"It could be that we are seeing an alliance between the
Picts and local Britons - two crests coming together, almost like a coat of arms," Toolis said.
The storyline is exceptionally simple and chronicles the life of a centurion, together with a few Roman buddies, the only survivors of a
Pict massacre, who are continuously hunted by a female tracker, Elain, whose traumatic history at Roman hands has emotionally scarred her for life; she is described by a
Pict necromancer as having "a soul which is an empty vessel--to be filled with Roman blood".
Centurion (yes, that's the title) Quintus Dias, the sole survivor of a raid on a Roman frontier fort, is rescued by the Ninth Legion after being captured by the
Picts and amazingly makes his escape through the snow with his hands bound and without a shirt.
Deep in the Scottish woods when the Ninth Legion is ambushed by the blue-painted warriors the order is given for the soldiers to hold the line - even when the
Picts rain great balls of fire down on them.
Neil Marshall's brutal action-packed tale of battle-hardened Roman soldiers being hunted down by clever
Picts is stirringly old-fashioned stuff.
To help them find the
Picts' leader, Gorlacon (Danish thesp Ulrich Thomsen), the Ninth is using mute
Pict woman Etain (Olga Kurylenko, "Quantum of Solace").
This would seem to leave the Scots with no money, no oil and nothing to do except turn blue and disappear into the mists like the
Picts. Let them have Berwick say I, just as long as they take Brown and Darling as part of the deal.
On its completion the
PICTS programme asked participating universities and colleges to submit their best students for assessment by a panel organised by programme manager Sian Dunning, at Staffordshire University.
First were the Cruithni
Picts, followed by the Goedels and the Brythons, each superimposing their language and culture on the other.
The times he lives in are transitional: Norsemen are raiding the coastal settlements, making pacts with or fighting the
Picts and others, settling where they can and defending their territory from other Norsemen.
Though Bran Mak Morn is the prime player of this collection, as he stars in three of the short stories and is a feature star of the Miscellanea Part two section, this compilation is more accurately described as a deep look at the author's "Lost Race": the
Picts. The compilation is fabulously enhanced by the illustrations of Gary Gianni that bring even more to life Howard's blending of fantasy and history in this case, the ancient world of the
Picts.
What about the early Britons, Romans, Jutes,
Picts, Danes and Normans who invaded England too?