The Citation Coin

 The faint hum of the time machine faded into silence as Elias Stanton stepped out onto the cobblestone  thoroughfares of ancient Rome. The warm Mediterranean sun beat down on his face, and the air was thick with the aroma of fresh- baked  chuck

            , roasted meat, and the slightly sour tang of  stirring  wine. He acclimated the  crowds of his tunic — a costume he would painstakingly  drafted to  mix in — trying to ignore the small,  satiny  timer strapped to his wrist, hidden by the fabric. 

 

 Rome. 45 BCE. The heart of the Republic. The exact time Julius Caesar was said to have consolidated his power and  ever changed the course of history. Elias had studied this moment for times, pouring over every  textbook, every  scrap of  literal  substantiation. He was then not as a disruptor but as an bystander. At least, that’s what he told himself. 

 

 As he wandered through the bustling Forum, he marveled at the sights and sounds. Artisans  cried their wares from  request booths, slaves carried amphorae of olive  oil painting, and lecturers argued loudly on the  way of the Senate House. He could n’t help but feel a  stitch of admiration. These were the moments that shaped  societies. 

 

 “ Hey, you! ” a voice called,  jarring Elias from his  studies. He turned to see a  husky man with a dark beard and suspicious eyes. “ You’re new then, are n’t you? ” 

 

 Elias forced a smile, trying to mask his  jitters. “ Yes. I’ve just arrived from Neapolis. ” 

 

 The man squinted at him,  also signed. “ Well, stay clear of the Forum after dark. stealers have been prowling about. ” With that, he  faded into the crowd, leaving Elias with a racing heart. 

 

 That evening, Elias  set up himself at the  way of the Curia Julia, the grand Senate  structure under construction. He  peered at its marble columns and imagined the fiery debates that would one day echo within its walls. Lost in  study, he did n’t notice the shadowy figure approaching until it was too late. 

 

 “ Extra a coin for a poor man? ” The voice was low,  nearly a  tale. 

 

 Elias turned to see a  hunkered  figure cloaked in rags. The man’s eyes  lustered  with a cunning intelligence that belied his  seedy appearance. 

 

 “ Of course, ” Elias said, fumbling in his  poke

            . He handed the man a citation coin, careful not to let him see the  ultramodern  contrivance on his wrist. 

 

 The beggar studied the coin for a moment,  also looked up with a sly grin. “ You’re not from then, are you? ” 

 

 Elias  set. “ What do you mean? ” 

 

 The man held the coin up to the light. “ This is no ordinary denarius. The artificer is too perfect. The air too indeed. Who are you, really? ” 

 

 Elias’s mind  contended. He could n’t go to reveal the  verity, not to anyone. “ I’m just a  rubberneck, ” he said precisely. “ Nothing more. ” 

 

 The beggar  chortled,  put away the coin into his blankets. “ Relax,  rubberneck. Your secret’s safe with me. For now. ” 

 

 Before Elias could respond, the man turned and melted into the  murk, leaving him alone with a sinking feeling in his  casket. 

 

 The days that followed were a blur of discovery and  peril. Elias attended public speeches, watched  pugilists train at the Colosseum, and indeed  glinted Julius Caesar himself being carried through the  thoroughfares in a bejeweled   waste. But always, in the  reverse of his mind, he wondered about the beggar. Who was he? And what did he know? 

 

 It was n’t until his final day in Rome that the answer came. Elias was preparing to return to the time machine when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned to see the beggar, now dressed in fine blankets and  adjoined by fortified guards. 

 

 “ You did n’t  suppose you could leave without saying goodbye, did you? ” the man said, his grin as sharp as a dagger. 

 

 “ What do you want? ” Elias asked, his voice steady despite the fear churning inside him. 

 

 The man held up the citation coin. “ Knowledge. I know you’re not from this world. Tell me where you’re from, and I’ll let you go. ” 

 

 Elias  dithered. Could he trust this man? Could he go not to? Eventually, he leaned in and  rumored, “ I’m from the future. ” 

 

 The man’s eyes widened, but he said nothing. After a long moment, he stepped back and handed the coin to Elias. “ Go. And take your secrets with you. ” 

 

 Without another word, Elias turned and  faded into the alleyways, the faint hum of the time machine rising as he actuated it. As the  thoroughfares of Rome dissolved into a blur of light and sound, he  gripped the citation coin tightly in his hand. 

 

 Back in his lab, Elias placed the coin on his  office and  goggled at it. A relic of a world long gone, yet still alive in his  recollections. He'd come to Rome seeking answers, but he left with questions he was n’t sure he wanted answered. 

 

 Who was that man? And how  important of the future had he just changed?