The transition from a single united empire to the later divided Western and Eastern empires was a gradual transformation. In July, 285 , Diocletion defeated rival Emperor Maximium and briefly became sole emperor of the Roman Empire. Diocletian felt that the system of Roman imperial government was unsustainable in the face of internal pressures and military threats on two fronts. He gave the title of Caesar, which was the traditional manner by which an emperor (Augustus) designated his successor. However Diocletian made Maximian an Augustus as well. Imperial power was therefore divided between two people. Diocletian's sphere of influence was the East, Maximian's the West.
This was the state of the Roman Empire at the time our story begins.
At the bottom of the steps, Kamma and her men crept slowly forward through an endless corridor of damp moss-covered stone. Similar corridors went off in different directions. Kamma realized that an immense labyrinthine catacombs was under the ruins. The only sounds were of dripping water, the creaking of stones settling and their own footsteps which echoed loudly in the otherwise silent tunnel. The stale air held the odd musty stench of ancient decay. Few words were spoken, and those in whispers. Not one of the party wished to disturb the rest of the departed. Kamma shivered with the cold and damp and pulled her cloak tightly around her. More than once she spotted an enormous rat scurrying across the floor.
Rows of niches were cut into the walls. Inside these niches were the skeletal remains of the persons interred here. Originally the corpses had been wrapped in shrouds, but the cloth had rotted away until the naked skeletons were covered with what seemed to be strips of yellow lace.
Besides those buried in the walls, rooms off the main corridors held stone sarcophagus or tombs dug into the floor. Many of the rooms had frescos on the wall that were too faded to tell what was depicted. .
The superstitious slaves begged to leave the place of death. Even Cladius and Brutius became nervous. Brutius said, "Priestess, leave the body of the barbarian in one of these rooms, and let us depart. There's no reason to disturb these ancient corpses."
"I suppose you're right." She sighed. "The man we brought here has already departed for Hades. It is only necessary to have a small ceremony for the peace of his soul." She pointed to a sarcophagus in one of the side rooms. "Lay him out there. You and Cladius may leave with the slaves. I will stay for a short while longer. I need to pray to Diana."
"As you wish." Brutius ordered the slaves to lay Casticos' corpse on the cover of the tomb. He, Cladius and the slaves strolled back the way they had come. He left one of the torches with Kamma which she forced into a crack in the ancient wall of the crypt.
After the men left, she knelt by the sarcophagus and prayed to Diana. "Oh Great Goddess of the Moon, why did you bring me here? Was it simply to bring this handsome stranger's corpse to this forgotten tomb? And what is to become of me now? I loved him from the first time I saw him in the vision you sent me. I don't believe I could love another."
An ancient crackling voice said, "How do you know that?"
Kamma twisted her head around. "Who spoke?"
An old bent woman with tangled white hair and filthy rags for clothes stepped out of the shadows. "Don't you recognize me?"
"Erictho, the crone in my vision. Was it you who sent it?"
The elder shuffled forward and gazed down at Casticos' body. "He was a handsome youth. It's a pity he had die. But that's the business of war, to slaughter the best men." She spat upon the ground in contempt.
"But mother, what are you doing in this catacombs?"
"I abide here among the dead."
"Why?"
"It's a long story which I will tell you sometime. I know why you are here though."
"Do you? I don't know myself. You are apparently aware of the vision I had in Diana's temple. Since then, the Fates have led me to this ancient burial place."
The crone cackled. "It is to see me that you have come. I called to you. Or rather I called to whomever would fulfill the prophetic vision I myself had when I first entered this place of death and filth. The fates have decreed that I perform a wonder for you."
"What sort of wonder?"
"You profess love for the man who once inhabited that decaying flesh." She pointed at the corpse.
"Yes. But it is unrequited. I have only seen him alive twice, once in a vision and once for a few moments at a distance."
"And yet you say that you are in love with him." She shook her head. "Ah, foolish youth." She sighed. "Yet, if I could, I would be young and stupid too, full of passion and vinegar. But that is neither here nor there. I wish to bargain with you."
"What sort of bargain? What do you have to sell?" Kamma gazed contemptuously at the woman's rags.
"What would you say if I told you that I could return this man to life?"
"You would have to be a very powerful sorceress to do that."
She cackled again. "Suppose I am. What would you give to have him alive?"
"Anything. Whatever you would ask. Are you making fun of me? Does my love for this man seem to be a joke to you?"
The crone stared into Kamma's eyes. Her expression was one of seriousness. "I do not jest. I really am a witch, one who knows the secrets of life and death."
Kamma contemplated the crone for a few moments. "Either you're mad, or you really are what you claim. Very well, I'll pretend that you can do what you claim. You said you had a price. What is it?"
"You are a rich Roman woman. I would like to leave this awful place and live like a human being again. But I need to be under the protection of someone like you. This is good bargain for you. For in addition to raising the young man from the dead, I can teach you witchcraft."
"So you want me to take you back to Rome, give you shelter in my home and support you -- for the rest of your life, I assume. And for my sworn agreement to provide for you, you will raise the handsome barbarian to life and teach me witchcraft. It seems that I have the best of that bargain."
"Perhaps. I cannot guarantee that he will love you or that you will be happy."
"Since you claim to be a witch, can you not supply me with a philter that I can use to make him love me."
"Aye. I can do that too. But love potions are a temporary measure. To make him truly love you, that will be up to you."
"Of course. I believe I know how to do that once he's in my power. I have made many men fall in love with me. But I never loved any of them."
"Is it a deal then?"
Kamma made a sacred sign. "On my honor as a priestess of Diana, I swear that if you do the things that you claim, to the best of my abilities I will provide you with a life of ease as long as you live. I will also do all I can to heal you of any illness or infirmity that may inflict you and see that when your time comes that you die with dignity and in comfortable circumstances."
"And you will aid me in my witchcraft?"
"I'd be delighted. I will be your apprentice."
"So let us get on with it. Before we proceed though, I warn you that bringing his spirit back from the world where he now dwells is not easy. There is danger. You could lose your own life essence in the process."
"Me?"
Erictho cackled. "You, of course. You must assist me and perform the dangerous parts. I would not risk my own essence to save this man. I love my life too much for that, even here among the rats and bones."
"What is the nature of the danger?"
"To bring one who has gone to Hades back to this life, your own spirit must travel there and wrest him from the god and the demons of the underworld. Hades will try to thwart you and steal your soul. The path you must thread is both difficult and dangerous, although I will advise you what to do to avoid the capture of your spirit. Are you willing to risk your life and essence?"
"Since without this man I have no life worth living, it matters not whether I return from the land of the dead or not. I do not fear the dangers you speak of." Kamma spoke out of bravado. Inwardly, she was frightened. Nonetheless, her passion for the barbarian outweighed her terror. She knew she had the will to go through with whatever needed to be done, even if it meant dealing with demons and the king of the underworld.
"Good. We will proceed. First I need to prepare certain items and bring them here. While I do that, go to the place where the young man was killed. Dig a handful of soil from a spot as close to possible to where he died and bring it here."
"Why is that needed?"
"To locate his spirit. Hades is large, and the dead numerous. The earth where he spilled his life blood will lead you to him."
The witch wandered off to get the items she needed to perform the necromancy. Kamma walked back to the entrance of the catacombs and climbed the steps. Night had fallen. She looked around for her guards and servants. She saw the flickering light of fire in one of the nearby ruined buildings. When she entered the ruin, the slaves were lying on the ground sleeping. Brutius and Cladius sat in front of a bonfire conversing in low tones. When the men spotted her, they rose and saluted.
Cladius said, "Have you finished saying your prayers over your dead Frank? May we return to Rome?"
"Not yet. I must return for a short time to the battlefield where he died and then return here."
"What for?"
"Yours is not to question me, Cladius. You must simply obey my orders. That was your charge."
"My charge was also to keep you safe from harm. You will be in deadly danger if you go there."
"Nonetheless, it is my will to go. I will take your steed again. Brutius will ride along to protect me."
Cladius ground his teeth together and rolled his eyes, but protested no more. He woke Brutius, who had fallen asleep while Kamma and he had been talking. Kamma mounted Cladius' steed and rode off so quickly that Brutius had to break his horse into a gallop to catch up.
When they came to the battlefield, the waning moon had risen and the field of death was silent. The stench of decay lay over it like a pall. Frankish men were loading bodies upon carts, but they were at the other end of the field. Kamma dismounted and whispered to Brutius to stay in the woods. She took out a sack that she had earlier emptied of coins and slowly crept toward the area where Casticos had fallen. She recognized the spot because his horse lay not ten cubits away from it. She knelt down and dug with her hands until the small sack was full. When she glanced up, one of the Franks turned his head towards her. She dropped to the ground and lay prone. He squinted in her direction for a couple of minutes and returned to his task. She quickly rose to her feet and ran to the woods. Once safely within, she turned to see whether she had been spotted. The Franks continued to load corpses on carts.
She made her way back to Brutius through the woods. After she mounted, Brutius asked, "I am curious. What exactly were you doing, Priestess? It appeared as though you were digging."
Kamma sighed. These guards were a gossipy bunch who needed to know everyone's business. "If you must know, that is exactly what I was doing. It is important to a ceremony for the dead to have a small amount of the soil from the place where the deceased died or from his grave." It was not exactly a lie, but not the truth either.
Brutius seemed satisfied with this reply and said little as they returned to the ruins.
* * *
Erictho waited in the chamber where the young prince's body lay. "Did you obtain the soil?"
"Yes. What am I to do with it?"
"Keep it on your person. When your spirit is in the underworld, do not lose it, spill it or allow any creature to take it from you. It will be your guide." She held a bowl out towards Kamma. "Place your wrist over this with your palm down. That's right."
So swiftly that Kamma did not have to cry out, Erictho took a small dagger and cut Kamma's wrist. The pain was not great, but blood spurted in the bowl, filling it quickly. Erictho showed surprising strength as she held Kamma's wrist over the bowl so that she could not pull away. Kamma stared at the gore coming from her vein in horror, but did not move. After a few minutes, the bowl was full, and Kamma had to grip the wall to keep from falling down from wooziness.
Erictho placed the bowl on the sarcophagus and turned Kamma's arm over. She rubbed an ointment over the wound and whispered a few words in an unfamiliar language. The wound closed up so that not even a scar showed. The weakness and dizziness left her. For the first time, Kamma no longer doubted that Erictho was a powerful sorceress and could do all she claimed.
Erictho cleared a large space on the stone floor of dust and debris. She dipped a length of horsehair in the bowl of blood and drew a circle. Within the circle she drew a five-pointed star. "Stand there." She pointed at the very center of the star. Kamma did as she was bid.
The witch took a strange looking egg from her pocket and broke it over the bowl, which still contained some of Kamma's blood.
"What sort of egg is that, mother? I have never seen one like it."
"It is the egg of a basilisk. A thing you should hope never to meet."
She added powders and potions to the bowl and mixed the ingredients thoroughly. She stripped Casticos' corpse of its clothing and plastered it from head to toe with the mixture which was the consistency of mud. When she was done, she wiped her hands on her already filthy skirt. She lit black candles at each point of the pentagram and extinguished the torch. Ominous shadows of phantoms and monsters loomed up as the candles flickered. A rat scampered out the door as though it feared the awful necromancy that was about to be performed.
Erictho took a deep breath and performed a calming meditation followed by a cleansing ritual. Although the chamber was cold, perspiration dripped from her forehead and the back of her filthy robe became damp with sweat. She took another bottle from her large pockets and handed it to Kamma.
"Drink this."
Kamma uncorked the bottle and swallowed the bitter substance in a couple of gulps. As she stood in the center of pentacle, the light from the torch seemed to dim. She had a strange sensation as though her spirit were leaving her body. A terrible stench assailed her nostrils, and she felt the presence of some unknown monstrous thing.
Erictho raised her arms until her fingers grazed the low ceiling. "Yn ge tu y ge sy. San min tu cthu," she intoned several times in a loud voice. The floor beneath Kamma's feet glowed with a weird phosphorescence. The stench became so strong it was like a thick cloud and almost unbearable.
Erictho shouted, "Oh Great Hades, King of the Dead allow the one who stands within the pentacle made from her own blood, allow her to enter your domain to bring back the man whose corpse I have anointed with her blood and the yolk of the awful serpent basilisk." She repeated this three times, each time louder with more emphasis. Kamma dropped to the floor unconscious.
A moment later, Brutius entered the chamber, stared at Kamma lying there and drew his short sword. "Who are you old woman? What have you done to the priestess?"