Dena:
Patibulum
Messaline and Loxuru are on their feet, while Lucia is still sitting on the ground. I have the urge to yell at her:
"Lucia, get up. If you try to delay the executions, the guards will drag you out of here."
Realizing that she is pretty weak already, I advise the guards to give the three condemned additional posca and water. Then after a short while, the completely naked Lucia is also getting back to her feet, regaining control over her body again.
Really good.
Me, this time shouting at the guards:
"Place the crossbeams on their backs. We march them out."
Aurelian's men are experienced. First they lift up Messalines crossbeam to lay it on her shoulders, while the other two condemned look at the scenery kinda stupid. Messaline and Loxuru are wearing part of their tunics wraped around their waists to cover themselves poorly, Lucia is standing there naked. As the crossbeam is lowered onto Messaline's flogged shoulders, she screams in pain. Then the men tie her wrists to the wood.
Loxuru and Lucia have to endure the same. As soon as all three of them have there arms tied by the wrists behind their crossbeams, they are starting to breath heavier under the deadly burden.
I tell Lucia to walk first. She is the weakest, I want her to make the pace. No need that she falls behind, or maybe faints during the march. The guards line the victims up, and Lucia is leading the ghostly figures slowly out of the atrium. Followed by Messaline, Loxuru, the noisy spectators, me and the crucifixion squad. When one of the victims seems to stagger the guards immediately stop the procession, or help the victims by supporting the crossbeams on either end.
With the weight of the crossbeams on their backs the condemned are forced to look down, can't really glance at the crowd that is following them, nor at the people that are cheering on the side of the road as the condemned walk by. Though, I'm sure, they can hear them very well.
It's soothing my soul when as hear a slave of Lucias household scream at her:
"Lucia, do you remember me? I'm Cynthia, you had me flogged a while ago. What, you can't remember. Never mind, I hope Dena will give you enough time to think about it. On your walk you should at least cover ass and tits, bitch."
Some slaves are already chanting and laughing:
"Crucify Lucia, crucify Lucia....."
Hectorius is walking next to me, I take the chance to talk to him concerning Lucia's condition:
"Lucia is very exhausted. Maybe it was wrong to use the Flagrum."
Hectorius:
"Too late, Dena. You have to deal with it. The walk is not far. There, I can see the crosses with yesterday's executed."
He is right. A little further down the road the five corpses that got executed by Hectorius yesterday, are hanging on their crosses, reminding me of the conversation with the crucified slave Daniela during the crucifixion of the criminals Cire and Andrea.
Not as many people as the day before seem to attend this execution, still it's many more then we all have expected. One thing for sure, this mob is much louder.
Closer and closer we get. Slightly in front of the five dead victims, there is two uprights prepared. In front of the left upright, there is a Stipes on the ground. Two roman engineers are working on the hole, that will finally hold the cross.
Behind the five one can see half rotten bodies attached, and at the far end of the little Sessorium skeletons are hanging awkwardly from the crosses.
Between skeletons and corpses the Legionaires have orderly piled up skulls and bones.
"Keep going," I shout.
"Stop amongst the two uprights here. If you want, you can check out the dead bodies that Hectorius has crucified yesterday. It was raining some during the night, and those corpses of women and men are not in such a bad shape as you are."
The situation got Lucia screaming:
"Save me master. You can do what you want with me, but save me from crucifixion."
The landowner out of the crowd:
"Don't worry Lucia, I already did what I wanted to do with you. Read the signs above the heads of the crucified, your's will simply state "bitch"."
The guards untie the delinquent's wrists from the crossbeams, take the logs off of their shoulders and lay the raw pieces of wood to the ground.
Meanwhile the spectators have gathered around the scenery. Some are in front of us, standing amongst Cire and Andrea, reading Daniela's Titulus, while others are checking out the penises of her well hung slave friends.
To me it was very exciting that the two dead criminals are still mocked by some people:
"Look at the criminals. They are still sitting on the plugs. Cire's balls got to be hurting by now, because his cock is not erected anymore and Andrea's boobs are almost dangling down to her navel."
Again the day before at this place comes to my mind. Andrea is still sitting on her seat plug, leaning forward some with stretched arms, the chin on her chest. The soldiers have killed her, stabbing her into the chest with a pilum. I remember all the emotions that got released within me while she was crucified, it was so awesome to watch.
Another person shouting at the dead under the laughter of the onlookers:
"Push up, push up, you gotta go up to breath."
Despite all this, I have to give the order:
"Assemble Messaline's cross on the ground, she will be crucified first........ "
SLASH ! I cry ! ... SLASH ! I cry ! SLASH ! I cry ! ....... what else ?
I cant think to anything , I'm confined into my pain, a whipped bit of flesh, an animal .......
... 
It's finished ... I cant yet realise ... too much pain ! 
(This is one of bobinder's sketches. According to the contemplation in this post, that would be the last application in the life of a crossbeam. Not bad at all 
. ) 
