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Athens, Greece. 406 B.C.</i><br/><br/>The first time the pair ever saw one another was in Hekatombaion, on the day of the third rising of the new moon. It was a busy afternoon in the agora of Athens, Greece, the population having not been slowed by the hazy mist that had fallen over the land. Bodies were jostling against one another as they moved through the streets eagerly whilst going about their daily tasks. Women accompanied by men shuffled along hurriedly, young boys darted back and forth between the legs of their parents whilst they went about business, and groups of bachelors sat tucked away in small conversational nooks, chattering away without care. It was a pleasant day, to say the least, despite the gloomy weather, and there didn’t seem to be anything amiss within the lively city state.<br/><br/>Ajax, the eldest son of a well established merchant, husband to one of the<a class="link link--external" data-proxy-href="/proxy.php?link=http%3A%2F%2Fif.one1lady.com%2F310%2Ff%2F4%2F5e83cd58d.jpg&amp;hash=1704ef474311ef2d7b569f8afa076d42" href="http://if.one1lady.com/310/f/4/5e83cd58d.jpg" rel="nofollow ugc noopener" target="_blank"><span class="fixed-color" style="color:#99ccff">beauties</span></a>of Athenian society, and father to a<a class="link link--external" data-proxy-href="/proxy.php?link=http%3A%2F%2Fonebighappyphoto.com%2F%3Fpp_route%3D%252Fimage-resize%26path%3DL2hvbWUvY29udGVudC9wM3BuZXh3cG5hczEyX2RhdGEwMS8xNy8yMDgxMzE3L2h0bWwvd3AtY29udGVudC91cGxvYWRzLzIwMTYvMDgvb25lLXllYXItb2xkLWJhYnktZ2lybC1zaXR0aW5nLWluLWdyYXNzLWxvb2tpbmctYXQtY2FtZXJhLU9uZS1CaWctSGFwcHktUGhvdG8tLmpwZw%253D%253D%26template_id%3Dc19e67b7-cb80-4326-9ff9-e16fafa430f6%26width%3D768&amp;hash=4246bb35e05b23c3ed5770a6ae9e1f5f" href="http://onebighappyphoto.com/?pp_route=%2Fimage-resize&amp;path=L2hvbWUvY29udGVudC9wM3BuZXh3cG5hczEyX2RhdGEwMS8xNy8yMDgxMzE3L2h0bWwvd3AtY29udGVudC91cGxvYWRzLzIwMTYvMDgvb25lLXllYXItb2xkLWJhYnktZ2lybC1zaXR0aW5nLWluLWdyYXNzLWxvb2tpbmctYXQtY2FtZXJhLU9uZS1CaWctSGFwcHktUGhvdG8tLmpwZw%3D%3D&amp;template_id=c19e67b7-cb80-4326-9ff9-e16fafa430f6&amp;width=768" rel="nofollow ugc noopener" target="_blank"><span class="fixed-color" style="color:#99ccff">little girl</span></a>whom he believed to be the most perfect being ever to exist, was among those wandering the marketplace. His family had chosen to stay in on that humid, gray day, but he needed to fetch a few things from various sellers that set up shop within the busy market. So, he’d dressed himself in tunic, making use of his wife Eirene’s assistance in draping and fastening it onto his body before cinching in the finely made white fabric with a belt she had made for him once upon a time. The streets would be slick so he opted to slip a pair of carefully crafted leather shoes before affectionately bidding his wife and little girl, Elpis, goodbye. He’d moved on to the agora then, making his way out into the glum midday heat and preparing himself for the additional muggy heat that would accompany the masses that were out on that particular day. Little did he know as he slipped from his house and out into the streets, he was about to set into motion a series of events that would change his existence, for better or for worse.<br/><br/>He was strolling through a particularly high traffic portion of the strip when he first noticed that there was a horde of people all crowded around something, or perhaps someone? He furrowed his brow slightly as he slowly moved towards the throng of bodies, listening closely to see if he could pick up notes of whatever was happening. A young boy bolted from between the legs of a man that stood near the back, giggling as he clutched onto a string of meticulously carved wooden beads. Ajax reached out and clamped his hand firmly down onto the boy’s shoulder, causing the delicate creature to yip slightly and go rigid as he was ground to a jarring halt.<br/><br/>“Fear not, my child, I seek only to ask you a question,” Ajax murmured soothingly, a warm smile forming upon his lips, “What is transpiring within that circle?” He could hear a man's voice fairly clearly from within the horde, but he couldn’t quite make out what he was saying.<br/><br/>“Oh, Sir, t’is a wanderer! Come to speak about such wonderful, wonderful things! Go, listen to him! He speaks such beautiful truths!” The boy giggled excitedly then before taking off as his shoulder was released.<br/><br/>Ajax lifted his gaze slowly, pursing his lips thoughtfully as he continued on his way towards the crowd. The man’s voice carried well, but Ajax was mildly hard of hearing as a result of a childhood accident, so he knew he wouldn’t be able to deduce what he was speaking about if he didn’t get closer. Normally he wouldn’t have bothered, he’d have simply continued on with his day and then hurried back home to his wife’s loving embrace. This time, however, something pulled him towards whatever speaker lied on the other side of the mass of bodies; perhaps the excitedly glint in the child’s eye had tugged at his heartstrings, or perhaps something deeper was at work in guiding him. In any case, Ajax knew he wished to see this man, and hear the words that he spoke which had attracted so many folks to his stead.<br/><br/>The young Athenian slipped into the crowd, carefully working his way towards the front so he could hear and see the man clearly. For some reason when he laid eyes upon the stranger, whose name he would soon learn was Maximus, he felt a sudden tightening in his chest. He brushed aside the feeling, however, and tipped his head to the side, crossing his arms over his abdomen as he began to tune into whatever was falling from the vagabond’s lips.