“Caratacus? The mighty chief? My father told me about your amazing deeds. You are the greatest hero Britannia has ever seen. You are a god … they could never capture you, my lord!” The man chuckled softly. “Not in battle, no. But the Romans have other ways. And I was a fool.” “No, you’re a hero,” I argued. “The Celtic leader of leaders!” “A warrior can be a hero and a fool, Deri. When Emperor Claudius invaded Britannia ten years ago, I led the tribes who wanted to fight. But they defeated us time and again. Of course, some tribes welcomed the Romans and fought for them. Maybe we should have made peace like the cowards. But we did not. They drove us west till I ended in the land of Wales.” “And you led the Welsh into great battles. You were a hero there, too,” I reminded him. “Not really. I robbed a few Roman supply wagons. But when it came to battles, they beat us again. Finally, after years of fighting, we fled to a fortress on a cliff top in the Welsh mountains.
