Phylles was still smirking at him, but there was a degree of uncertainty behind her expression, that had perhaps underlain her earlier hostility as well.

I bruise easily.

The remark she made comparing her life with that of a fish was unclear.

So ended the first and longest of the three Punic Wars; or, if viewed from a more romantic standpoint, the first act of a three-act tragedy, the tragedy of the destruction not only of Carthage but also of old Rome - of Rome the city state.