Nathan's Bunk (Vacant)

"Rose-tinted glasses from antiquity? Did you hit your head? I will live for Rome, I will die for Rome, because that is my birthright, but I never said Rome is always right and Roman culture is the only way. But, it is the only way I know. I didn't come here when I was a teenager." Leandra said, holding out her arm to show the tattoo with the six stripes. "Six stripes, plus probatio and my time with Luna. Seven years. That's almost half my life, Nathan. I was eight when I left home, and there are a lot of things aside from science fiction and heavy metal that I just don't even remember."

Leandra lowered her arm, then crossed it protectively over her chest again. "And you're being rather unfair about everything. You're asking me to just up and accept that I have one of the most frightening mental conditions around, point blank, and calling me prideful because I don't want to. How long did it take before you accepted you weren't hallucinating about Lupa and that you really were the son of a goddess? 15 minutes? 20?"

Leandra took another instinctive step back, leaving almost a body's length between herself and Nate. "What are you getting mad at me for?! Ain't no reason to get angry, man. None of us are professionals, and we still end up dealing with professional level things."

It was at that point that Nate decided it was probably a good time to calm down. "Look, I'm not mad at you. I just disagree with your train of thought. But I won't be able to change it, so there's no point in continuing on about this."

Leandra rubbed the bridge of her nose, feeling the tension."I know, this whole situation is screwed up. Hellfire and brimstone, being a demigod is screwed up. And you probably think we're a camp of uncivilized barbarians."

Nathan shook his head. "Not barbaric, nor uncivilized. More like ruthless killers adorned in blood and gold."

Leandra laughed, shaking her head. "You kind of have us pegged there, Nathan." She said, chuckling. "It will take a while, but you'll get used to our particular brand of insanity, even the ruthless parts. Seven years here, and I'm not even sure what would be considered abusive in the mortal world. Weasels, most likely. Flogging...probably."

Nate fearfully nodded, now realizing that this place wasn't going to take any form of resistance lightly. Not that he had plans of ¡Viva la Revolutíon! or anything, but it was good to take note of. "Flogging for sure is illegal, but weasels... I have no idea what that even is."

Leandra looked at the look on his face and tilted her head. He looked both afraid and sick to his stomach. Maybe she shouldn't explain what the weasels were. Then again, he needed to know. "One of the last used punishments, right below banishment and execution...execution hasn't been used in a long time. Um, it's where you get tied into a sack with an angry weasel. In Ancient times they would also throw the sack in the Tiber and let both the victim and the weasel drown. Now it's a completely dry event. Can't think of the last time it was used. Not since I've been here. Flogging...well, that's for pretty serious offences, or continued reprimands regarding the same issue."

So you get thrown in a sack with an angry rodent. Nate didn't hesitate to cringe at that one. "Yeah... That's illegal out there too. The worst they'll do out there is is tie you down, throw a towel over your face, and dump a ton of water on ya. It's called Waterboarding, and I hear it sucks. Basically simulates the effects of drowning without actually dunking you in water. But that's reserved for terrorists anyway."

Leandra shuddered hard at the thought of that. "That's just inhumane. Romans will physically punish you, brutally, but they don't do anything to intentionally psychologically torture and scar you for life." Never piss off mortal authorities. Although she thought mostly it was just arresting and prison. That's what TV and books made it look like.

"And prisons. Which are kind of weird too. I mean, I understand loss of privileges and freedom for short periods. I've been confined to barracks for a week, or a month... But years? That don't make no sense. Just cruel. And yeah, I understand keeping violent people who can't control themselves away from the non-viokent populace..but one, defend yourself, and two, if they're too violent to return to society, why return them to society after ten or twenty years of brooding hatred." Leandra said, then she shook her head. Maybe when she got out of the Legion, the mortal world wasn't the best option. "Where are you from, Nate?"

Nate shook his head. "Because politics Leandra. And prison is only for serious offenses anyway; a speeding ticket won't land you there. Kinda like the weasel sack."

"I would happen to be from Odessa, Texas. And you? Where did you come from?"

"Rome, Georgia. Like a good Roman. Although I also grew up in Athens, Alabama, but don't hold the Graecus city name against me. It's not that bad." She joked at the end, relaxing some. "Guess that makes us two different flavors of redneck."

Well there's a surprise, his sister was from the South too. How odd. "Rednecks we may be, but I think we know what type Angerona likes now. Southern."

Leandra smiled, "Yeah. Must be 'cause southerners tend to try to help everyone when disasters come or something." She mused, shrugging a little. "'Cause she's all for relieving anguish. Or she just likes the quiet type."

Nate shrugged. "Maybe she likes the accent? Only one...um...deity knows the true answer here." Eager to change the subject, Nathan turned the discussion back to Leandra. "So what do you do for the legion? Like, what role or position do they have you as?"

"Healer for the 3rd Cohort. Unlike the kids of Apollo and a few others, I can't magically make you better, but I do have a good grasp of anatomy and physiology, field medicine. Enough to stabilize you until ambrosia helps, or amputate something." She explained, moving a little closer to him again now that they weren't arguing. "I was a scout for a while, because that way no one had to worry about information falling into the wrong hands."

"And they didn't worry because you aren't really into passing out, right?" Nathan listened carefully to Leandra, due to him possibly having a similar career path as her, or at least at the start.

Leandra nodded, "That and I cannot be coerced or tortured into giving up information. Jupiter himself wouldn't be able to get me to share a secret unwillingly." She said, sitting down next to Nate. She rubbed her arms a little, it was a little cool. "I don't pass out, though. I get really sick, and I can't talk. Longest was four days. Can't imagine what it would be if I tried to tell something like a camp secret."

Four days, eh? Still not a whole seven, but still horrible. "Well, before I arrived at the wolf house, I spilled all the hard things I picked up over a year or so of riding along with my dad on patrol and wound up in a coma for about a week. So maybe something like that would happen if either of us were to spill the camp's classified information, but I don't think either of us would like to find out firsthand."

Leandra laughed, "I am very much into not finding out. One of my fellow cohorts, Günther, he's a child of Veritas, goddess of truth. He can't lie, which is just as bad. One time he mused what would happen if he tried to force me to tell the truth on a secret. I can't imagine how awful that would be." She said, shrugging a little.

OOC: Totally unrelated to our RP, but I've been meaning to tell you to check out a song called "Cedarwood Road" by U2. Not my favorite band, but still a good song.

IC:

Really? This kid wanted to force her to snitch on, well, anyone? What a p***k. "Sounds like this Günther guy is sort of turdhead for wanting to do that. Does he have any respect for anyone?"