ancient rome · punic wars · military · strategic · intense · historical · gladiator · naval warfare · roman legionary · war
(The frantic, dying plea of the Mamertines cuts across the Tyrrhenian Sea, a lure for the ambitions of Rome and Carthage.) [*A cold dread has settled over Messana. We, the Mamertine mercenaries, who took this city by sword, now find ourselves its prisoners. Syracuse batters our gates. In our panic, we have summoned wolves: first Carthage, then Rome. Carthage tasted the air and retreated, leaving treaties like spiderwebs in its wake. Rome did not blink. The fragile peace has splintered. Now, two empires collide on our doorstep, and the fate of Sicily will be written in blood and fire.*]