Chris Posted June 2, 2019 Share Posted June 2, 2019 MANIUS AEMILIUS SCAURUS PIUS 40 | 8 Jan 34 ad | Senator | Lawyer | Hetero | Original | Brett Tucker Personality Manius is a calm and calculating man. Because of what he has gone through in his life, he has learned the virtue of patience. He is neither quick to anger, nor irrational in thought. From his studies he is well-versed in the affairs of the world and is always eager to learn more. He never assumes that he knows more than others, especially in matters he has not seen or experienced for himself. He is a kind man, and places great importance on the bonds of family and friendship. He has a distaste for slavery, but understands its necessity in society; he is a kind master, and - as his mother before him - gives freedom to his slaves when it is deserved. Politically, he is quite unlike his father. He does not see a Republic, or a Senate-controlled government as the means to efficiently run such a vast empire. He is supportive of the current system, but can be critical of its operation. He sees the years of war and upheaval a decade ago, and the power plays preceding them as a direct result of a lack of proper succession. Understanding that Romans are sensitive about any sort of determined succession because of the monarchical connotations, and understanding that Romans wish to maintain their sense of 'choice', Manius has many ideas - some might call radical - on how to ensure the continued stability of the empire. Whether or not he wants to undertake such a task is still undecided. Though endlessly loyal to his family, and the memory of his father - hence his agnomen 'Pius' - Manius is not his father, and does not know if it is his place to create drama for his family where there is finally peace. Appearance Manius, like his father before him, has a fair complexion with blond hair and blue eyes. He appears many years younger than his age, thankful to a boyish face that he keeps well shaved and skin that he treats. Because of the difficulties he has gone through since his youth, he has paid extra careful attention to his health. He eats well and sparingly, exercises regularly, and spends a great deal more on doctors and physicians than on personal indulgences or vices. He wears the clothing common for men of his class, but because of the condition of his back and legs, is forced to wear special types of leather bracing that is all but invisible to anyone other than his slaves. When walking short distances he is visibly slow in his stride, but when he needs to walk quickly he is not ashamed to rely upon a cane to give him extra power and balance. Family Father: Marcus Aemilius Scaurus (deceased; 3-62 AD) Mother: Acilia Glabrionis (deceased) Siblings: - Marcus Aemilius Scaurus (older brother; d. 54) - Marcus Aemilius Scaurus Alexander aka 'Laelius' (younger adopted brother) Spouse: - Vespasia Pollia (former wife/first cousin. deceased; d. 68) Children: - Lucius Aemilius Scaurus Capitolinus (adopted step-son; b. 50) Extended Family: - Aemilia Scaura (aunt; b. 1 ad) - Gaius Vespasius Pollio (uncle; d. 68) - Pinaria Lucretia (sister-in-law; b. 50) - Aemilia Scaura (niece; b. 67) - Aemilia Laeliana (niece; b. 70) - Publius Aemilius Scaurus (nephew; b. 72) - Cornelii-Scipiones & Flavii-Alexandrae (Caesares) via his brother Scaurus Alexander - Acilii-Glabriones via his mother Other: - Andron (physician; b. 25) History Manius came into the world the younger son of a struggling yet ancient family. His father, Marcus Aemilius Scaurus (henceforth ‘Scaurus’) was the inheritor of a family name marred with a record of decisions taken against the Principate, and so his career was never guaranteed success. Even still, Manius was not raised with a want for much of anything. His youth was spent mostly with his mother and elder brother Marcus. He took quickly to his studies - whereas Marcus took more to brawn - and seemed set to become a great politician or lawyer. All of what his family had planned for him was quickly and violently altered when disaster struck. In the year 44, shortly after Manius had reached his tenth birthday, while traveling through the subura to reach Scaurus and Marcus - for an intended celebration of Marcus’ appointment to the junior judges - Manius and his mother Acilia found themselves caught in the midst of calamity. A fire sprang up within a baker’s shop on the street level of one of the apartment buildings; the flames quickly caught the grain and breads and took to tinder. A calm, dry breeze blew embers to hay and adjoining buildings, and the blaze grew out of control. The Vigiles, the city fire-watch, were quick to respond and as protocol demanded, began to demolish buildings not yet touched by the flames, so as to contain them. The chaos in the streets knocked Manius and his mother from their litter, and as they tried to navigate the streets with their servants, an insula crumbled onto them. Acilia grabbed her young boy and threw him to the ground, covering his body with her own. When the Vigiles pulled him from the rubble, Manius was covered in ash, soot, and the blood of his mother - though he was not conscious to know it. His father and brother Marcus were at hand when he was recovered, and he was immediately spirited away to their villa. Manius survived the misfortune, by virtue of his mother, but did not emerge from the destruction unscathed. For the better part of a year he remained in a coma, and when he awoke was slow in his speech- though his thinking was sharp as ever. His brother Marcus had given up on his appointment - that they had gone to celebrate - in order to watch over his sibling, and his was the first face Manius saw when he his eyes opened. Marcus could not remain at Manius’ side forever, though, and Scaurus saw to it that his own sister Aemilia, Manius’ aunt, looked after him. Slow in speech and unable to walk, Manius suffered from a terrible depression during the years leading to his adulthood. He attempted to take his own life twice, but after intervention by his brother Marcus, Manius felt a shift in his attitude. He turned his frustration and desperation into a determination to prove himself capable. He took to studies and writing, sharpening his mind. Aemilia and her husband Vespasius hired tutors to teach him to speak clearly again; and physicians who attempted to bring motion back to his legs. Having to forsake a typical career in politics for his handicap, Manius devoted himself to knowledge of Roman law and traditions. Further, he studied all he could of other nations and their peoples. His father, though often not present, spared no expense in seeing tutors brought in from all over the world. With little time to do anything but study, Manius applied himself to learning other tongues, ideals, and religions. He learned of trade and mercantile empires and for some manner of years debated on what course to take for himself. Through these years, Manius’ brother and father continued to secure the legacy of their family. It would be put into jeopardy, and father pitted against eldest son, when rebellion threatened to tear apart the empire in the late years of the decade 50. Having served on the Rhine frontier, Marcus was swept by the ideals and charismatic nature of commander Camillus Julius Fidelis and when the latter declared his intent to overthrow Caesar Darius, Marcus joined his cause. The senate called upon one of their most experienced leaders in Germania - Scaurus - to put an end to the rebellion. Manius’ father faced his brother Marcus down, and the legion refused to fight, to pit son against father. In desperation, Marcus took his life and whether by command of the Senate or out of his own loss, Scaurus remained in Germania for the next several years. Manius again entered into a dark period. For all the strength Marcus had shown in preventing Manius from taking his life, and for Marcus to then take his own - it was not fathomable. Added to that was the stress that Manius had become the heir to his father’s fortune and name… he, a cripple unable to produce sons of his own. Scaurus returned to Rome in 60, and quickly went to securing his legacy. He married again, adopting another Marcus and Manius felt as if his father had abandoned him. While he understood that he was not capable of producing an heir, he was still the man’s living, breathing son. What had been respect for both his father and brother slowly turned into frustration; again, Manius turned this into determination. He began to push himself physically, attempting to walk and move as he once had. Over time he had gained slight movement in his toes and hips - though it had taken him over 15 years to get even that much. Within the span of another year, Manius would again see the world he knew turned over. Scaurus became embroiled in a world of cutthroat politics… but through this Scaurus came to rely upon his learned son. While Scaurus had been a commander for the whole of his life, he was not so eloquently expressive as others. Manius found himself relied upon to help his father draft speeches for the senate and to go over plans for war. As Scaurus traveled to and from within the empire, he increasingly put more and more responsibility for the familial assets onto Manius’ shoulders. Scaurus Alexander, Manius’ newfound brother, may have followed the man as his protege in war, but it was to Manius that the future of the family assets were entrusted. Through this time, as Manius had lived in the home of his aunt Aemilia, he came to know his cousin Vespasia. She had been married, with her husband, Lucius Afranius Capitolinus, killed in service in Honorius’ Dacian war. After his death, she sold his assets and returned to her home. Manius came to appreciate her honesty and strength, and the positivism of her young son Lucius. Though several years his elder, Manius found her a good companion, as she did him. Their relationship developed as one might between a brother and sister, but each saw a need met in the other. As civil war broke out, and Scaurus took a side, he had been informed of the connection between Manius and Vespasia, and gave his blessing on a marriage between them. Through the marriage, Manius adopted Vespasia’s son Lucius, and secured a direct blood legacy to the Aemilii-Scauri. Having decided to flee Rome with the rise of Clemens, Manius and his family (Vespasia, Lucius) retreated to the summer home of his aunt Aemilia and uncle Vespasius on Cyprus. There he remained for the duration of the war - his father Scaurus only a short trip over water in Antioch. However, with his father’s defeat at the hands of his brother-in-law Quintus Alexander, and Scaurus’ subsequent suicide, Manius again found himself in an unknown situation. Quintus was not a ruthless man, but to ensure his safety, saw a detachment of his men stationed on Cyprus. Effectively under guard, Manius and his family remained on the island for the duration of the war. During this time Manius was introduced to a philosopher and healer by the name of Apollonius. This man had something of a following in the east for his works, and it was Aemilia whom had enticed him to visit her broken nephew. Apollonius spoke of great things and miraculous visions. He instructed Manius on how to heal his wounds, and gave promise that in time, he would again walk. With the end of the war and Quintus’ rise to Caesar an official edict was issued pardoning all those whom had been exiled by any Caesar preceding Quintus Caesar, and welcoming even those whom had fought against him back to Rome. Manius struggled with what he wanted to do. In his father's death, Manius had been named the heir to his estates and so a part of him felt it necessary to return to Rome in memory of Scaurus the Elder... but for his part, Manius did not agree with everything his father stood for politically. After a lot of consideration, Manius decided to stay put. He remained on Cyprus for the next five years and devoted the majority of his time to studying the teachings of Apollonius. In time he could stand on his two feet without the need of supports. Eventually he could feel movement in his ankles, his knees. With the added support of his son Lucius and wife Vespasia, Manius at last began to walk again... albeit slowly, not unlike a toddler. As strength came back to him, so did his confidence, and in the waning months of 67, all was set for the family to return to Rome... only, the gods had other plans. Vespasia - ever a stalwart support - fell ill and struggled with her illness for months until she finally passed in the first days of 68. Her father, Pollio, passed shortly after of a similar sickness and despite the grief the remnants of the family decided to leave Cyprus for good. Aemilia, Manius' aunt, sold the villa and its possessions and together with Manius and Lucius the three of them returned to Rome. For the past six years, Manius has been rebuilding his career. He remains active in the senate, speaking when it is necessary, but careful to not too closely align himself with men of 'republican' ideals and loyalties. Lucius, now a young adult himself, has been away from Rome serving on the German frontier for the past three years. Aemilia, entering her 73rd year of life, is as strong and motherly as ever. CHRIS | US-ET | PM/DISCORD 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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