sides. So Mettius Fufetius, who was the dictator of Alba Longa at the time, decided to appeal to Tullus Hostilius with another idea. A duel to the death, telling him that the conflict should be settled between the Roman Horatii triplets and their Alban counterparts, the Curiatii.
This meant that they met on the battlefield wedged between two armies as their countrymen looked on. And the outcome from such a fight was that all three Curiatii ended up being wounded. However, the losses were far greater on the other side, for two of the Horatii triplets had fallen, leaving only one to fight alone. His name was Publius, the most cunning of all three, using the skill of wit over brute strength. This was put to the test when Publius found himself alone and surrounded by the three Albans.
However, unlike the other triplets, he was uninjured and used this to his advantage, as he knew that he stood no chance against all three at once. So, he turned and ran, using the strength he had over the others to make his way across the battlefield. He did this because he knew that they would have no choice but to pursue him. This achieved two things, both to his great advantage as this chase not only weakened the brothers, making their injuries worse but it also split them up so he could then face each one alone.
His plan had worked perfectly. He turned and launched a furious attack on the first, before easily catching up to the second and killing him. Doing so as the last brother was left standing and with no other choice but to helplessly look on as his brother was slain. Now spent from both his injuries and the chase, it was said that he died with the honour of confronting a known death, doing so still standing and facing Publius even when knowing his fate. Publius declared that he had killed the first two Curiatii for his fallen brothers and that his last kill was for the Roman cause and what would be their rule over the Albans. A declaration that ended by thrusting his sword down the Alban's throat before then taking the armour of his slain enemies as the spoils of his victory.
After this the Alban dictator Mettius honoured the treaty and Alba Longa briefly had no choice but to accept Roman rule. However, this was not where the story ended, for the reason he was cast into Hell, damning the memory of his brothers with him, came upon his arrival home. You see, the part that was left out of the tale told by historian Titus Livius, who was famous for his retelling of the monumental history of Rome, was the part that no human would know…
The Horatii triplets sold their souls to the Devil.
This was because they knew that they could never win against the other three, knowing of the Curiatii’s many victories and the rumours declaring they were descendants of the Gods. However, jealousy ran deep within the three, and each wanted to be known and remembered as the famous brothers of three for defeating them. So, they made a deal with the ruler of Hell that promised them victory should they sign over their souls as payment, something they did all too eagerly, never imagining that only one would survive and slay the rest.
But the deal was that should even one of them sin after defeating their enemies and killing the Curiatii triplets, that it would condemn them all to a life in Hell the moment the last brother fell. Feeling sure that this wouldn’t happen, they made the deal and Lucifer kept his end of the bargain, for fame was theirs.
Fuckers should have read the small print on that one, I thought with a grimace as I looked down at what had become of them. And why, because their brother had damned them to this life when Publius committed the sin of killing his sister upon his return to the city. This was because not everyone welcomed him home as a hero. Camilla, his sister, had been engaged to one of the Alban triplets. Meaning that the moment she saw her brother’s spoils of war over his shoulder, a cloak she had woven as a gift to her beloved, one now covered in his blood, she cursed him in a fit of anger and grief. She cried out his name and proclaimed that no Roman woman should mourn Rome's fallen