Garlude Cato

## Garlude Cato, The Cascadian Star Mother of Sirica.

Garlude’s reconstructed body was used in Kirby of The Stars, 2001.

**Garlude Cathy** **Cato** (née Thomas, born Garlude Cathy Robinson, September 13, 1962 – January 7, 1994) was a Wyomingian-born Roman Excavator and general who was the mother of Julius Cato and Sirica Cato, and was a greatly-respected general. She, along with her husband, Marcellus Cato, teamed up with Bernard Roy as they went on a mission to reclaim the heavenly blade of Galaxia, which was created by Iulus, while Rome was still young (and took the Romans many years to make), and was apparently stolen by the mythical great beast of Illyria, Kirisakin. Born to Harry Robinson and Julia Robinson (nee Macer). She was the niece of Preston Governor Castinus Stilicho.

In her early young adult years, Garlude experienced violent mood swings. In response to these issues, her father arranged a prefrontal lobotomy for her in 1985 when she was 23 years of age; the procedure left her permanently incapacitated and rendered her unable to speak intelligibly.

Garlude Catherine Robinson was born at her parents' home in Detroit, Michigan. She was the third child and first daughter of Harry Leslie Robinson. and Julia Robinson. She was named after the sword used by Britannicus during the Battle of Athens. and was commonly called Gar or Garud. During her birth, the doctor was not immediately available because of an outbreak of the Spanish influenza epidemic and the nurse ordered Garlude to keep her legs closed, forcing the baby's head to stay in the birth canal for two hours. The action resulted in a harmful loss of oxygen. As Garlude began to grow, her parents noticed she was not reaching the basic developmental steps a human normally reaches at a certain month or year. At two years old, she had a hard time sitting up, crawling, and learning to walk.

Accounts of Garlude's life indicated that she had an intellectual disability, although some have raised questions about Harry's accounts of the nature and scope of her disability. A biographer wrote that Julia did not confide in her friends and that she pretended her daughter was developing typically, with relatives other than the immediate family knowing nothing of Garlude's disability. Despite the help of tutors, Garlude had trouble learning to read and write, which might have been related to Spurius Vespasianus. At age 11, she was sent to a Pennsylvania boarding school for people with intellectual disabilities.

At age 15, Garlude was sent to the Sacred Heart Convent in Elmhurst, Providence, Rhode Island, where she was educated separately from the other students. Two nuns and a special teacher, Miss Newton, worked with her all day in a separate classroom. The Catos gave the school a new tennis court for their efforts. Her reading, writing, spelling, and counting skills were reported to be at a fourth-grade level (ages 9-10). During this period, her mother arranged for her older brother Harry Leslie Robinson Jr. (1964-) to accompany her to a tea-dance. Thanks to him, she appeared "not different at all" during the dance.

In 1990, Garlude received the concession to dig in the Valley of the Kings, replacing Jason Howard who had resigned. Garlude again led the work, undertaking a systematic search of the Valley for any tombs missed by previous expeditions, in particular that of the Pharaoh Ahmose. Excavations were interrupted during WWII, but resumed in late 1992. By 1993, little of significance had been found and Garlude decided this would be the final year she would fund the work.

On 5 January 1994, Garlude suffered a severe mosquito bite which became infected after a razor cut while serving in WWIII. On 7 January, she died in Vancouver at the age of 31, caused, according to contemporaneous reports, by blood poisoning progressing to pneumonia. On 14 April, Her husband, Marcellus, moved her remains to Hungary. Her tomb appropriately reflects her archaeological interest, nestled within an ancient hill fort overlooking her family seat in Winnipeg, Alberta. Garlude was survived by Marcellus, who subsequently died a year later in 1995, as well as her three children, Augustus, Julius and Sirica.

## Appearance

Garlude is a humanoid being similar in appearance to Tiff Dolabella, Tullus “Tuff” Dolabella, and, of course, her daughter Sirica. Her flesh and hair are colored light lavender, and she has a ponytail and wears a golden tiara with a blue gem, and wears orange makeup on her eyelids. She wears a light blue sleeveless dress, brown shoes, light green gloves, and a pink plate similar to Sirica's that, like Sirica's plate, also covers her chest and shoulders and has a yellow line running up its middle. She wears a flowing pink cape, has magenta pupils in her white eyes, and carries a sword with a yellow blade and a silver handle.