[Insert Title]

Theme: Conspiracy, Setting: Lovecraftian, Noun: Thread

*The Three Word Challenge was created by the ThemeAntics team as way to push our ability to "Story Differently". We are given three randomized words (A theme, a setting, and a noun) and are tasked to create a story using them. The goal is to create a compelling story that explores different premises and ideas. Stories will be shared as summaries and will  often exclude dialog, detailed descriptions or fleshed-out backstories. The goal is to focus primarily on the story itself. If you are interested, please feel free to take these story premises and write something of your own based on them. We love to see writers, do what they do best; write!

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Emperor Claudius did his best to not make too many enemies. The Roman throne was an enviable position and he knew many opportunistic individuals who would love their chance to sit in it. He was wise enough to know that he could not make everyone happy despite his best intentions. One particular person who fell into this category was General Maximilius II (calling him Max for short), a warmongering commander in the Roman army. Max enjoyed the battlefield and felt that every moment the Roman military was not in action, Rome’s enemies were regrouping and getting stronger. Being held at bay during a relatively peaceful time for the empire did not sit well with him and he began making rumblings of wanting more aggressive leadership. 

 

Claudius did not take what he was hearing lightly. Too many times he had seen murmurings in private settings become full fledged rebellions. He always hated to see Rome have to turn its mighty sword against its own people. He sensed that if this great empire were to fall, it was more likely to crumble from within than be overrun by a foreign power. Claudius was also a proactive leader, he liked to head off issues at the pass before things got worse. So he hired  the Frumentarii, the secret police and intelligence organization used to carry out Rome’s dirty work, to uncover concrete evidence of Max’s subterfuge.

 

Lucius didn’t consider himself to be a patriot but a willing servant of the empire. He believed that Rome provided the stability and security he sought as a free citizen so any means that would keep these was fair game to him. He was recruited by the Frumentarii from the Roman army for his willingness to complete orders without hesitation or asking questions. It was long in his military service before he began carrying out secret orders from his commanders, many of whom were corrupt. He spied on fellow soldiers to help them weed out unreliable, undisciplined men in the field. He even spied on their rivals, friends, even wives, while they were away on duty and reported what he saw. He was certain his reports lead to several deaths; part of him never asking questions was his way of keeping his own consciousness as clear as possible. In his mind, he was just following orders and had no moral involvement in the matters. 

 

Being hired to expose the supposed subversive motives of General Max was a massive opportunity for him. He always felt that the affairs he found himself caught up in boiled down to petty disputes or household drama. This was a real opportunity to do something that could affect the fate of the empire. Secretly, he added his own objective to the ordeal: even if he did not uncover crucial evidence he decided he would plant false evidence that would incriminate Max. He had no quandaries with bringing down the general, who he had never met or served under. This was just a means to an end. Lucius got the feeling that his neck would be on the line if he didn’t uncover anything substantial or got caught; just a fall guy for the schemes of powerful men. It was time to take his destiny into his own hands, the only ones he trusted. Not only could he be paid handsomely for a favorable outcome, his role within the Frumentarri could be elevated.

 

After days of secretly trailing Max and compatriots he was in regular contact with, Lucius reached the conclusion that the disenchanted men were not much more than washed out, bitter drunks who would rather host pity parties than launch a coup. Lucius prepared his Plan B, sneaking into Max’s quarters and stealing his signet ring while Max was still out drinking his sorrows away. He used his forged credentials to visit a Roman centurion and deliver a forged letter, with Max’s seal, to him. The letter contained instructions to turn over control of his entire unit to Max. This particular unit was currently in charge of providing security for the region closest to the emperor’s dwelling. Lucius knew that the centurion would not relinquish his command, not if he was worthy of his post. What he needed was the incident report the centurion would write and file away per protocol. This is the letter he needed as evidence to deliver to the emperor. 

 

At midnight, he covertly infiltrated the centurion’s post. Climbing onto the roof and finding an opening, he carefully unwound a ball or yarn that had a magnetic weight at the end. His target was the key rack, which held the steel door keys to the documents room on short wooden horizontal bars. Once he felt the slight tug of the yarn when the magnet made contact with the key ring, he carefully slid the keys off the bar and pulled up to him. Grasping the keys, he sneaked inside the room and found the letter, remembering that incident reports were filed in chronological order so he could quickly grab it and sneak out.

 

First thing in the morning, Lucius brought the leader to the Frumentarri compound. His superiors were pleased, knowing they were able to hand over exactly what the emperor needed to get rid of Max once and for all. Lucius made sure the Frumentarri messengers reporting to the palace mentioned his name in particular. If the reward he desired was not given, he had plans to take it.