A Piercing Love: The Iron Age Journey of Sofia and Cesar

"Look, Cesar... I want you to know that I'll always be loyal to you and Irene. You're my heart."

"Sofia..." Cesar said with a voice full of sorrow as he looked into his lover's eyes. "Don't leave me. I love you..." He didn't want to lose her, not now, not ever.

Sofia knew that she had no choice but to leave Cesar and their daughter. It was the only way to protect them from the Romans, who would kill them if they found out that Sofia was a Druidess. She looked at the man she had loved for more than a decade, who was holding their baby girl in his arms; the man who had always been her strength and her light through the darkest moments of her life. She remembered how they used to run together through mountains and valleys as free as horses, feeling the wind rushing through their hair and lungs as they chased each other into the unknown.

She remembered how it had felt like being part of something greater than themselves when they used to dance under the starry sky, surrounded by the spirits of forest animals and gods of nature. She watched him now with their little girl in his arms, whose destiny was intertwined with theirs; a baby girl who would never know her father's warmth or his strength; a little girl whose fate was sealed from before she was born because an evil Druidess had cast a spell on her father thirteen years ago.

"I love you too, Cesar," she whispered with tears running down her cheeks. "But we have no other choice. You and Irene deserve to live your lives in peace." The thought of losing him pained Sofia's heart more than anything else in this world. But she knew that if they stayed together, all three of them would die sooner rather than later; her sacrifice would give them time to escape safely before soldiers could find them. And although it broke Sofia's heart into pieces that Irene wouldn't get to know her mother, she knew that Cesar would make a great father who would take good care of his precious daughter.

She turned around and started walking away from him towards the forest while he called after her desperately: "Don't go! Please don't go!"

"I have to," Sofia replied without looking back over her shoulder because if she did she knew that she would never be able to leave them behind. "I'll try to send word if I can."

Cesar sat alone on the ground with Irene on his lap staring into the fire between his feet while tears ran down his face silently, just like water runs down a rock over time; one drop at a time until eventually it wears it away. His whole body ached with pain while he rocked back and forth slowly trying to soothe Irene, who kept crying loudly after waking up from her nap startled by loud noises from outside of their shelter caused by Roman soldiers searching for Sofia and herself in order to kill them both for treason against Rome; according [to] what he had overheard one soldier saying earlier today when he went to fetch some water for himself and his daughter from lake nearby their hiding place deep into the forest where he thought nobody would find them easily since Roman soldiers were always busy fighting against Germanic tribes north of here instead of patrolling their land south of Rhine river where he lived with Sofia just two weeks ago before everything changed forever; two weeks ago when Roman soldiers suddenly arrived on horseback outside their village in search for Sofia and him while they were dancing under stars celebrating birth of Irene five days ago... Five days ago when Sofia told him that she was going through exciting changes during last moon cycle which indicated that she was pregnant... Five days ago when they fell madly in love again after three years separation when they first met again during Druid ceremony celebrating beginning of new solar year while making vows which bound them together forever... Five days ago when they unexpectedly made love again right there under stars after almost fifteen years since their first night together during festival where they both got drunk on mead looking at each other across bonfire wistfully remembering what used to be between them before evil Druidess took away everything important from both of them... Three years earlier when Sofia left Cesar after finding out about curse placed upon him by evil Druidess Caritina because he wanted to be free from being forced into marriage with another woman against his will after meeting beautiful young Druidess during celebration marking end of winter solstice two months earlier at the Spring Equinox... Two months earlier when he first laid eyes on beautiful young woman standing next to elder Druidesses dancing around sacred tree during festival celebrating rebirth of nature... Two months earlier where he met beautiful young woman named Caritina who became wife of Chief Fintan O'Donnell whom Cesar served as a warrior... Two months earlier where he learned about Druid faith after being forced against his will by Fintan O'Donnell's wife Caritina into marriage with another woman whom he didn't love just because he wasn't allowed by O'Donnell's wife Caritina to marry young beautiful Druidess named Sofia first because Chief Fintan O'Donnell wanted Cesar's sister Teodora O'Donnell as wife for his son Brian instead... Two months earlier where everything changed forever between him and Sofia...