Sextus Variarus

Don't you know who you're messing with! These are the men of Sextus Variarus, the man who had the biggest army of tugs in the empire. Even senators fear to cross him. What, you don't know him?! He is the man in the stories mothers tell their children in order for them to behave. He is the man who killed the last five governors of the city and last three because he couldn't bribe them. He once even made the imperial family back off from his street. You don't mess with him!

_{-Homeless woman on the streets of Nova Roma}

Infuence

With the senate being a gathering of rich men who are nostalgic about the republic they make suitable investors for his operations. If you're contacted you accept. If you don't, you won't see the light of the next day. With multiple senators backing him, he was able to conquer his rivals and claim the city for himself. All stores, every merchant, every inhabited pay the Sextus tax. He owns all the clubs, bathhouses, ins, taverns, gamble houses. Even the arenas. With a criminal empire like that even imperial forces won't dare cross him, because they know his hand can reach everywhere. It can reach their superiors making them lose their position. It could reach their child cribs or wives throats.

Fall

The expression: 'There is always a bigger fish.' fits Sextus perfectly. On a certain day, his men went around the city gathering the Sextus tax. A young boy from a family who couldn't pay stole a pouch of coins from a hooded individual. When the family paid the tax and their debts the crooks wanted the entire pouch. Before they could strike down the family the hooded figure beat them up and let them go with a warning. But no one messes with Sextus. He kidnapped the hooded man some days later where he was revealed to be the third prince Robbecus who then murdered every single one of Sextus crooks among himself along his associate