A week after Castus' proposal, Rainbow, her regiment, and her family arrived at their new posting. Her new fiancé and her had come to the agreement to wait until they arrived at the new position before they began to plan for the wedding. Rainbow had reluctantly agreed to this, but was still excited. She was getting married to somebody who loved her as much as she loved him.

When Depressi heard the news, he practically broke her ears with his excited screaming. It was how she somewhat imagined Scootaloo meeting her parents outside of her trial would look like. Afterwards, he had hugged Castus vigorously, almost to the point of him say he broke something. He had been upset about the move, but had agreed to help her move. Finally, after a week on another small fleet of transports, they had arrived.

Her posting was one of the more prestigious posts, as befitting her position as a Triumphator. She and the 14th had been given charge of the Pryhan side of the Straight of Beccus, and the city of Creui. One of the first areas to fall under Pryhan control during the Unification Wars, the city and the straight marked the border between Pryha and Griffonia, the straight itself acting as a buffer zone between the two nations.

Rainbow exited the below decks of the convoys flagship, she took in the sight of the area. The city loomed off to the side, covered in the afternoon shadow from the nearby cliffs. Off in the distance, straight ahead, sat the edge of the strait, marked by a pair of massive pillars of rock, nicknamed the Columns of Hoofacles. On the opposite side of the strait, on the Griffonian side, she could make out a few small coastal towns and watchtowers.

As she got closer, she was able to make out more of the city of Creui. She had never been their before herself, but she had been told it was, by far, the largest and most well preserved Demosian city. From that assessment, the person who told her was correct. The city could've, if it was placed in a similar location, be mistaken for Pryha in terms of architecture, if not in layout and size. The Eternal City was still larger, yet that didn't mean Creui wasn't massive either. It seemed to defy geography, spreading out over a marshy delta, several hills, a small stretch of beach, and even had part of the city, namely the ports, out over the ocean on heavy bronze and wood stilts. Brick apartments mixed with smaller, more traditional homes, while more lavish abodes were dotted in as well. Like Pryha, sounds and smells wafted out of the city; the sounds being, once again, the Citharas, Frame Drums, and Pan Pipes of street musicians. The smells were that of cooking seafood, fresh fish and oysters, fermenting Garum, and the simple, pervasive scent of salt from the sea.

The ship pulled up to the docks, sailors both on and off the ship scrambling to tie the mooring lines. She said to Castus, "Alright, we're here." She walked over to the lowered gangplank, waiting for her son and fiancé to catch up.

"Ladies first, dear," he said, stepping aside to allow her past.

She smirked. "Flatterer."

She stepped off the long wooden board onto the smaller, bound together boards of the dock. She yelled back to the ship, "Vex! Get everyone moving! I want all personnel accounted for at the place the Consul gave us to set up the Castrum and the Castellums by Six. I'll be speaking to the Consul about some personal temporary housing."

"Understood, Praetor!", he yelled back. To the men on board who had begun unpacking the gear, he yelled, "Move it! We got five hours to get up their! Move it!"

As he began his yelling, she saw a Griffon making his way down the dock with a caragor at his side with a tablet and pen. Judging from the red-trimmed toga, authoritative gait, and the fact he was here to meet her gave away clearly who it was: Gaius, the elected Consul of the province.

"Ave, Praetor," he greeted, holding out a talon. As she shook it, he said, "Welcome to Creui. It's my pleasure to meet you."

She said, "Ave, Consul. Same here." Gesturing to her son and fiancé, she said, "This is my son, Depressi Tonituro, and my soon-to-be husband, Castus. I was wondering if you had a place you could house them while my men construct the Castrum."

"Of course, of course, Praetor," he assured her. "I've already been working out a 'military district', if you will, for the families of some of the soldiers who are staying in the garrison. However, due to your position and temporary status outside of the Castrums Domus, I'd be willing to let you stay in my residence while it is under construction."

"Really?", she asked.

He chuckled good naturedly, waving a talon and saying, "It's no trouble. I'd be honored to house, even temporarily, a Triumphator of the Empire. Besides, my little Gallia could do with a friend. I can only take so much time out of my day, after all."

"I'm honored in turn, Consul."

"Come," he said, smiling broadly again. "We'll talk more about this over an afternoon tea. My wife makes the best Honeycakes this side of the Celestial sea!"

Within two months, the Castrum had been completed. The place the Consul had set aside for the Castrum was a massive plateau, on a hill overlooking the city while the edge of cliff overlooking the sea was a bit further back. Several watchtowers had been arrayed around this area, most of them closer to the sea, if not downright on the coastline.

The fort itself was fairly uniform for a Pryhan style, which was rather uniform in and of itself. A playing-card shaped outer wall with three guarded gates, and a turf rampart leading up to the walls on the inside. The front half of the fort was filled in with barracks for the Pedes; twelve in total, one for each Maniple, one for the artillery, and one for the Velites. The Via Principalis ran down the central from the main gatehouse, and was lined with the forts shops, like the smith, tailor, and mess hall. Bread ovens and latrines lay in niches in the walls. The storehouses, the Principia, and the Praetorium sat along the other road of the fort, the Via Praetoria, which ran from the two side gates. The offices and regimental HQ of the Principia sat in the center, with her house, the Praetorium, off to the side, and the food stores on the other side.

Speaking of her house, they had moved in after it was completed. Only the last bits of the walls, along with the latrines and ovens were left, and she wanted to get it over with; avoid any unpleasantness later. The house was similar to a civilian Domus; central, open courtyard with a pool for rainwater to drain into, with a wall surrounding it. However, it was a bit smaller than a domus, nor was it so expensively decorated as one.

In fact, it was lightly decorated as it was. Simple furniture inside, cheap cloth curtains, and standard counters, kitchen-ware, and other more common items in the house. Various banners and battle honors did decorate the living room, and her bedroom had a nice bed, but that was about it for luxuries at the moment. Depressi was happy to get his own room, along with a few friends he made after he started attending school in the city.

Rainbow was also happy. She and Castus had begun to sleep together, and Rainbow loved the feeling of falling asleep in his embrace. Besides that, she had a proper home. She could let out a content sigh, and smile. It was in a heavily secured fort near a buffer zone with another empire, but she couldn't feel better about it.

Next Chapter: 73~Meet the family Estimated time remaining: 3 Hours, 26 Minutes