The Legend of the Gladiator Guardian, Book 1 of Roman Blood

[ETW_Modder]

I know this isn't exactly star wars, but I thought some people might be interested in a quick read of the first few chapters of a book me and my friends hope to finish and publish this summer  This book is the first in a planned series, and begins with the story of a 14-year old boy, a member of a poor family living in the basement of an apartment his family helps manage in Venice.

Chapter 1
[spoiler]
Chapter One: A Whisper in the Dark
   Vicente Fernandez huddled under the covers, hiding from the gloom and the darkness, but most of all the screeches he heard in the night, even through the walls and concrete that separated the Fernandez’s family from the rest of the apartment. Long had he suspected that these sounds belonged to the ghosts of the legend of the Gladiator Guardian, yet none of the other families in the Venetian apartment ever seemed to take note of them, and when asked, would always say that they had never heard screams, and, in many cases, not even the legend. Curled up beneath his woolen blankets, Vicente shivered in fear as the screeches continued.
   Lying there, Vicente thought to himself, “Why has no one else ever heard these screams? Why must it only be me? No, there has to be someone else that hears them but doesn’t speak of them.” He continued to ponder these thoughts as the noise continued.
   All of a sudden, the air seemed to be moved, as if by some wind. That wind that began to steadily blow seemed to whisper, as if it wanted to say something. At this, Vicente became somewhat frightened, yet curious. Where had the wind come from? There were no vents in his room. Why had this wind come? Perhaps in answer to his question, Vicente would soon find out.
   He began to strain his ears in a mild effort to catch the message the wind was attempting to hear. Still, no matter how hard he tried, his ears caught nothing but the whistling of the wind by his ear. Vicente began to sigh to himself in resignation, but caught himself, turning that sigh into a gasp. The wind had begun to deliver its whispered message to Vicente.
   Frozen still, Vicente began to listen to what the wind would tell him, answering the questions he had asked himself as he had tried to go to sleep. “Yessss,” the wind whispered. “You are one of the few who may hear these calls for help. Only he who carries the blood of a hero of Rome may hear these cries of desperation and fear.” The wind’s whisper continued as it slowly died down.
   As the wind and its whisper faded, Vicente shivered again under his covers. But then, he thought to himself. “Perhaps if I carry the blood of a Roman hero and can hear the ghosts, then maybe my father does, too!” He determined that he would inquire in the morning, if he could get to sleep, that is. As these thoughts whirled about in his mind, the screeches of the ghosts were forgotten, and Vicente drifted off into a dreamless and restless slumber.
[/spoiler]

Chapter 2
[spoiler]
Chapter Two: Searching for Answers
   Vicente arose the following day after a sleepless night to the sound of his mother, Maria, singing as she cooked the morning meal. The sweet aroma of a delicious, yet meager, meal of cornetto and biscotti wafted into Vicente’s room. Though not well rested, the prospect of a delicious breakfast brought Vicente to full wakefulness and made him hunger. Thinking of food, his stomach growled. He had not eaten since noon of the previous day. Besides, he thought, I could ask my mother a question about the noise I have heard since we moved to the apartment here in Venice last month.
   He walked out of his bedroom to the kitchen of the basement that his family was allowed to live in for managing. It may have been small, but it was all they could afford, and they had made it quite homey. Vicente approached the family dining table and sat down.
   It was not long before a nice steaming plate of cornetto and biscotti was passed to him by his mother as she sang through her morning chores. Due to the relatively small amount of food on the plate, Vicente quickly ingested what food there was. After putting his plate in the sink, Vicente turned to his mother, who was washing the dishes right next to him. Determined to ask his mother about the sounds he had heard as well as the whispered message, Vicente took a deep breath.
   “Mama, has Papa ever said anything about hearing noises at night? Odd noises?” Vicente managed to stutter out.
   Maria froze in her actions and stood silently for a moment, staring down into the depths of the sink water before replying. Turning to her son, she said, “Why do you ask, mi bambino?”
   Surprised at his mother’s atypical response, Vicente was quiet before replying. “Mama, I was just wondering, because I hear those sounds at night. Ever since we moved here, I’ve heard screaming and the clash of metal each night.
   Vicente’s mother sighed. “Mi bambino, he said that he heard odd sounds at night the first few nights we lived here, but he said to think nothing of them. He hasn’t said anything since, yet I am suspicious that he still hears them…..” Sighing, she turned away and back to the sink, continuing to wash the dishes as she sang softly to herself.
   Vicente, intrigued by this new information, walked back into his room and sat down on his bed. Thinking to himself, he couldn’t make any sense of what his mother had said. But then, he remembered the wind’s whisper the other night.
   Only he who carries the blood of a hero of Rome may hear these cries of fear and desperation, it had said. Vicente stood up then with a new resolve to find out more, and he knew just where to go: the Venice Municipal Library, a place filled with information on the entire known history of the city of Venice. Racing out of his room and basement apartment while calling good bye to his mother, Vicente headed towards the library.
[/spoiler]

[Ltin]

Its good, but whats the time period? Modern day?

[ETW_Modder]

Yeah, just this general time period. The first eight chapters are actually done, just not typed up yet. Chapter nine is on the way.