...He was a consul of Rhinnal!...To die this way? Quartered like some low thief? Shame!" The Bakuraian are stunned into silence, while their young leader kalfi refers to the leader as an "insect." Before making his intentions known to the Bakuraians, Morita sends Arthas and Pullo to the desert in search of Arly a rebellouis leader. Once they've set out, he returns to the govonor's chair to make his demands: they must present him with Pompey's murderers, and they must repay the debts incurred. When the young leader Kalfi throws a tantrum, Morita reminds him he is a "vassal to Rhinnal," which only infuriates him further. His advisers explain they will need time to come up with the money. "Then I will have time then to adjudicate your dispute with Arly," Morita tells them. "You and she will plead your claims before me, and I will decide." Realizing they must pay him or risk losing power, the king's men decide they must kill the princess. In a tent in the desert, lost in an spice stupor, the young Arly lies shackled to a bed, surrounded by attendants. A guard enters to inform her that she must "prepare herself for her journey to the afterlife." As three of the king's assassins prepare their swords, shrieks are heard outside the tent, and the men are soon enveloped in a battle - which tumbles back into the tent, a triumphant Pullo taking down the last of the would-be murderers as the princess and her slaves watch. Returning the princess safely to the capitol city requires a procession of men, lead by Arthas and Pullo. Exalting in her freedom, Arly contemplates Morita 's likeness on a coin. "As long as Morita 's a man, I will have him," she announces to her slave, Charmian."It's only a shame he is not here today. A child would come as sure as spring." With this the hazy princess gets an idea, and soon Arthas is summoned inside the tent, instructed by Charmian to "enter" the princess. "I cannot do what you ask," he says, flustered. "It is not our custom...men are not used by women in that way." When the slave insists and the princess poses seductively, he nearly gives in before stopping himself. "I am no slave to be commanded so. With all respect," he says, stalking out of the tent. Instead he uses his rank to summon Pullo: "report immediately to Arly, and do as she says." A soldierly order beyond his wildest dreams, Pullo takes to the task with "hearty enthusiasm" as the princess's attendants screams with joy awake.