The death of the dictator Lucius Cornelius Sulla did not imply the end of the Sullan faction, so several struggles broke out in Rome including an attempt at rebellion by Marcus Aemilius Lepidus to eliminate the Sullans from the Senate and from Rome. Lepidus was aware of Caesar's experience and asked for her help but the latter refused to take part in a fight that would have put her against the law in force. Pompey stopped the rebellion without any problem and in the meantime, Caesar reluctantly devoted herself to politics and, obviously, sided with the people to face the aristocracy.
Initially almost everyone was shocked to see a woman take part in Roman politics, but how could a senator question a person who had obtained the oak crown? And it cannot be forgotten that Caesar's beauty was such as to seduce and silence every man and therefore she easily managed to enter politics; this unexpected debut of Caesar unnerved people like Marcus Tullius Cicero, the famous philosopher and lawyer, who saw in the girl a person too arrogant and self-confident to take care of state affairs with the great men of the Senate.
Despite her criticism, the young woman proved to be very intelligent and very good at oratory and she supported the accusation of two sullan Optimates: Cnaeus Cornelius Dolabella and Caius Antonius Hybrida. Both accused had committed very serious crimes such as extortion and power abuse but both were acquitted and Caesar couldn't bear the defeat, despite the fact that she had delivered one of the most beautiful speeches of her that even Cicero himself had to praise.
74 BC
Caesar decided to take a break from political life, the defeat suffered had demoralized her and so she headed to Rhodes to continue her studies of Greek philosophy; however during the voyage her ship was attacked by pirates who took her to the island of Pharmacussa where they wanted to keep her as a prisoner and ask for a ransom of twenty talents but Caesar convinced them that Rome would have paid even fifty for her and sent her companions to Miletus to get the ransom money.
Waiting for the return of her men, Caesar set aside to write poems and even short stories. A jailer came and tore the paper from the girl's hands, read it and commented:
"Are you some kind of poet?"
"You like it?"
"You write well." The man handed the piece of paper to Caesar, then sat down next to her and asked her: "Tell me why Rome should pay so much for someone like you. Who are you?"
"Try to guess. What do I look like to you?"
"You're a beautiful woman but you have strange eyes and your hair is bizarre too ... you could be a witch but also a princess. Who are you, then? Witch or princess?"
"Both."
The leader of the pirates arrived who, having heard Caesar's answer, commented:
"If you're a princess I'm Ulysses."
"Maybe you really are Ulysses," Caesar added jokingly.
"See? You're not a princess. You're too bold, too sure of yourself. Your feet are bare and you don't care, your clothes are dirty and you don't complain, you're surrounded by men who could hurt you and you aren't afraid and you don't tremble. You're not a princess, but you're not a witch either."
"So what will I ever be?"
"A criminal, perhaps? A soldier? Are you an Amazon? I've never seen one in flesh and blood."
"Do you want to know who am I?" she asked with a grin.
"I'd be really curious to find out."
"I am a hungry girl."
Initially almost everyone was shocked to see a woman take part in Roman politics, but how could a senator question a person who had obtained the oak crown? And it cannot be forgotten that Caesar's beauty was such as to seduce and silence every man and therefore she easily managed to enter politics; this unexpected debut of Caesar unnerved people like Marcus Tullius Cicero, the famous philosopher and lawyer, who saw in the girl a person too arrogant and self-confident to take care of state affairs with the great men of the Senate.
Despite her criticism, the young woman proved to be very intelligent and very good at oratory and she supported the accusation of two sullan Optimates: Cnaeus Cornelius Dolabella and Caius Antonius Hybrida. Both accused had committed very serious crimes such as extortion and power abuse but both were acquitted and Caesar couldn't bear the defeat, despite the fact that she had delivered one of the most beautiful speeches of her that even Cicero himself had to praise.
74 BC
Caesar decided to take a break from political life, the defeat suffered had demoralized her and so she headed to Rhodes to continue her studies of Greek philosophy; however during the voyage her ship was attacked by pirates who took her to the island of Pharmacussa where they wanted to keep her as a prisoner and ask for a ransom of twenty talents but Caesar convinced them that Rome would have paid even fifty for her and sent her companions to Miletus to get the ransom money.
Waiting for the return of her men, Caesar set aside to write poems and even short stories. A jailer came and tore the paper from the girl's hands, read it and commented:
"Are you some kind of poet?"
"You like it?"
"You write well." The man handed the piece of paper to Caesar, then sat down next to her and asked her: "Tell me why Rome should pay so much for someone like you. Who are you?"
"Try to guess. What do I look like to you?"
"You're a beautiful woman but you have strange eyes and your hair is bizarre too ... you could be a witch but also a princess. Who are you, then? Witch or princess?"
"Both."
The leader of the pirates arrived who, having heard Caesar's answer, commented:
"If you're a princess I'm Ulysses."
"Maybe you really are Ulysses," Caesar added jokingly.
"See? You're not a princess. You're too bold, too sure of yourself. Your feet are bare and you don't care, your clothes are dirty and you don't complain, you're surrounded by men who could hurt you and you aren't afraid and you don't tremble. You're not a princess, but you're not a witch either."
"So what will I ever be?"
"A criminal, perhaps? A soldier? Are you an Amazon? I've never seen one in flesh and blood."
"Do you want to know who am I?" she asked with a grin.
"I'd be really curious to find out."
"I am a hungry girl."
"Wha-?"
"I'm hungry, idiot, bring me some food."
The pirate leader gasped, his eyes wide and incredulous.
"What are you doing there dazed? Bring. Me. Food."
"But ... you ... do you understand that I'm a pirate? I could hurt you, damn bitch-"
"Exactly, you're a pirate. You can sail, but can you also fish? Catch me some fish and prepare it, I'm hungry."
"No ... you do it!"
"I'm in chains, you idiot. Besides, you really want me to believe that you, a pirate, don't know how to get food in the sea? You're really pathetic."
"You wanna bet? Okay, bitch, let's bet! I'll catch a great fish and cook it for you too! It'll be yummy! You'll see!" He exclaimed as he walked away.
"Remember not to burn it!"
"It will be the best fish you've ever eaten!"
"Let's hope well, I don't want to eat badly ..." Caesar turned, there was yet another pirate sitting next to her, he was visibly shaken by how the girl had managed to put the leader of the crew in line. "What are you looking at?"
"Nothing, nothing. I don't want problems."
"Good."
At that moment came a gray-haired man with a long beard and a kopis at his belt. The pirate, seeing that guy enter, immediately got up and exclaimed:
"Aristides, old bastard, what are you doing here?"
"The captain sent me. Now disappear, Mitro, and leave that girl alone."
"I didn't do anything to her, you ugly old-"
Caesar's hand began to shake but she stopped it immediately. The pirate smiled and commented:
"What's going on, girl? Are you afraid now?"
"I'm hungry, idiot, bring me some food."
The pirate leader gasped, his eyes wide and incredulous.
"What are you doing there dazed? Bring. Me. Food."
"But ... you ... do you understand that I'm a pirate? I could hurt you, damn bitch-"
"Exactly, you're a pirate. You can sail, but can you also fish? Catch me some fish and prepare it, I'm hungry."
"No ... you do it!"
"I'm in chains, you idiot. Besides, you really want me to believe that you, a pirate, don't know how to get food in the sea? You're really pathetic."
"You wanna bet? Okay, bitch, let's bet! I'll catch a great fish and cook it for you too! It'll be yummy! You'll see!" He exclaimed as he walked away.
"Remember not to burn it!"
"It will be the best fish you've ever eaten!"
"Let's hope well, I don't want to eat badly ..." Caesar turned, there was yet another pirate sitting next to her, he was visibly shaken by how the girl had managed to put the leader of the crew in line. "What are you looking at?"
"Nothing, nothing. I don't want problems."
"Good."
At that moment came a gray-haired man with a long beard and a kopis at his belt. The pirate, seeing that guy enter, immediately got up and exclaimed:
"Aristides, old bastard, what are you doing here?"
"The captain sent me. Now disappear, Mitro, and leave that girl alone."
"I didn't do anything to her, you ugly old-"
Caesar's hand began to shake but she stopped it immediately. The pirate smiled and commented:
"What's going on, girl? Are you afraid now?"
He laughed but Caesar, in that instant, started banging her head against the wall, her legs tightened, it was as if she was trying to hold back something, the man thought she was going crazy; here began an epileptic seizure: Caesar began to writhe and wriggle, continuous spasms and eyes to heaven, her head didn't stop and the pirate walked away from her drawing his sword.
"Stop, you idiot! If you kill her the gods will torment us forever!" Aristides intervened.
"What are you babbling about? Can't you see? She has the disease! I don't want to end up like her! I know the legends that are handed down, I know that touching those like her is like accepting the disease!"
"Go away, fool! I'll take care of her!"
"As you want, but if something terrible happens I'll cut off that tongue of yours, old man."
Caesar's epileptic seizure ceased, the girl was stunned and confused, she saw that elderly man in armor approaching; he knelt down and asked her, scratching his thick white beard:
"What gods?"
"What?"
"Which gods have blessed you? The Roman, the Greek or the Egyptian?"
"Does it make a difference?"
"A lot. If you don't go back to the place you come from and you don't receive the help of the priests, you will be fragile, you will be weaker and weaker and the sacred disease will kill you."
"I've never heard of anything like it."
"Do you think the sedentary lifestyle of those with the disease is a coincidence? But you're not a priestess. You look like a noblewoman. Who are you?"
"Gaius Julius Caesar."
"Oh" Aristides exclaimed in surprise.
"You do not like it?"
"Sorry, it's just… it's unusual to meet a woman with a man's name" he answered sitting down next to Caesar. "Where were you headed?"
"Rhodes. I wanted to continue my philosophy studies."
"Which school do you follow?"
"Epicurean." she answered smiling proudly.
"I am ... I was, a stoic. A teacher."
"And how did you end up here?"
"I was a prisoner like you. The pirates noticed that I was very good at fighting, because of my military experience, and so they kept me with them as a trainer. But let's not talk about me, mine is a sad story. You said of be epicurean, right? So it means that ... "
"Yes, I don't believe in superstitions and in the fact that gods can influence our lives in any way. That's why I'm not sedentary and I don't believe in this 'sacred disease'; it's just a legend."
"What do you think it is?"
"A dysfunction of my body, nothing more. Maybe I'm destined to die young."
"So you don't think you're protected by the Gods?"
"I know the roots of my family, I'm not without a religious belief, but I don't think Venus or Mars want to help me in any way. They ignore me and I ignore them. That's all."
"It saddens me to know."
"Don't be sad for me, old man. So far my life has been nothing but a set of misfortunes. The Gods have never helped me in any way and I have never asked for their help."
"What happened?"
Caesar turned. The man's gaze was understanding and also intrigued at the same time.
"I spent a lot of time away from my home because of a mad dictator; I tried to make a name for myself in politics and fight for my ideals but I failed; now I'm a prisoner of pirates only because I was such an idiot that I wanted to devote myself to philosophy. Where are the Gods in all this? My mother believes that I'm destined for something great ... but there's no destiny. There's only me and these misfortunes."
"Misfortunes are part of destiny. Each of us must make mistakes because that's right. Making mistakes is healthy, learning from mistakes is even more so."
She smiled, content with that lesson, and said:
"You too have made a mistake by siding with these pirates. But I'll spare you."
"What do you mean?"
"I'll kill all these pirates who dared to kidnap me, but I will spare you. Rejoice, you have obtained a modicum of my respect, and cry because I will kill all your companions from first to last. But I will not give them a quick death ..."
Caesar's gaze was cold and determined, Aristides was shocked by the force that impregnated those words. The girl remained on the island with the pirates for thirty-eight days, finally the ransom arrived and Caesar was returned unharmed to her compatriots. The girl ordered the ship to be brought to the province of Asia where she prepared to attack the pirates. In Miletus she organized a small army and led it to sea in search of the marauders, when she found them the battle was very short and Caesar managed to triumph with immense ease; she ordered to let Aristides escape and had all the others strangled and then crucified.
Caesar decided to stay in Asia to participate in the war against Mithridates IV of Pontus where she again demonstrated to possess above-average tactical skills, took up arms together with her auxiliaries and fought against the enemies without fear of death, this warrior attitude was noticed by her fellow soldiers. With the end of the war, Caesar decided to return to Rome and was elected tribunus militum (military tribune), with that new power she decided to continue fighting for the people and approved the Lex Plotia, which allowed the return of the Romans to their homeland; they had been exiled during the insurrection of Marcus Aemilius Lepidus and also approved the restoration of the powers of the tribunes of the plebs who had been "reduced" during the dictatorship of Sulla.
At that time, however, she began to get close to the richest man in Rome: Marcus Licinius Crassus. He had seen in Caesar a figure of great importance and wanted to exploit her to increase his own popularity.
"Stop, you idiot! If you kill her the gods will torment us forever!" Aristides intervened.
"What are you babbling about? Can't you see? She has the disease! I don't want to end up like her! I know the legends that are handed down, I know that touching those like her is like accepting the disease!"
"Go away, fool! I'll take care of her!"
"As you want, but if something terrible happens I'll cut off that tongue of yours, old man."
Caesar's epileptic seizure ceased, the girl was stunned and confused, she saw that elderly man in armor approaching; he knelt down and asked her, scratching his thick white beard:
"What gods?"
"What?"
"Which gods have blessed you? The Roman, the Greek or the Egyptian?"
"Does it make a difference?"
"A lot. If you don't go back to the place you come from and you don't receive the help of the priests, you will be fragile, you will be weaker and weaker and the sacred disease will kill you."
"I've never heard of anything like it."
"Do you think the sedentary lifestyle of those with the disease is a coincidence? But you're not a priestess. You look like a noblewoman. Who are you?"
"Gaius Julius Caesar."
"Oh" Aristides exclaimed in surprise.
"You do not like it?"
"Sorry, it's just… it's unusual to meet a woman with a man's name" he answered sitting down next to Caesar. "Where were you headed?"
"Rhodes. I wanted to continue my philosophy studies."
"Which school do you follow?"
"Epicurean." she answered smiling proudly.
"I am ... I was, a stoic. A teacher."
"And how did you end up here?"
"I was a prisoner like you. The pirates noticed that I was very good at fighting, because of my military experience, and so they kept me with them as a trainer. But let's not talk about me, mine is a sad story. You said of be epicurean, right? So it means that ... "
"Yes, I don't believe in superstitions and in the fact that gods can influence our lives in any way. That's why I'm not sedentary and I don't believe in this 'sacred disease'; it's just a legend."
"What do you think it is?"
"A dysfunction of my body, nothing more. Maybe I'm destined to die young."
"So you don't think you're protected by the Gods?"
"I know the roots of my family, I'm not without a religious belief, but I don't think Venus or Mars want to help me in any way. They ignore me and I ignore them. That's all."
"It saddens me to know."
"Don't be sad for me, old man. So far my life has been nothing but a set of misfortunes. The Gods have never helped me in any way and I have never asked for their help."
"What happened?"
Caesar turned. The man's gaze was understanding and also intrigued at the same time.
"I spent a lot of time away from my home because of a mad dictator; I tried to make a name for myself in politics and fight for my ideals but I failed; now I'm a prisoner of pirates only because I was such an idiot that I wanted to devote myself to philosophy. Where are the Gods in all this? My mother believes that I'm destined for something great ... but there's no destiny. There's only me and these misfortunes."
"Misfortunes are part of destiny. Each of us must make mistakes because that's right. Making mistakes is healthy, learning from mistakes is even more so."
She smiled, content with that lesson, and said:
"You too have made a mistake by siding with these pirates. But I'll spare you."
"What do you mean?"
"I'll kill all these pirates who dared to kidnap me, but I will spare you. Rejoice, you have obtained a modicum of my respect, and cry because I will kill all your companions from first to last. But I will not give them a quick death ..."
Caesar's gaze was cold and determined, Aristides was shocked by the force that impregnated those words. The girl remained on the island with the pirates for thirty-eight days, finally the ransom arrived and Caesar was returned unharmed to her compatriots. The girl ordered the ship to be brought to the province of Asia where she prepared to attack the pirates. In Miletus she organized a small army and led it to sea in search of the marauders, when she found them the battle was very short and Caesar managed to triumph with immense ease; she ordered to let Aristides escape and had all the others strangled and then crucified.
Caesar decided to stay in Asia to participate in the war against Mithridates IV of Pontus where she again demonstrated to possess above-average tactical skills, took up arms together with her auxiliaries and fought against the enemies without fear of death, this warrior attitude was noticed by her fellow soldiers. With the end of the war, Caesar decided to return to Rome and was elected tribunus militum (military tribune), with that new power she decided to continue fighting for the people and approved the Lex Plotia, which allowed the return of the Romans to their homeland; they had been exiled during the insurrection of Marcus Aemilius Lepidus and also approved the restoration of the powers of the tribunes of the plebs who had been "reduced" during the dictatorship of Sulla.
At that time, however, she began to get close to the richest man in Rome: Marcus Licinius Crassus. He had seen in Caesar a figure of great importance and wanted to exploit her to increase his own popularity.
"We both know what you really want to achieve," Caesar said to Crassus, while they were dining in the latter's mansion "you invited me here because you know that the people approve of me and you want my help."
"Well, I knew you would get there sooner or later." Crassus answered, while he was enjoying some rare meat.
"But why? You know that the aristocracy doesn't approve of me and that the Senate sees me as a threat."
"Because you're a woman, I know."
"And so you know you're going to make a lot of enemies."
"I don't care."
"Why?"
"You're not just a woman, you're something more, I know, I have seen it with my own eyes. Even that idiot Pompey perceives something special in you, but I, on the contrary, can give you what you need: money. You will never make your way relying only on good ideas, you need money, you need a kind of power that allows you to win every battle in politics. You need me. "
"And in return you want me to lead the people to your side, right?"
"Sharp," he said sipping some wine.
"Crassus," with her hands moved the bowl forward "I'm not going to have dinner with a man who wants to force me to abandon the people for the Senate."
"What if we eliminate those differences? The differences between the people and the aristocracy?"
"How?"
"What do you believe in, Caesar?" Crassus asked curiously.
"I have the same ideals as my uncle-"
"Do you believe in the Republic? Do you believe in the power of the Senate? Do you believe in the power of all these people without ambition and without foresight?"
"Are you asking me to make you the next Sulla?"
"No, I'm asking you to help me change the world. You and I, together, can turn the tables, like a king and a queen. Your charisma and my money, together, will be a weapon that the Senate will never resist. We can change the world together."
"'King and queen'? And then what will you do? Will you ask me to marry you?"
"No, nothing so trivial, but I'm asking you to accompany me in this period of internal wars and make me powerful. Do you accept?"
"Well, I knew you would get there sooner or later." Crassus answered, while he was enjoying some rare meat.
"But why? You know that the aristocracy doesn't approve of me and that the Senate sees me as a threat."
"Because you're a woman, I know."
"And so you know you're going to make a lot of enemies."
"I don't care."
"Why?"
"You're not just a woman, you're something more, I know, I have seen it with my own eyes. Even that idiot Pompey perceives something special in you, but I, on the contrary, can give you what you need: money. You will never make your way relying only on good ideas, you need money, you need a kind of power that allows you to win every battle in politics. You need me. "
"And in return you want me to lead the people to your side, right?"
"Sharp," he said sipping some wine.
"Crassus," with her hands moved the bowl forward "I'm not going to have dinner with a man who wants to force me to abandon the people for the Senate."
"What if we eliminate those differences? The differences between the people and the aristocracy?"
"How?"
"What do you believe in, Caesar?" Crassus asked curiously.
"I have the same ideals as my uncle-"
"Do you believe in the Republic? Do you believe in the power of the Senate? Do you believe in the power of all these people without ambition and without foresight?"
"Are you asking me to make you the next Sulla?"
"No, I'm asking you to help me change the world. You and I, together, can turn the tables, like a king and a queen. Your charisma and my money, together, will be a weapon that the Senate will never resist. We can change the world together."
"'King and queen'? And then what will you do? Will you ask me to marry you?"
"No, nothing so trivial, but I'm asking you to accompany me in this period of internal wars and make me powerful. Do you accept?"
