Marcus stepped over the sprawled figure on the deck, looking at the stunned captain and back at the commander he grunted, "Well, we are off to a good start!. I am going to find my cabin and find someone on this ship that is willing to barter for some weapons. I will meet you in the galley for some wine later". With that Marcus nodded to the commander and made his way below deck. Sheltered from the sun, the lower deck was much darker and cooler than the sweltering upper deck. The air was stuffy and the crew, that were initially stunned by Glabrio's actions, had resumed their daily routine of unloading and loading supplies from the ship. As a result the lower deck was abuzz with activity. Making his way to the stern of the ship Marcus stumbled onto the crew and passenger quarters. The beds were hardly beds at all but simple hammocks tied to each end of the ceiling beams and stacked one on top of each other to minimize space taken on the ship. Brilliant! he muttered to himself, "I don't want Abdul on the top hammock that's for sure."
After laying some of his heavier effects on the hammock, Marcus made his way around some of the crew quarters. Most of the men looked like they had seen too much of the open seas, their faces were lined with the signs of strain from years of hard, manual labor and they all looked more or less starved of a proper vitamin diet. Marcus kicked a rodent that he spotted scurrying across the floor. He was about to give up hope of finding anyone who looked capable of trading in weapons when he spotted a lone figure walking out of the galley. A short, balding man wearing a black tunic, a leather belt was across his waist and carrying a large sack behind him, seemed out of place for a ship full of laborers. The figure dropped his heavy burden on the ground to catch his breath when Marcus approached him.
"Let me help you with that" Marcus offered. "Oh no, it's quite alright. It's my fault really. I packed in too much stuff into my kit.. I am expecting big sales in Lugdunum this season" the man said in between breaths but with a beaming smile. "So, you are a merchant then?" Marcus asked with a sly grin. "Why yes, yes I am. Amantius Septimius Laskaris" he said with a dramatic bow. "Merchant to Lugdunum via Massalia" he continued. "Do you trade in weapons?" Marcus pressed. "Sure do!" came the reply, "Swords, knives, bows and even some fine selection of slings.." he began but Marcus cut him off.
"Excellent, excellent!" Marcus finally could replace his ageing and blunt weapons. "I am interested in seeing what you have on offer, if you don't mind some early business that is" he continued. "Not at all, right this way" Amantius replied with a broad smile and led them to a small clearing and began unpacking the contents of his sack.
