davejadecollab (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
davejadecollab) wrote2012-08-05 12:39 am
davejadecollab) wrote2012-08-05 12:39 am
Gladiators
Day 1
“Down, one. Down, two. Down, three. Pick up the pace boys. With frail muscles like those, you won’t last a second in the arena.”
Just one more push-up. Just one more. Come on you can do it! Dave could hear his muscles screaming in agony, but he didn’t let himself give up because he knew that giving up would be the same as dying.
And dying was not an option.
Day 3
Today he had his first sparring match. It didn’t go quite as well as he had hoped. In fact, it was a complete and utter disaster. But at least he was learning.
“Stop squirming or else all the stitches will fall out!” He fell limp immediately, facing towards the girl nursing her wounds. She and her brother were the slaves of one of the trainers--the older one with the comical mustache and strange obsession with big-game hunting.
“I know you just want me to play dead so you can feel up my glorious bod. It’s okay; you can admit it.” HE enjoyed teasing her. Seeing her turn red and attempt to refute his claims was one of his favorite past times.
“There’s nothing to ogle at. You’re all skin and bones. I like my guys with a little meat, y’know.” She looked up at him in an attempt to convey sincerity, but he knew she was lying. No one can resist the Strider charm.
He holds her stare for a couple of seconds, but she quickly bursts out laughing. The eyes crinkling, all sincerity laugh that never sees in the gloomy, desperate faces of others trying to survive in the arena.
There’s something about her that entrances him. Ever since the first moment he laid eyes on her, he knew there was something different. Perhaps it was her eyes--such a bright, bright green that he's never seen before. Her brother also had eyes like hers, but hers had a quality that just made them shine brighter and better.
He really wished he knew her name.
He tried asking for it before, but she refused to tell him. When he asked why, she just said that there was no use in attempting to get to know the gladiators-in-training, for most of them would die in the first match. He protested, insisting that he was nothing like the others. She just laughed softly and smiled a knowing smile.
He makes a promise to prove her wrong.
Day 10
His first match. It was terrible, but at least he survived.
Confusion and chaos everywhere. He saw men who had been training much longer than him die right before His eyes. His main trainer, Dirk, tried to protect most of the new gladiators, but he couldn’t protect them all.
“Jade.” She whispers to him as she bandages you up yet again, avoiding your eyes. He looks at her quizzically, wondering if she was now demanding a jade in order for him to learn her name. She says something under her breath that vaguely sounds like "dumbass." She looks up at him and says, “My name is Jade, dumbass.”
Oh, right. The deal. He completely forgot about the deal in the midst of the panic in the arena.
“Oh. I’m Dave,” he says simply. For once, it seems that he is at a loss for words.
She grins at him, genuinely happy that he is not a part of the pile of dead bodies. “I already knew that!” she says as she laughs. His breath catches in his throat for a second, but he writes it off as just shock.
They talk of insubstantial things, trying to push away the thought that one day he will probably not walk out of the arena alive.
Day 24
Nowadays, he talks more with Jade than he does train. Most of the times, they just comment on the state of Rome and bicker about who can spit watermelon seeds the farthest.
But today, he brings up the subject of her brother.
“So how did you two become slaves in the first place?” he asks, hoping he would not accidentally say something wrong and have her not talk to him for a few days. (Which actually happened once when he teased her about her teeth.)
She smiled her knowing smile, although her eyes became downcast. “He’s not actually my brother. We’re the only survivors of our ‘barbarian’ tribe, and so I thought it’d be better to stick together. He was only a baby when we became slaves, y’know.”
“So you were the one that chose the ridiculous name?”
“It’s not that bad! There are tons of people named Bec!”
“Oh really. Name one.”
“Well.... my brother!”
He sighed and let go of the subject. This was not an argument that he would win.
After a few seconds, she asked, “So why are you a gladiator?”
He didn’t answer immediately. He thought about whether or not he should answer her honestly, or just circle around the subject until she gave up. He decided to circle.
“Well, see. I thought what better way to showcase my awesome pecs and abs to the world than a colosseum.” She pouted and shoved his side.
He made a promise with himself that he would tell her if he survived tomorrow’s match.
Day 25
“I want to buy my citizenship.”
She stopped bandaging his wounds and looked up at him. “Why?”
It was a simple question, really. But for him, there was no easy answer.
“Because... when you’re a citizen, you can do anything. You’re on top of the world. You’re immediately safe and richer and better and safe.” He paused for a moment, wondering how much he should explain. “I used to live in a farm, you see. It was nice for a while. The big open field that seemed to stretch on forever. Getting lost in that field except not really because you always knew how to get back because you knew it like the back of your hand. Having a home that drew you back like a magnet... It was like paradise.” He paused, ruffling a hand through his hair.
“It was raided by soldiers on their way to do some more conquering. They took everything they could. and burned whatever they couldn’t. I was out in the field when they came, and when I first saw the fire, I ran.” He could feel his eyes watering, and he tried to blink back the tears. “I didn’t even try to see if anyone was alive. I just ran. Like a coward.”
Jade held him close and let him cry on her shoulder. She patted his back in attempt to show compassion, but other than that, she had no idea what to do.
After several minutes, he pulled away from her shoulder and thanked her for listening. She rubbed his back and after a few moments they continued speaking about everything and nothing.
There they were, her piecing him back together, and him sitting in dumb silence.
Day 31
“I told you before, little man, don’t let your guard down.”
The bright orange eyes of his trainer bared down at him as he looked up helplessly, not knowing what to do in this sort of situation.
The cheers of the crowd raged overhead, but he tuned them all out, only focusing on the fact that the man who had trained him would now be the one to end his life.
He looked over to the emperor and saw him slowly decide his fate, milking the crowd for all they were worth.
He didn’t have to see the thumbs up to know that his life was over.
The sword seemed to descend in slow motion.
His last thought was of her laugh.
<== Back | Forward ==>
“Down, one. Down, two. Down, three. Pick up the pace boys. With frail muscles like those, you won’t last a second in the arena.”
Just one more push-up. Just one more. Come on you can do it! Dave could hear his muscles screaming in agony, but he didn’t let himself give up because he knew that giving up would be the same as dying.
And dying was not an option.
Day 3
Today he had his first sparring match. It didn’t go quite as well as he had hoped. In fact, it was a complete and utter disaster. But at least he was learning.
“Stop squirming or else all the stitches will fall out!” He fell limp immediately, facing towards the girl nursing her wounds. She and her brother were the slaves of one of the trainers--the older one with the comical mustache and strange obsession with big-game hunting.
“I know you just want me to play dead so you can feel up my glorious bod. It’s okay; you can admit it.” HE enjoyed teasing her. Seeing her turn red and attempt to refute his claims was one of his favorite past times.
“There’s nothing to ogle at. You’re all skin and bones. I like my guys with a little meat, y’know.” She looked up at him in an attempt to convey sincerity, but he knew she was lying. No one can resist the Strider charm.
He holds her stare for a couple of seconds, but she quickly bursts out laughing. The eyes crinkling, all sincerity laugh that never sees in the gloomy, desperate faces of others trying to survive in the arena.
There’s something about her that entrances him. Ever since the first moment he laid eyes on her, he knew there was something different. Perhaps it was her eyes--such a bright, bright green that he's never seen before. Her brother also had eyes like hers, but hers had a quality that just made them shine brighter and better.
He really wished he knew her name.
He tried asking for it before, but she refused to tell him. When he asked why, she just said that there was no use in attempting to get to know the gladiators-in-training, for most of them would die in the first match. He protested, insisting that he was nothing like the others. She just laughed softly and smiled a knowing smile.
He makes a promise to prove her wrong.
Day 10
His first match. It was terrible, but at least he survived.
Confusion and chaos everywhere. He saw men who had been training much longer than him die right before His eyes. His main trainer, Dirk, tried to protect most of the new gladiators, but he couldn’t protect them all.
“Jade.” She whispers to him as she bandages you up yet again, avoiding your eyes. He looks at her quizzically, wondering if she was now demanding a jade in order for him to learn her name. She says something under her breath that vaguely sounds like "dumbass." She looks up at him and says, “My name is Jade, dumbass.”
Oh, right. The deal. He completely forgot about the deal in the midst of the panic in the arena.
“Oh. I’m Dave,” he says simply. For once, it seems that he is at a loss for words.
She grins at him, genuinely happy that he is not a part of the pile of dead bodies. “I already knew that!” she says as she laughs. His breath catches in his throat for a second, but he writes it off as just shock.
They talk of insubstantial things, trying to push away the thought that one day he will probably not walk out of the arena alive.
Day 24
Nowadays, he talks more with Jade than he does train. Most of the times, they just comment on the state of Rome and bicker about who can spit watermelon seeds the farthest.
But today, he brings up the subject of her brother.
“So how did you two become slaves in the first place?” he asks, hoping he would not accidentally say something wrong and have her not talk to him for a few days. (Which actually happened once when he teased her about her teeth.)
She smiled her knowing smile, although her eyes became downcast. “He’s not actually my brother. We’re the only survivors of our ‘barbarian’ tribe, and so I thought it’d be better to stick together. He was only a baby when we became slaves, y’know.”
“So you were the one that chose the ridiculous name?”
“It’s not that bad! There are tons of people named Bec!”
“Oh really. Name one.”
“Well.... my brother!”
He sighed and let go of the subject. This was not an argument that he would win.
After a few seconds, she asked, “So why are you a gladiator?”
He didn’t answer immediately. He thought about whether or not he should answer her honestly, or just circle around the subject until she gave up. He decided to circle.
“Well, see. I thought what better way to showcase my awesome pecs and abs to the world than a colosseum.” She pouted and shoved his side.
He made a promise with himself that he would tell her if he survived tomorrow’s match.
Day 25
“I want to buy my citizenship.”
She stopped bandaging his wounds and looked up at him. “Why?”
It was a simple question, really. But for him, there was no easy answer.
“Because... when you’re a citizen, you can do anything. You’re on top of the world. You’re immediately safe and richer and better and safe.” He paused for a moment, wondering how much he should explain. “I used to live in a farm, you see. It was nice for a while. The big open field that seemed to stretch on forever. Getting lost in that field except not really because you always knew how to get back because you knew it like the back of your hand. Having a home that drew you back like a magnet... It was like paradise.” He paused, ruffling a hand through his hair.
“It was raided by soldiers on their way to do some more conquering. They took everything they could. and burned whatever they couldn’t. I was out in the field when they came, and when I first saw the fire, I ran.” He could feel his eyes watering, and he tried to blink back the tears. “I didn’t even try to see if anyone was alive. I just ran. Like a coward.”
Jade held him close and let him cry on her shoulder. She patted his back in attempt to show compassion, but other than that, she had no idea what to do.
After several minutes, he pulled away from her shoulder and thanked her for listening. She rubbed his back and after a few moments they continued speaking about everything and nothing.
There they were, her piecing him back together, and him sitting in dumb silence.
Day 31
“I told you before, little man, don’t let your guard down.”
The bright orange eyes of his trainer bared down at him as he looked up helplessly, not knowing what to do in this sort of situation.
The cheers of the crowd raged overhead, but he tuned them all out, only focusing on the fact that the man who had trained him would now be the one to end his life.
He looked over to the emperor and saw him slowly decide his fate, milking the crowd for all they were worth.
He didn’t have to see the thumbs up to know that his life was over.
The sword seemed to descend in slow motion.
His last thought was of her laugh.