Time on My Hands
Chapter 23: 239 CE: The Nerva of It!

Again with his speed and agility Raben quickly outdistanced the troops. By dawn he was alone about a mile from the northern tree line. Creeping to the top of a denuded hill he searched for signs of pursuit. Hundreds of soldiers were spread out across the devastated landscape clearly searching for him. Mounted troops waited where the roads entered the trees looking for him. It was clear they were not about to give up and he was effectively cut off from where he could easily slip away. It seemed nearly the entire garrison had been deployed.

For several minutes he tried to decide what to do. If he continued towards the forest he’d be spotted and swarmed. The mounted troops could cut his escape route until the foot troops reached him. With his battle skills it would be a bloodbath before they took him down. While he knew he’d resurrect, the pain and discomfort of dying was not something he relished. In addition, he knew the bloodied troops would take delight in slicing up his body and putting it on display. If he resurrected while being displayed... the thought was simply untenable.

Having my sister here brought back a lot of memories. Even though she is a year younger than I am she caught up with me in height and for a little bit she was taller until we both stopped at five two. Many people mistook us for twins as we acted alike and drove our parents nuts like most kids. Even with short hair and boy's clothes people thought I was a girl more than half the time. Even worse when she would wear my clothes as well. It somewhat stopped as my voice deepened, but there was always someone who would point it out, or be shocked speechless when I spoke.