Obstacles In The Path

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[Pedigree]008 Obstacles In The Path
[Pedigree]009 Rough Waters
[Pedigree]010 Dealing Like The Devil
[Pedigree]011 A Road Paved In Blood

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[Pedigree]008 Obstacles In The Path

\Narration\

It was noon and Nathaniel Ellis was sitting in at the lunch table in his suite of rooms in the top of the backbone of his island, the rock ridge that housed his laboratories.  The view through the large bay windows was as breathtaking as ever.  Nathaniel looked up as Asheika, satchel in hand, came into the room.

\Nathaniel\

Good afternoon, Asheika my pet, did you have a bracing workout at dance practice today?

\Asheika\

"Yes massa, it was ballet today.  A girl practiced a lot of jumps and graceful landings on her toes."

\Nathaniel\

"Lunch should be here in a few minutes.  Your bath is ready for you."  Nathaniel reached into his mail bag and pulled another envelope out, "Hmm, a letter from Sir Randal Stallart."

\Asheika\

"Who's that massa?"

\Nathaniel\

"A man who's gladiators have some of the best training in the business.  He was a gentleman who was knighted in the last war.  His connections with the military have been invaluable to him for procuring the finest trainers.  In addition he is an accomplished warrior himself.  Let's see, 'Dear Mr. Ellis, ta-da-da-da... would like to extend a challenge to pit Thor and Bladesman against an obstacle course devised by the administrators of the arena, the first man to emerge to win the event... Tentatively the event is to be scheduled for Saturday morning  at nine o'clock four weeks hence,' Nathaniel grinned.  It appears the self-made nobleman has challenged me to a weekend bout."

\Asheika\

"Congratulations massa!"

\Nathaniel\

"Thank you Asheika.  After lunch I will go down and talk to the trainers.  Thor must be made ready for an obstacle course type event.  He will start today, and we will hone in on the skills needed as soon as the administrators of the arena tell us what details of the event they choose to tell."

\Narration\

The next four weeks went by quickly.  Thor was at practice usually twelve to sixteen hours every day, while Nathaniel continued collecting, gathering and cataloging his seed samples.  Some he stored away, and others were kept at the ready for his continuing work building gladiators.  He attempted to improve on his current generation of gladiators, and to produce at least six every six months.  He knew he would be loosing them on a regular basis now that he was entering the weekend time slots where the gladiators with the best training would be encountered.  Asheika continued her training in music and assisted Nathaniel with his research, sometimes in the lab, sometimes in the field if a man peaked her interest.  When the day of the bout came, Nathaniel and his group took the coach and transported to the Atlanna training camp using the spell that worked with his tunnels.

The stone slab that covered the Atlanna tunnel slid shut as the coach started down the road to the camp.  Asheika lay on the folded out bench seat, her dress hiked up over her lovely derriere as she read an alchemical laboratory text.  Nathaniel sat down at the desk, having completed the transport spell.

\Nathaniel\

Ah, I see you returned my stack of coins to the desk while I was casting.  Now lets see if I have a few more in me after moving the coach.  Nathaniel concentrated.

\Asheika\

A gold coin appeared on the apex of the slave girl's ripe left buttock, then another appeared on her right cheek.  Asheika smiled, "That tickles massa."

\Nathaniel\

Nathaniel chuckled,  "But it looks so marvelous as well.  Now let me see.  Nathaniel put a silver coin in each palm, then concentrated.

\Asheika\

"Asheika cocked her head, had she felt something?  It had been very subtle.  She reached back and plucked a coin from her rear.  It was silver.  Massa, you did it!"

\Nathaniel\

"Indeed, success at last.  Soon I will be ready to try to transport a filled sheath out of your delicious tunnel, but I shall have to try it with gold coins first.  For the moment I am content to rest on my success.  The silver coins from Asheika's hand and rump disappeared and reappeared in the air just above Nathaniel's hand.  They landed with a satisfying, "clink-clink."

\Narration\

Later that evening, Asheika and Nathaniel arrived at their box after the bout's opening speeches.  "I will confess to being a little apprehensive about ballet in the arena, but I believe that bit of the Firebird you did went off quite nicely.  Your interpretation was magnificent.  Then again, even if the crowd had no pallet for refined dance, I cannot recall ever seeing a ballerina who looked even half as delicious in feathers as you do, my pet.  There were plenty of other things they could concentrate on if they did not fully appreciate your artistry.  I do believe this outfit is just as sexy as the last one."

\Asheika\

"Thank you massa,"  Asheika smiled.

\Narration\

"Ah, lets sit back and enjoy the games.  With only a five hundred gold piece wager on this one, and no gladiator versus gladiator combat, I believe both Sir Randal Stallart and I can rest easy."

\Master of Ceremonies\

Ladies and gentlemen, this morning's bout is a race, across a dangerous and grueling course,  between Bladesman of House Stallart and Thor of House Ellis.

\The Audience\

The crowd cheered.

It marks the first weekend appearance of Thor and pits his speed, strength, skill and daring against the abilities and legendary training of a fine House Stallart gladiator, Bladesman.  Before you, you see the course.  The gladiators are already in the starting box.  The short wall, if the gladiators can scale it, leads to phase one, the obstacle course, beyond that is an enclosure full of vicious wolves which might be traversed by swinging on ropes up out of the reach of the vicious animals from crows nest pole to crow's nest pole.  Finally, there is the bear pit, and once a gladiator escapes that, he can run to the winner's circle.  Gladiators must discard weapons carried in favor of new weapons whenever new weapons are provided.  Gladiators must also follow arrows and markings with their team color to get to their starting points for phase two.

Let the games begin!

\Thor\

Thor looked around the starting box.  It was like a plank chimney.   The lowest wall was too high even for him to jump, and he had seen Bladesman try.

"Even if you stood on my shoulders you couldn't get out of here.  How in hell do they think we're going to do this?"

\Bladesman\

"I think you got the right idea, they expect team work, but the only way I can see for us to get out is back to back,  and walk right up the walls.  I've done it.  It ain't hard, just got to hold on to your partner or else.  When we get just over the low wall we walk sideways and see what's on the other side."

\Thor\

"Okay lets give it a try."

\Bladesman\

Bladesman nodded and got into position.  He locked arms with Thor.  Both men pushed up.  Back to back the combined length of their legs was greater than the distance between the two walls.  Slowly they began to rise, pushing against each other with their backs and against the opposite walls with their boots.

\The Audience\

BLADE-BLADE-BLADE!

\Thor\

"Looks like your kind of crowd this morning."

\Bladesman\

"Yeah, they know me well.   All right lets go sideways nice and smooth.  I can't see a platform on the other side, so we're going to have to assume there ain't one.  Either we hang drop down, or we walk down same way we came up, and break when we get down about ten feet from the floor."

\Thor\

"Your choice.  You got us up here, I owe you that much."

\Bladesman\

"We walk down till I say, 'break,' then the competition starts."

\Thor\

"Okay  Blade.  Good luck with them animals, win or loose."

\Bladesman\

"Thanks, see ya in the press room."

\Thor\

"Uhuh."

\Narration\

The two men walked sideways and then down until they were about seven feet from the ground.

\Bladesman\

"Break!"

\Thor\

Thor dropped to the ground and ran forward.  Immediately, his strength and speed gave him the lead.  There were obstacles, low walls he could jump, higher ones he had to climb and in all of them there were holes near the bottom, about a foot in diameter.  "What the hell?"  Thor heard a noise like a giant cicada, he didn't know what it was, but it was a cinch it wasn't going to be friendly.  Then he saw it, a huge brown bug with red markings.  It's claws had been filed down so it couldn't climb but it could still run near as fast as he could, and jump a bit, though the bug was heavy with natural armor and not so agile as a man.  The thing was, it didn't have to climb over the obstacles, it could go through the holes under them, and It had a small but vicious crushing-type mouth on it that seemed to want to take a piece out of his calf.

Thor considered dropping back and trying to leave the thing with Bladesman, but then he heard his competitor curse.

\Bladesman\

Ou! Damn bug.

\Thor\

"Looks like the competition has a bug on his tail too,"  Thor thought as he narrowly missed getting bit by jumping up on an obstacle.  The course was full of twists and turns, and even a few dead ends.  The gladiator pushed himself to the limit of his endurance and beyond, he was going through the course as quickly as he could, but he also had to dodge sideways and upwards and be constantly mindful of the damn bug that was chasing him.   By the time he made it to a 'T' intersection with a deep purple arrow going one way and a blue arrow going the other way, he had a slight limp from a bite he'd taken to the calf.  Even through his boot it had hurt like hell.  Luckily the little critter tried to chew rather than hanging on, so the bite had been an isolated event.  The thing was on his tail, but once he turned in the direction of the purple line he knew he would make it.

"Damn!"  He saw a pole up ahead just on his side of the tall stockade wall he'd been running along since the 'T' intersection and the purple arrow that had directed him.  There were no hand holds on the pole at all.  Thor cursed and took off his belt as he ran.  When he reached the pole he jumped up as far as he could, gave the pole a hug, then slapped his belt around it and began to shimmy up.  The bug nearly got him before he got high enough, but he managed to climb just fast enough.

\Nathaniel\

"Look my dear, Thor has made it up the pole to the crow's nest that overlooks the wolf enclosure.  Nathaniel shook his head.  They sure put a big pack of them in there."

\Thor\

Thor got up on the crow's nest and looked down into an enclosure with a hoard of wolves in it.  There were two sets of poles with crow's nests that marched across the enclosure, one for him and one for Bladesman.  His competitor was nowhere to be seen, however.  Thor looked at the next crows nest.  There was a rope with a weight on its end secured to the nest.  It was held by a string that went across a small wooden target.  On his crow's nest hanging on a spike were five tomahawks.  He grabbed two and heaved them at the target.  The second one sliced the string.

\The Audience\

The crowd cheered!

\Thor\

Thor  leaned out and  snagged the rope as it swung to him, then he climbed up on the crows nest rail and jumped backwards.  He swung back, and then forward, his momentum easily taking him to the next crow's nest.  The next nest held five spears.  The third one sliced the string.  He heard the crowd cheer and glanced over to see that Bladesman had just scaled the pole to the first of the other set of crow's nests.

When he swung to the third crow's nest, Thor cussed.  The next nest was in the far wall, but the weapon provided to break the string was a longbow and five broad head arrows.  Thor had shot a longbow before, but it had to be the least used weapon in the games.  He was not skilled at its use.  It had a tremendous range and it was deadly.  It did not lend itself to drawn out spectacles of combat.  Thor drew back and fired, he missed, and missed, and missed...

Each arrow he had fired, he had taken longer to aim, but to no avail.  By the time he fired the last arrow, and missed, he saw Bladesman swinging towards the final crow's nest.  Thor had lost his lead.  The wolves ran to try to catch the swinging Bladesman, and at that moment Thor swung down over the rail and hit the ground running, longbow in hand.

\Wolves\

It took only a second for the wolves to realize that the swinging target was not as good as the new one, the one that was running through their pen.  They howled as they ran for the intruder.

\Thor\

Thor knew he had only one chance, he picked his spot as he ran, it was not far away from the last crows nest, an irregularity in one of the trees making up the stockade wall.  He ran, he jumped, the toe of his boot pushed off the irregularity in the wall, his arms opened the bow and he snagged one of the points of the stockade with it.  He was pulling himself up when the teeth of the first wolf penetrated the heal of his right boot.  Another split second and the wolf would have hauled him down, but he was fast, very fast.   He got his left hand to the top of the stockade on the point next to the bow as the wolf's weight jerked down on him.

\The Audience\

The crowd roared.

\Thor\

Thor grimaced, got his free leg up against the stockade wall and his right hand on another point of the wall.  He heaved.  The damned wolf wouldn't let go so he pulled it up with him.  Beyond the wall he could see was another enclosure, only half of the size of the wolf pen.  At least in his side, there was a grizzly bear.  He assumed from the growling he heard from Bladesman's side that the other gladiator was already dealing with his bear.  Thor leaned to the right and grabbed the side rail of the final crows nest.  On it's pole was hanging a large square shield, a machete and a dagger.

Suddenly, a smile came to Thor's face.  He reached down and grabbed the wolf by the scruff of the neck and pulled himself on to the crow's nest with his left hand.  The wolf growled, as did the bear below.  Thor punched the wolf in the nose, hard. It let go.  The gladiator stood up and raised the hundred pound wolf to the crowd with one hand.

\The Audience\

The crowd applauded.

\Thor\

Thor switched the flailing wolf to his left hand, then put the dagger in his belt, then the machete.  The pole of the crows nest was built into the stockade wall, but there was a rope on the bear's side that could be used to climb down.  Thor slung the shield over his back then climbed down just a little ways before dropping the wolf into the bear pen.  The wolf saw the bear and ran.  Thor cut the rope with the machete, dropped into the pen with it and sprinted for the other side.  On the way he tied a slip knot.  He lassoed one of the points of the far side of the stockade wall and heaved his way up.  Giving the wolf a smile for distracting the bear for him as he pulled up over the wall.  beyond the wall he could see the ramp that went to the winner's circle free and clear.  He flipped the rope off the point of the stockade then hang-dropped to the other side.  Thor sprinted up the edge timbers that held up the ramp, He didn't trust the administration of the arena not to have hidden a pit beneath it.  He  jumped into the winner's ring, sat down, and yawned.

\The Audience\

The crowd went wild, THOR!-THOR!-THOR!-THOR!

\Bladesman\

Bladesman began walking up the ramp.  Damn, how did you do that?  You ran out of arrows, and I put that bear away fast, man, my luck was t- aaah!

\Thor\

Thor laughed with the crowd and tossed the end of his rope into the pit that had opened beneath Bladesman.  "Come on up man, the crowd wants to see you."

\Bladesman\

Bladesman climbed the rope and shook hands with Thor, then lifted his adversary's hand in victory.

\Nathaniel\

"Nathaniel rose and applauded with the rest of the crowd.  "I am very pleased.  I thought we were done when he shot that last arrow, but he converted his run of bad luck into a turn of good luck when he baited the bear with the wolf.  One more win and we will have a foothold in the weekend time slots.  I'm sure Lord Caezal will cringe when he gets the news," Nathaniel chuckled.

\Asheika\

Asheika whispered in Nathaniel's ear.

\Nathaniel\

Nathaniel covered his mouth as if to cough.  "Lady Caezal?  Where is she hiding?  Perhaps we will see her at the owner's reception."

\Narration\

A few minutes later, Nathaniel strolled into the owner's reception with Asheika on his arm.  He whispered in Asheika's ear, "No need for you to sit with me during the main interview, I expect Lady Caezal might have an opinion on your performance."

\Asheika\

"Yess massa,"  Asheika smiled.

\Tim Ingman\

Tim Ingman, Atlanna News Herald, Master Ellis, may I have a word with you?

\Nathaniel\

Certainly, Mister Ingman, I believe the last interview I had was done by Tom Crowder of the Sun, so maybe it's time the Herald got its chance.  Why don't you do the interview this time.  Nathaniel sat down in a central area of the room with many available chairs.  The press swarmed in, and soon Ingman started the questions.

\Tim Ingman\

"Master Ellis, I'm sure we are all wondering about your strategy in the rope swinging event.  Did it go as you planned it?"

\Nathaniel\

"Not at all.  You see, the owners weren't told that the way the gladiators would get the ropes was to shoot them loose with a missile weapon.  Thor is a young gladiator, there are always trade-offs when training a fighting slave, and usually the long bow is not a weapon a gladiator spends a lot of time training with.  The longbow is one of the least used of all weapons in the games.  I'm afraid Harold Connors and his design team caught us with our pants down.  We probably should have lost the game right there, but we all know that luck and brains can combine in unusual ways to change the outcomes of these contests."

 \Tim Ingman\

There's some buzz about the possible disqualification of your gladiator's win for using the wolf on the bear.  Are you worried about that?

\Nathaniel\

"Well now, maybe I should be if there's more politics in the decision than reason, but I looked at the rules pretty carefully, and although they said you could not use weapons from one phase on the challenges of the next, they said absolutely nothing about using opponents from one phase on the challenges of the next.  As far as I've been able to tell, a wolf is not a wieldable weapon.  It's a creature, an adversary.  Not to mention the fact that in order to wind up with a wolf hanging off your body, you would have had to risk your life running through the wolf pen."

"I believe Thor took an enormous risk there, but he was out of arrows, and he used the distraction of the other gladiator's swing on the rope to give him a fighting chance to get across that small stretch of the wolf pen.  No one planned for that wolf to be so tenacious as to hang on to his heal, and many men would have been pulled off that wall to their deaths had the wolf caught them like that."

Nathaniel looked up and saw Harold Connors, the game designer enter the room followed a little later by Sir Randal Stallart and a couple of white guards wearing his house uniform.

\The Ladies and Gentlemen of the Press\

"Mister Connors,  Mister Connors, have the judges made their rulings?

\Harold Connors\

"A wolf is not a weapon, the win stands."

 \Tim Ingman\

"Mister Connors, do you think the danger of going into the wolf pit to get the wolf had impact on that decision."

\Harold Connors\

"The main thing was that our lawyers agreed a wolf could not be classed as a weapon provided.  It would set a ridiculous precedent.  Imagine if Raptorath was fighting two other gladiators, and he threw one at another, then we disqualified him for using a weapon provided earlier.  The fact that one had to risk death to get a wolf certainly didn't hurt Thor's position in spirit, but that wasn't a deciding factor.  The design of the game allowed great risk to provide great benefit.  To get a wolf, a gladiator had to offer himself up as bait."

"A fishing expedition with weapons or using the bowstring might have been possible, but would have potentially been quite time consuming, and I believe we might have been able to make a weak case if Thor had used the bow to catch the wolf, but he did not.  He used it to pull himself up onto the stockade wall before he touched the last crows nest.  The bow itself never even reached the last crow's nest.  Now that the idea of using one adversary on another has been used in this context, I would not rule out the prohibition of that use on some future bouts, but for this one, it was a brilliant improvisation.  That's the thing that the most interesting victories in the games are often built on.  The fact is, Bladesman could have attempted the same thing, but he did not."

 \Tim Ingman\

"Sir Stallart, do you think the judges should have decided otherwise?"

\Sir Randal Stallart\

"Oh yeah, I think that bear should have counted as a weapon too, in case Thor had picked it up and tossed it over the wall into Bladesman's pen," Stallart winked.

 \Tim Ingman\

"Seriously, Sir Stallart?"

\Sir Stallart\

"I've been playing the games for a few years now and have seen plenty of wildly lucky wins before.  Thor had a good idea that converted a weakness in his bow training into a strength, namely a way to distract the bear so he didn't have to fight it.  He's a fine young buck.  Most gladiators would never have made it out of that wolf pen alive.  He took a big gamble there, and he won big.  I can't hold that against him."

\Tim Ingman\

"Thank you Sir Stallart."

\Sir Stallart\

"Welcome," Stallart quipped.   Then he caught sight of Nathaniel and bellowed, "Ellis you lucky bastard! You beat my man, congratulations!"

\Nathaniel Ellis\

Although he could easily have taken offense, Nathaniel saw something in the self-made nobleman that was in rare supply among gentlemen, genuineness.  "Thank you, Sir Stallart," he shook Stallart's hand.  "Thor surprised even me."

\Sir Stallart\

"What?" Come on now Ellis, I bet you had the whole thing planned,"  Stallart winked.

\Nathaniel Ellis\

"Ah, you caught me."

\Sir Stallart\

"Damn it Ellis, I should have believed Lady Caezal when she said you were a snake in the grass of the games.  You and your upbringing as an alchemist.  I'll bet you gave that boy a wolf-jumping potion.  Now I know we got officials from the mage guild factions snooping every dust particle in the arena for magic, but they can only detect magic running right now or real recently, and your potions, work from the inside out -completely undetectable."

\Nathaniel Ellis\

"You found me out, Sir Stallart, I was a fool not to make up that batch of archery training potions but it's work, and the bow is used so little in the games.  If only I had foreseen its use I would have had the potions ready and I could have skated through without a hitch."

\Sir Stallart\

"Well, let this be a lesson to you Ellis, wolf-hopping potions may bring you a win, but they are too obvious, and therefore are no substitute for archery skill potions."

\Nathaniel Ellis\

"Foiled again!  I guess I'll have to go crawl back under my rock like a good bastard."

\Sir Stallart\

"Darn right!  We can't have men of lesser breeding dirtying up our games based on something as inconsequential as merit."

\Nathaniel Ellis\

"Shit! I thought I was going to get over by breeding better slaves than the rest of you."

\Sir Stallart\

"Hell no!  We will shut you down no matter how good your slaves are, Ellis.  After all, the games aren't about the quality of the slaves, they're about the quality of the masters' lapel buttons."

\Nathaniel Ellis\

"I'm glad you set me straight on that Sir Stallart, what a fool I've been to believe that propaganda about determining the finest breeder by the results of the games.  All this time it was all in the lapel buttons."

\Sir Stallart\

"Live and learn, Ellis"

\Nathaniel Ellis\

Nathaniel shook his head, "I'm so disillusioned, how am I ever going to get over this?"

\Sir Stallart\

"I've got just the thing over here, Ellis gold medal, guaranteed to rot your guts out with finesse.  Ingman, why don't you catch up with Harold for a second while I fix this naive white trash a victory drink of rot gut."

\Tim Ingman\

"Yes sir."

\Harold Connors\

"Now have you any other questions about the design of the course?"

 \Tim Ingman\

"What about the hidden pit in the ramp, were you disappointed you didn't catch Thor?"

\Harold Connors\

Tim chuckled.  "I think after encountering the bug in the obstacle course phase of the contest, Thor realized that we could get a bit creative.  He played it safe and walked up the edge timbers holding up the ramp, and that saved him a heap of trouble.  I was not disappointed, I thought what he did was rather impressive.  That boy has a head on his shoulders.  I had to chuckle when he jumped from the timbers at the top into the winner's circle.  It was obvious that he didn't trust us at all."

 \Tim Ingman\

"Were you disappointed that Bladesman was able to kill the bear relatively rapidly with just a shield, machete and dagger?"

\Harold Connors\

"Not at all.  It was not an easy fight, Bladesman just made it look easy."

\Narration\

As the interviewers questioned mister Connors, Sir Stallart took Nathaniel over to the bar and fixed him a drink.

\Sir Stallart\

"You know, I took a good look at that girl of yours on my way in here.  She hits a man like a battering ram to the brain, or maybe a little lower," Stallart chuckled.  "I'll bet half the reason you parade her around is to torture white gentlemen trying to pretend not to stare at a black woman."

\Nathaniel\

"I used to think that was half the reason, but it appears I was wrong.  Perhaps it was a little less than half.  Nathaniel nudged Stallart and looked over towards the back corner of the room where Asheika was sitting with Lady Caezal."

\Sir Stallart\

"Lady Caezal," Stallart said in a voice so low it was nearly a whisper.  "Well I have heard she believes what's sauce for the gander is sauce for the goose.  I guess that goes for hot sauce too."

\Nathaniel\

Nathaniel grinned, "Oh I'm sure they're just discussing the finer points of dance."

\Sir Stallart\

"Uhuh, that's what they're doing all right, but that doesn't mean Lady Ceazal isn't discretely thinking about your girl's flawless face in her muff," Stallart whispered.

\Nathaniel\

"I wonder just how deep this little infatuation of hers goes?  Of course I am in no position to figure it out.   Perhaps it's nothing."

\Sir Stallart\

"Yes, I'll bet you are in no position to.  I'm sure if you were right down at the bottom of the invite list for the Caezal dinner parties, I would know about it."

\Nathaniel\

"I suspect you would."

\Sir Stallart\

"Rumor has it the lady's fiancé, likes to bend over for strong men."

\Nathaniel\

"I have often wondered why they have been engaged for such a lengthy period.  Perhaps they have a mutually beneficial agreement.  It's a wonder her father hasn't become impatient with her."

\Sir Stallart\

Sir Stallart chuckled, "It's obvious you don't know Lord Caezal.  If he admitted to being impatient, he would have to do something about it."

\Nathaniel\

"Ah," Nathaniel nodded.

\Sir Stallart\

"Heh, Thor and Bladesman just came in, that ought to keep the press busy for a while.  I'll bet you are looking to get another challenge so, if you win, you can challenge for team bouts, and leverage your boys into the weekend time slots."

\Nathaniel\

"Yes, once I have a gladiator with two wins, I can start two-man team challenges."

\Sir Stallart\

"I read about the way you handled Caezal's opening speech and bet.  That was quite a piece of showmanship.  Word is that bout and the big bet you won against Caezal lately has the common people flocking to your banner."

\Nathaniel\

"Too bad the common people don't control the weekend time slots."

\Sir Stallart\

"Heh-heh, they have more clout than you think.  The arena makes a bit of good money on boxes, but the real money is in season tickets to the ringside seats and the sale of lots of cheap tickets, plus the press loved what you did because it made good copy and it sold newspapers.   The gentleman breeders have the clout to issue you a challenge from one of their gladiators, sure, but the games are always tentative.  Say Bladesman got killed by that bear today and I didn't have another gladiator ready to pinch hit for him in another event.   Do you think the arena would give up and cancel the event?"

\Nathaniel\

"I suppose they would substitute an exhibition event."

\Sir Stallart\

"Sometimes, but the point is they can do anything they want as long as it isn't against the rules, and it encourages sales.  If my man died and I didn't have anyone else capable of meeting a given challenge, they might go to the man who challenged me and say, 'hey we have two days or two hours left before this event, and Stallart's boy is dead or incapacitated.  We need you to challenge someone else fast, why don't you challenge Ellis, he's got someone who has a chance to win, and his boy is right here in town.'  See that's why you have to have a training camp close to town and gladiators ready, because if the arena decides you are good for business, they are going to suggest you to people who are in a pinch, and sooner or later one of those gentlemen is going to say, 'okay, what's the name of the master and the gladiator again?  I'll write him a challenge,' and the arena is going to send a courier to your training camp.   The question is, are you set up to handle those kind of situations, and have you reminded the arena you are?"

\Nathaniel\

"I see your point.  Back when I first started, I did exhibition events.  A lot of those were pinch hits so I did purchase a training camp out here, and it is staffed.  My weeknight gladiators are in residence there.  I have made arrangements so that I can be contacted rapidly even when I am not in town, and I can make sure I have a couple of weekend worthy slaves on hand."

\Sir Stallart\

"Sounds like all you need do is mention all that to Harold.  You might get somewhere, at least as long as something comes up while you are still newsworthy.  You have a good shot though, death in the arena is one thing you can count on."

\Nathaniel\

Nathaniel nodded, "Thank you Sir Stallart.  I will do just what you have suggested."

\Sir Stallart\

"That's good, it won't rid you of snakes in the grass, but at least you'll have a chance."

\Nathaniel\

"I believe a decent chance or two will be all I need."

\Sir Stallart\

Stallart smiled, "Your boys are good.  I am sure I'll see you at a weekend event sometime soon... Oh, and one more thing.  It's dangerous, but this rivalry you have going with Caezal, is newsworthy.  Keep it going and those inconsequential commoners will demand to see your boys in prime time.  Let it die, and the arena officials will be suggesting some more popular Master to pinch hit."

\Nathaniel\

"I'll keep that in mind."

[Pedigree]009 Rough Waters

\Narration\

Two weeks later, Nathaniel Ellis was still keeping it in mind as he dumped the contents of his mailbag on the table.  He examined one letter after another, read some of them, and sighed.

\Asheika\

"Any good news massa?"

\Nathaniel\

"I'm afraid not, my pet.  After a week I started challenging others to one-on ones, which I can do with only one win against a weekend contender, but it is risky.  A loss of Thor would mean I would have to start all over.  I have accumulated quite a pile of refusals.  I talked to Harold too; he said the gentlemen were reluctant to challenge me, even in a pinch.  It's not natural.  I suspect Caezal is deliberately preventing me from getting into prime time."

\Asheika\

"Has massa challenged everyone?"

\Nathaniel\

"Nearly everyone who has a gladiator Thor has a chance against, except Caezal himself...  Wait a minute, that's got to be it."

\Asheika\

"What massa?"

\Nathaniel\

"Ceazal wants a rematch, he wants to get his money back.  He has already paid me, and I can't imagine even he would have that much cash on hand.  He must have taken out a short-term loan.  He has made everyone promise they would give him a chance to get his money back, and that's why no one will accept my challenges, and no one will challenge me.  Caezal wants me to challenge him to a one-on-one bout so he can set the amount of the bet again.

\Asheika\

"What will you do massa?"

\Nathaniel\

"Thor has been training long hours with my best trainers.  He is my beachhead; he has to be more than prepared.  I will have no choice but to challenge Caezal's worst gladiator, and he may want to substitute one of his better ones against me, and then I will have to decide if I think Thor has a good chance.  It's a dangerous game, my pet, but my popularity with the common people is already beginning to fade as nothing more has happened between Caezal and myself.  I will write the challenge and take it to Atlanna myself.  It will be delivered yet today."

Nathaniel set quill to paper and began to write.  In a few days he returned to Atlanna when he received word that Caezal had replied.

\Asheika\

Asheika, her clothes tossed on the divan was doing leg stretches on the thick Persian rug in the master's personal suite at the training camp just outside of Atlanna.

\Nathaniel\

Nathaniel looked on and smiled as he sat at the desk.  "I sent a challenge to Lord Caezal for Raptoir, and Caezal has refused in this letter, but he hints that, Rapthar would entertain the challenge.  How ludicrous!  Rapthar is one of his finest, with over twenty wins.  He wants a sure thing and I refuse to give it to him!"

“I have been putting off an interview with Tom Crowder, it appears I will have to stop postponing it.  I do hope he is able to dig the truth out without my actually having to tell him anything specific, thus loosing my thin good graces with the other masters..."

\Narration\

A few days later, Tom Crowder came to the training camp...

\Crowder\

“...And what about breaking into the weekend time slots, Master Ellis.  It looked two weeks ago like you were a shoe in, have you received any prime time challenges since Thor beat Bladesman?”

\Nathaniel\

"I have received no challenges since that time."

\Crowder\

I could not help but overhear at the reception after the bout with Bladesman, that you made your gladiators available to fill in when others could not field a gladiator.

\Nathaniel\

"Yes, but I have received no challenges from the gentlemen of the prime time slots."

\Crowder\

"Do you believe the Masters of prime time are deliberately snubbing you?"

\Nathaniel\

"Now that's hard to say, Tom, you'll have to ask them."

\Crowder\

"You have a gladiator with one weekend win, that entitles you to make challenges for one on one bouts, have you challenged any of the other masters?"

\Nathaniel\

"Yes, most of them."

\Crowder\

"And no response?"
 

\Nathaniel\

"Many responses, but no acceptances."

\Crowder\

"Anything other than flat turn-downs?  It might be that they believe Thor to be more challenging than the average new entrant to the prime time games."

\Nathaniel\

"I have issued challenges to gladiators with several times the number of wins Thor has, even if you count his weeknight win against Lord Caezal's fine gladiators."

\Crowder\

"Do you believe you are being snubbed because of your win over Lord Caezal?"

\Nathaniel\

"Not at all, he is the one person who wrote other than a simple refusal when I challenged one of his gladiators."

\Crowder\

"Did he suggest a different gladiator?"

\Nathaniel\

Nathaniel nodded slightly, "I cannot discuss that, of course, a gentleman's challenges are a private matter until they are accepted," Nathaniel smiled.

\Crowder\

"Can we expect a bout between Thor and one of Lord Caezal's gladiators then?"

\Nathaniel\

"The gladiator I challenged was not acceptable to him, and I cannot speak about any he might have offered as more desirable to him," Nathaniel looked at the ceiling for a moment.

\Crowder\

"It's common practice for a new gladiator not to challenge an opponent with more than two or three times his number of wins. If someone in the weekend time slots offered you such a reasonable opponent, would you challenge him?"

\Nathaniel\

"Of course."

\Crowder\

"Then Lord Caezal did not suggest a gladiator with under six wins?"

\Nathaniel\

"I am not at liberty to say.  Lord Caezal is a sophisticated nobleman.  I do not know his sense of humor.  It might be difficult for a man with a modest heritage such as myself to tell if he were making a subtle joke."

\Crowder\

"Crowder thought a moment.  "Is there any truth to the rumor I have been hearing that the gentlemen of the prime time slots are attempting to force you into a rematch with one of Caezal's senior gladiators so that he can get his money back?"

\Nathaniel\

Nathaniel nodded slightly, "I cannot imagine a man like Lord Caezal would have such poor sportsmanship.  I cannot believe such a rumor could be true about him."

\Crowder\

"Do you have any evidence that it is not true at this time."

\Nathaniel\

"I cannot disconfirm it, but I suggest you go directly to Lord Caezal, I'm sure he will be able to put any doubts you might have to rest."
 

\Narration\

A few days later, Nathaniel sat reading the paper at the lunch table in his rooms overlooking his island.

\Nathaniel\

Nathaniel chuckled, "At least if I must be barred from the prime time games, I can enjoy the papers talking about the sorry and scandalous manners of the masters of the prime time gladiators."

\Asheika\

 "A girl might wonder if Lord Caezal's noblemen friends are unhappy with him."

\Nathaniel\

"I believe they might be.  His manners have been pitiable since he started this whole thing.  It would have gone much differently if he had won, but since he did not, he is suffering for it, and this latest ploy of his to force me to give his money back is bound to put another stain on his name.  If he keeps this up, we can hope someone will go against him, though I would not count on it just yet.  I will challenge another of Ceazal's newer prime time gladiators in a few days, and I will also see if there are any gladiators from other houses that I might challenge.  Perhaps the gentlemen of the press will help to jar Ceazal loose.  If they don't, then I will just continue to wait.  After all, eventually his short term loan will come due, and this buzz about Caezal trying to force me into an unfair match has rekindled the common people to my hearth," Nathaniel smiled.

\Narration\

Two weeks later, Nathaniel's third challenge to Lord Caezal brought results.

\Nathaniel\

"Nathaniel kissed Asheika as they came in from dance practice, "I believe this new dance will be quite something.  You and your two sister slaves are fine dancers, and my few steps are showy, but require little real talent."
 

\Asheika\

"A girl thinks massa's part needs a man with presence, massa is a natural for that."
 

"Thank you my dear.  Hmm what have we here?"  Nathaniel picked up a letter that his office assistant had set aside from the mailbag, opened it and read it.  "Good news, my pet, Ceazal will be giving us a one on one bout with Raptshot, a gladiator of seven wins.  He is one of Ceazal's fastest young gladiators, but he is a far cry from Rapthar as far as skill and strength."

\Asheika\

"Does Thor have a chance, massa?
 

\Nathaniel\

"Raptshot is a natural man, my dear.  He is known for his speed, and I am sure he has some augmentation to his strength and stamina due to those steroids Lord Ceazal discovered but he is too new to have benefited from them to the degree some of Ceazal's older gladiators have.  Soon we will also have steroids, and we already have a breeding program Ceazal cannot hope to match.  Each month we get a wider variety of traits collected and catalogued, and I gain more and more experience at figuring out how to stack the traits to build a slave who has mighty superiority.  I have even started working on a son.  I believe we shall have to attend more magical and alchemical conventions, my pet, I will have need of traits that enhance magical acuity and intellectual prowess."

\Asheika\

"Massa would design a white son?"

\Nathaniel\

"Of course, my pet.  You and my gladiators are superior to natural people in every way.  Why would I want to leave the heritage of so important a man as my son up to chance?  It will be a long project, to be sure.  I do not plan to have a son until I am older, and that assumes I can find a suitable wife, but the sooner I start on the project, the more prototypes I can produce and store, until someday when I decide the time is ripe, I can take the very best one and plant him in my wife's womb."

\Asheika\

"A girl might wonder if massa's son would carry the blood of a suitable woman if he designed him?"

\Nathaniel\

"I would start with my wife’s egg and my sperm so that the son would be technically legitimate, but that would not prevent me from replacing an enormous number of traits.  I have recently developed a spell for splitting the first few cells that develop from a fertilized egg.  At least in mice, I am able to make a whole litter of identical offspring, or to use my tailoring techniques on each of the split-off cells to create variations on a theme.   I would, of course, use the best outward features from my wife and myself so that there would be a family resemblance.  It might be only skin deep, but that's really all people need to identify with one another... Now my pet, our bath is drawn, after lunch we will go to Atlanna to submit the accepted challenge to the arena management.  I have already had Thor in a continuous training marathon since he won the bout with Bladesman, so there is little left for us to do but see what the arena comes up with for a man to man battle."

\Narration\

It was two weekends later when the actual bout between Thor and Raptshot took place.   Ceazal's gladiator opened with the typical storm of insults and mud slung at Thor, then Lord Caezal came to the Podium.

\Lord Caezal\

Ceazal chuckled, "I'd say he's ready to win!"

\The Audience\

“Raptshot!-Raptshot!-Raptshot!”

\Lord Caezal\

Lord Caezal's tone dripped with disdain, "Last time I fought Master Ellis, he had a lucky win, and took a great deal of my money.  A few weeks ago he pulled off another lucky win against Bladesman of House Stallart.  ‘I think your luck has run out, Ellis, and I'm so sure of that, I am wagering four hundred million gold pieces on it!’"

\The Audience\

The crowd gasped.

\Lord Caezal\

"He who plays with noblemen and cheats them with luck, will pay dearly!"  Ceazal pounded his fist on the podium and walked off the stage.

\Narration\

The lights dimmed and blurred purple.  Brass and drums erupted from the orchestra.  A single spotlight illuminated Nathaniel Ellis in a deep purple tuxedo with white accents, including a cane and a tall, stylish hat.  He looked absolutely confident, as if the four hundred million gold piece bet had not fazed him in the least.  One by one, three black women with the beauty of goddesses dressed like native princesses, sparkling with gold and jewels joined him on the stage.  Their dance was passionate, yearning, each showing her charms and desire for the man center stage.  Nathaniel's steps were simple, but done with impeccable style, precision and elegance.  The final goddess to appear on stage was Asheika, her incredible beauty and astounding agility caused the audience to gasp again and again.  Her passionate dance overshadowed the impressive performances of each of the other two dark-skinned princesses.  The dance ended with Asheika winning the right to be Nathaniel's slave girl.  Once again she adorned his legs as he stood beside the podium and took up the microphone.

\The Audience\

The audience chanted, “Asheika!-Asheika!-Asheika!-Asheika,” for a very long time before they calmed themselves.

\Nathaniel\

"A princess among slave girls, isn't she?"

\The Audience\

The crowd roared with applause.

\Nathaniel\

"Now it seems to me, Lord Caezal has challenged me to another of his tiny wagers."

\The Audience\

The crowd laughed.

\Nathaniel\

"I had hoped to raise him, but I seem to be a little short on cash at the moment."

\The Audience\

The crowd laughed again.

\Nathaniel\

“Now in the past I have done well in these games of chance.  A little luck goes a long way when gladiators of approximately equal skill face off.  Tonight I found out from Lord Caezal that good luck is cheating.”

\The Audience\

The crowd chuckled.

\Nathaniel\

Imagine my chagrin.   "Luckily...,"  Nathaniel looked askance, "tonight is a man to man bout.  I believe Thor can win this bout with will and skill, no luck necessary.  As a matter of fact, Lord Caezal has bet my fortune on it."
 

\The Audience\

The crowd laughed and cheered.

\Nathaniel\

“You know, confidence is a great thing.  I don't believe Lord Caezal has even considered the possibility of loosing this bout.  After all, two hundred million here, four hundred million there, pretty soon you're talking about real money.  Yet to Lord Ceazal, I believe this isn't even half his fortune.  I stand to loose everything I own, but he does not.   That seems a little unbalanced to me; therefore I propose an additional stipulation.  If I win, Lord Caezal, you will agree to use your influence to encourage the other gentlemen of prime time to make reasonable challenges to my gladiators, and to accept reasonable challenges if I make them.  If that is agreeable, then you have yourself a bet."

\Lord Caezal\

A magical microphone was already in Lord Caezal's hand.  "Where I come from, a bet is a bet, Ellis, it's your money against mine, but I'll tell you what I'll do.  I will agree to your condition if you agree to this one.  If you loose, the first thing you will sell, is all of your gladiators, and the three dancers we saw here tonight, and furthermore I will have the option to buy any or all of them for prices appraised by the chief auctioneer at the Atlanna slave auction, before the auction starts.  If that is agreeable, then you have yourself a bet."

\Nathaniel\

"You know, if I didn't know better, I would say He were out to make sure House Ellis never fielded a slave in the games again."

\The Audiene\

"Nooooo!" the audience roared sarcastically.

\Nathaniel\

Nathaniel chuckled, "You're right, I'm totally out of line on this one.  Lord Caezal, you have yourself a bet!"  Nathaniel bowed slightly, lifted Asheika into his arms and carried her down the stairs and offstage.

\The Audiene\

The crowd cheered!

\Nathaniel\

Beneath the amphitheater's stage Nathaniel put Asheika down.  "I do hope Thor wins tonight.  I believe Roderick Caezal is out for blood, my blood, and house Ellis shall never compete in the prime time games or gain the prestige that competition brings until Caezal is derailed.  Not that he wasn't trying to stab me in the back to start with, but the man continues to be totally out of hand.  It appears he will not be satisfied until either he or I am ruined.  On the other hand, if we win here tonight, I will have the option to steer clear of him and still take House Ellis into prime time.  Come, my pet, let us cheer Thor on.”

\Asheika\

"Yes massa," Asheika hung her head.

\Nathaniel\

Nathaniel lifted Asheika’s chin, "My pet, do not make the mistake of believing I relish the thought of loosing you.  If I were ruined I would have to sell you anyway, at least this way you would be going directly to Lady Caezal.  I would make sure of it.  I may not like Roderick Caezal's manners, but I believe Elaina would treat you far better than just any man who bought you on the block at the auction of a ruined House Ellis.  I know this is a dangerous course to navigate, my dear.  If I loose I do not have the option of taking out a short term loan like Caezal, and the gentlemen would not spurn Caezal's challenges until I had a chance for a rematch.  On the contrary, they would probably avoid me until I was fully ruined."

\Asheika\

"Yes massa," Asheika sniffed, but seemed to pull herself together.

\Narration\

Soon Nathaniel and Asheika were in the Ellis box looking out over the arena.  The arena floor had been flooded in chest-deep water.  In the central area of the arena stood hundreds of huge stone blocks and wooden platforms taller than the water was deep by varying degrees.  They were arranged in six concentric rings around a central platform.  Bridging the gap between each ring and the next was a single bridge, usually a timber or a rope.  The dorsal fins of sharks could be seen moving through the clear waters.

\Master of Ceremonies\

"The object is simple, avoid the dangers of the water which will be doubled through the addition of chum when the first gladiator reaches the outer ring.  Once a gladiator reaches the outer ring, he must abandon his canoe.  Combat can take place anywhere, however, if a gladiator makes it to a bridge and destroys that bridge, he will force his opponent to make a swim for it to the next ring through shark infested waters.  The swim will not be far, but it could be potentially deadly.  A gladiator may, at his option, swim rather than using the bridge, but that swim may be his last.  Both gladiators start the bout lightly armored and completely unarmed.  They must find any weapons that they use.  The gladiator who stands alive and conscious on the central platform at least ten seconds longer than his opponent wins the game."

"Let the games begin!"

\Thor\

Thor was released into the water in a tiny canoe he had to paddle with his own hands.  Armor for this bout was minimal, sandals, a thick leather loincloth, a leather belt around his waist, and a leather cuirass covering his chest.  He was also completely unarmed.  He knelt down and used long powerful strokes with both arms, keeping a watchful eye out for sharks, and coasting whenever one was too near.  Luckily they seemed to be thicker in the area around the rings; perhaps a little chum had already leaked out of whatever reservoirs held it.

About half way to the first ring Thor spotted a large leather pouch on the sand below the water.  It was open and from it spilled a cache of fist-sized rocks.  Thor checked for sharks, gave a few strokes and leapt out of the canoe.  It was only a second before he glided to the pouch, scraped the rocks that had spilled out back into it and surfaced, tossing the pouch into his canoe.  He nearly tipped over getting back in and, as it was, a great deal of water got into the canoe and he was forced to dump the pouch and bale with it, putting the rocks back in during times he had to pull his hands in to avoid sharks.  By the time he reached the first ring, the pouch was closed and its straps were secured over his shoulders and around his waist.

He made it to the first ring  of stones and platforms and got out of his boat at nearly the same time as Raptshot.  Seeing his chance, Thor dove immediately into the water.  The sharks raced to the reservoirs full of chum that had just been opened.  The blood and bits of fish spewed out into the water in several places around the ring.  Thor swam to the next ring while the sharks were busy at the sources of the chum. He could feel that he was being slowed by the weight of the rocks.  His opponent dove deep and, incredibly swam to the fifth and then the fourth ring.  When Raptshot came out of the water, he brandished a rusty falchion in addition to the knife he had gleaned from the sands beneath the water on the way out to the first ring.

Thor, on the other hand, had to run to the fourth ring.  The bridge to the fourth ring was a timber that was held by a structure on the far side so that it could be tilted up and raised like a very narrow drawbridge.  Thor jumped from rock to rock and platform to platform, maintaining his running speed and balance in spite of the very rough terrain and possible pitfalls. He ran across the two inch thick span of wood bridging the gap to the fourth ring and almost, but not quite missed the length of iron pipe standing loose in a shallow hole just on the far side of the bridge.

Originally the length of pipe could have been used as a club or as a large pin to hold the bridge in the up position.  At this point its only value was as a much-needed weapon.  Thor was faster than the other gladiator, but Raptshot was by no means slow and the distance he needed to cover to the next bridge was considerably less.  By the time Thor reached the rope that crossed, about ten feet above the water, to the third ring, Raptshot was already on the other side and had just finished severing the rope with his rusty falchion.  Luckily for Thor the Falchion was dull, and Raptshot had not taken the time to fetch the sharp flame-bladed dagger resting on the platform below the rope-holding superstructure.

Thor vaulted up onto the structure that had once held the rope that bridged the gap.  He jumped powerfully and practically flew across the gulch, falling into the water close to the opposite platform.  Raptshot jumped down from the opposite structure and snatched up the flame-bladed dagger as his opponent jumped.  Thor clamored out of the water in time to avoid a shark.  Raptshot's rusty falchion came down hard, but Thor raised his iron pipe and blocked the blade.  Thor heaved the other gladiator back by pushing against Raptshot’s sword with the iron pipe.  Had he not been so strong and fast the wicked dagger in Raptshot's other hand would have plunged deep into his kidney, instead it penetrated his cuirass and opened a long flesh wound as Raptshot was pushed out of range.  Thor ran for the bridge to the second ring, his fear of his better-armed opponent prompting him to try to outdistance his adversary.

Thor's dexterity jumping from rock to rock pleased the cheering crowd.  He arrived at the bridge before Raptshot.   The bridge was nothing more than a tight rope stretched two feet above the water.  Thor nearly ran across, his balance impeccable.   He dropped his iron pipe and scooped up the small battle-axe on the other side of the bridge; with both hands he swung it.  Raptshot made it to the bridge in time to take one step onto the rope before he and it fell into the water.   Thor grinned as he opened the pouch at his side.   The crowd roared as he savagely loosed one rock after another at Raptshot.  The first rock glanced off the other gladiator's head; He raised his arms to block and was slowed and forced underwater by the bruising barrage from Thor's pouch.  When Thor saw his opponent was engaged in a battle for his leg with a voracious shark, The Ellis gladiator ran for the next bridge.  He was already there by the time he saw his opponent drag himself from the water, his right leg bleeding profusely.

\Raptshot\

Raptshot used his belt to tourniquet his damaged calf and limped after his opponent.

\Narration\

The last bridge did not exist, instead a tall, loose pole stood next to a relatively high platform.  Thor climbed to the top of the platform, took up the pole, judged the distance and vaulted to the round central platform.  Standing in the center of the platform was a sharp and shiny long sword.  Thor slid it into his belt and loosed the waist strap on his pouch of rocks.  He planned to use it as an impromptu buckler.  He opened the pouch and saw he had only two rocks left.  He took one out and held it behind his back.  As Raptshot hobbled towards the platform Thor had vaulted from, The Ellis gladiator launched a rock at him.  Raptshot tried to block, but he was a split second too slow, and only managed to deflect the rock slightly before it bounced off the top of his head, sending him reeling.  The Caezal gladiator jumped to another monolith and ducked down, avoiding Thor’s next shot.  Angered, Raptshot threw the rusty knife at the Ellis gladiator.  The shot was incredibly quick and low; Thor dropped into a crouch and barely caught it with his pouch against his calf.  The knife penetrated both sides of the pouch and went an inch into Thor's calf before it halted.  Thor grimaced but did not slow.  He moved the large pouch out and up shielding his vitals.  A flame blade erupted from the second side of the pouch, halting inches from Thor’s chest.

\Raptshot\

Raptshot practically growled as his second blade failed to find its mark.  He continued to make his way to the high vaulting platform.

The vaulting pole was long and too thick to be useful as a weapon.  Thor lifted it anyway and swung it at Raptshot across the water, knocking him flat with a blow across the pelvis.  The crowd applauded as Thor lunged as Raptshot stood.  Thor jabbed Raptshot's abdomen before the gladiator could dodge backwards, but after suffering this second hit, Raptshot got out of range.  Thor held the pole high.

\The Audience\

The audience chanted his name, "THOR-THOR-THOR"

\Raptshot\

Raptshot saw his chance, he clamored up onto the platform from which Thor had vaulted, ran and sprang with the full strength of his good leg.  Raptshot hit the water swimming but a shark grabbed his left arm and began to chew.  The gladiator was so close to the other side he did not attempt to fight the shark in the water, instead he gave a powerful kick and lunged for the edge of the platform, then he pulled himself up.

\Thor\

With one swing of his long sword, Thor sliced the head off the shark that held Raptshot's arm.

\Lord Ceazal\

Lord Caezal stood, trying to determine how much of the blood was the shark’s, and how much came from his gladiator.

\Thor\

Thor stepped back and allowed Raptshot to stand.

\The Audience\

The audience cheered and chanted as Thor brandished the long sword and gave Raptshot time to get up.

\Narration\

At six places around the center platform, metal pipes rose from the water to become level with the top of the wood surface.  In the pipes, supported by their hilt guards, were short swords.  Thor drew a short sword and brandished it.

\Raptshot\

Raptshot threw away his rusty falchion and drew a short sword from one of the pipes.

\Thor\

Thor smiled and flung the long sword.  It sailed over all six rings before plunging into the water.  He pulled a second short sword and watched as Raptshot did the same.

\The Audience\

The crowd chanted Thor's name and applauded.

\Narration\

The two men circled and came together.  It was difficult to see the blur of blows that followed; the ring of metal on metal filled the arena and brought the members of the audience to the edges of their seats.

\Raptshot\

Raptshot offered Thor openings that could be closed into traps, feints to unbalance the other gladiator, and the pretence he was even more wounded than he was, so as to trip his opponent up.

\Thor\

Thor kept a close eye on his opponent for trick moves while he battered at Raptshot's guard.   With a continuous flurry of powerful blows one after another, Thor wore his wet and wounded opponent down.  He did as his master had bid him, and took no unnecessary risks.  He did not prematurely close in for the kill, he kept on the balls of his feet, and worked the man, wearing him down, making him fight a continuous battle, making him move on his wounded leg and flex his wounded arm, but not falling for the feints Raptshot offered that said the gladiator was even more wounded than he probably was.

\Raptshot\

Raptshot could not believe the Ellis gladiator's endurance, sweat dripped from Raptshot's every pore as he blocked blow after blow, and tried to counter with blows of his own.  He saw his traps and even some genuine openings ignored by the other gladiator as he was forced to match the man blow for blow to counter a high-speed rain of muscled steel.  He became desperate and began to take chances, but the other gladiator blocked or dodged or even backed off, not risking going in for the kill.  Raptshot could not believe his opponent's speed and strength.  He struck and parried like a high-speed machine.  Reeling and unbalanced, his endurance spent, Raptshot grimaced as he tried to hold onto his ringing blades.  Thor was trying to disarm him with his relentless blows, but he was too good of a swordsman to let that happen.  Raptshot's famous kicks were blocked or turned off Thor's body, his vaunted speed was not quite adequate and failing rapidly, his wounded leg shook with fatigue.

\Thor\

Thor saw his opening and took it.

\Raptshot\

Crack!  Raptshot nearly screamed with pain as Thor deflected a kick and launched another in the same instant, mangling the wounded leg Raptshot had been standing on.  He caught himself with his good leg, but he could not maneuver.  He blocked Thor's sword but the blow turned him. The flat of his opponent's second blade rang off the back of his skull.   He saw colored lights, and then darkness.  Raptshot fell flat on the platform, out cold.

\Thor\

With the points of his blades, Thor deftly flicked the swords out of the nerveless hands of his opponent.  He stood over his unconscious opponent's body with the point of one blade at the base of the man's skull.  He brandished his other blade before the audience.

\The Audience\

The crowd counted ONE, TWO, THREE, FOUR, FIVE...EIGHT, NINE, TEN!

\Thor\

As the count of the audience reached ten, Thor glanced up at Ceazal's box.

\Caezal\

Roderick Caezal stood open mouthed for only a second before his face reddened and his jaw clamped shut.  His gladiator lay limp on his belly.  Ellis' boy had not even had to kill Raptshot to best him, what a disgrace!  Caezal made a ruthless motion of his hand across his throat and then sat down.  He refused to wave the white flag to save his gladiator's life.  The fool had cost Roderick half his fortune.

\Thor\

Thor's blade was a blur.  He bent and held Raptshot's head up to the crowd, blood drenching his cuirass and flooding across the platform.  He threw the head to the sharks.  A second swing of each of Thor's blades opened Raptshot's lower chest and upper abdomen.  The gladiator reached in with both hands and hefted the body.  Secretly, he found what he wanted, crumpled it into one of his hands, then swung the body into the water in a shower of gore.  He made a show of scraping the gore off his hands with the edge of the open pouch as the sharks churned the waters below him.

\The Audience\

The crowd chanted his name and cheered as he waited for a victory boat to come fetch him.  Soon he was on the way to the bathing chamber beneath the stadium.  When he entered the stadium the usual guards were waiting for him.  Alchemist Jallan was also there.

\Alchemist Jallan\

"Excellent work, Thor."

\Thor\

"Thank you massa Jallan.  Here, have a souvenir,” He smiled and handed the pouch to the old man.

\Alchemist Jallan\

"Eew, thanks a bunch Thor, I'll treasure it always.  After a brief inspection of the pouch by a guard, Jallan took the gore, and the pouch, broke away from the four guards and hurried off.

\Asheika\

Asheika lowered her opera glasses.  "Massa, a girl might wonder why Thor took something out of Raptshot's corpse," Asheika said with her hand in front of her mouth as if to cough.

\Nathaniel\

"Your powers of perception never cease to amaze me.  Perhaps he thought it would make a nice souvenir, my pet," Nathaniel whispered in her ear and smiled.  “In any case he is a fine gladiator.  If you discount Ceazal’s feudal holdings, not something one can really do, Thor has just made me wealthier than Lord Ceazal.”

\Narration\

Nathaniel Ellis arrived at the owner’s reception, with Asheika on his arm tailed by the two other dancers from his opening number.  He was the picture of composure and good cheer.  The press immediately gathered around him.

\Nathaniel\

Nathaniel whispered in Asheika’s ear, “I don’t believe Lord Caezal is here yet.  Perhaps he needed a moment to compose himself.”  Nathaniel grinned evilly.

\Asheika\

Asheika pulled her master to her and nuzzled his earlobe.

\Tom Crowder\

“Master Ellis, have you anything to say after that stunning victory?”

\Nathaniel\

Nathaniel smiled, “Whew!”

\Tom Crowder\

Crowder grinned as the ladies and gentlemen of the press chuckled.

\Nathaniel\

“It was indeed a bracing victory.  I was quite nervous at first, as you can imagine.  Raptshot was fast, I knew that, but thankfully Thor was the faster runner.  Had he not been, I’m afraid I’d be on my way to the poor house this very instant.”

\Tom Crowder\

“What about those first minutes of the game, what was going through your head when you saw that Raptshot had managed to swim two rings during the time the sharks were preoccupied at the release of the chum?”

\Nathaniel\

“As you can imagine, I had that sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach.  At the time I was feeling that Thor had been a fool to take that pouch of rocks.  They slowed him down, and at that point I knew if I didn’t get a bit of luck, I was doomed.”

\Tom Crowder\

“At what point did you feel you had a chance again?”

\Nathaniel\

“When I saw how long it was taking Raptshot to cut the rope that spanned the water from ring number four to ring number three, I knew Thor might have a chance.  I believe that Raptshot made all of his mistakes right at that juncture.  He was doing too well, and it made him cocky before he had really gotten the measure of his opponent.”

\Tom Crowder\

“What mistakes did you believe Raptshot made then?”
 

\Nathaniel\

“The first one was to misjudge how sharp the falchion was.   Evidently the designers of the games had done a fine job at making that blade as dull and rusty as something one would find sitting underwater for quite sometime.  In hindsight, Raptshot would have been better off to jump down, snatch up the flame-bladed dagger provided, climb back up and cut the rope with that.  That was mistake number one.”

Raptshot’s second mistake was to underestimate Thor.  I believe Raptshot thought that Thor would be detained by sharks, and would be an easy target if he got out of the water at all.  Actually Raptshot was not far from right.  If Thor hadn’t jumped so far and narrowly escaped a shark, house Ellis would have been in a heap of trouble.”

\Tom Crowder\

What about the combat that took place at the third ring?

\Nathaniel\

“I don’t believe Raptshot knew that Thor had the iron pipe from the bridge between ring number five and four.  He was also just slow enough getting down from cutting the rope to let Thor get out of the water.  It was all very close.  I was holding my breath because I knew Thor could easily loose right there.  Even though Thor did manage to block the falchion as he got up on the platform with Raptshot, he was nearly gutted by Raptshot’s dagger.  It was his superior strength and speed that saved him from a crippling wound and allowed him to run away, which is exactly what he should have done.”

\Tom Crowder\

“You would not have preferred Thor to fight it out at that time?”

\Nathaniel\

“Absolutely not.  Thor is good, but all he had was a length of pipe.   It would have been foolish for him to go toe to toe with a man armed with sword and dagger.”

\Tom Crowder\

“Once Thor got out of that brief combat and ran, did you feel you were going to win?”

\Nathaniel\

“I certainly felt Thor had undone Raptshot’s lead, and it was at that time I could breathe again.  I felt I had an even chance, perhaps a bit better than even since Thor took the lead.”

\Narration\

At that moment, Lord Ceazal came in followed by his daughter.  He appeared as though he were keeping his emotions under a tight lid.  Elaina looked a bit nervous.

\Tom Crowder\

“Lord Caeazal, could you tell me what your feelings where during the first few minutes of the bout?”

\Lord Caezal\

“At that time I was pleased with Raptshot’s performance.  He had armed himself wisely with a knife, and was consequently able to swim two rings.  The falchion he picked up near the end of his swim brought an added note of approval.”

\Tom Crowder\

“Did you feel you had won at that time?”

\Lord Caezal\

“Not at all, but I knew my boy had a much stronger start than the Ellis boy.”

\Tom Crowder\

“At what point do you believe the tide turned?”

\Lord Caezal\

“When Ellis’ coward ran away before my boy could finish him.”

\Tom Crowder\

“Master Ellis, do you believe Thor was cowardly at that juncture?”

\Nathaniel\

“Absolutely, Lord Caezal is correct.  Thor ran with his tail between his legs, but in his position, retreat was the best strategy.  The game was designed so that the faster man, even lacking good weapons, could damage his opponent, simply by making it to the bridges and forcing a dangerous swim on his adversary.  By this time, Thor also realized that a weapon was provided after each bridge, and I believe he felt he was not armed sufficiently well to go toe to toe with a gladiator of Raptshot’s impeccable quality.”

\Tom Crowder\

“What were your thoughts when the tables were turned on Raptshot, Lord Caezal, when his tight-rope walk was cut short by Thor’s ax?”

\Lord Caezal\

“I was fit to be tied, of course.  The Ellis boy had outdistanced the shot.  I had underestimated Thor’s true speed in comparison to one of my fastest young gladiators.  Then the coward opened up with those rocks he had gathered under the water and I knew my boy would have to fight a shark.”

\Tom Crowder\

“Master Ellis, what were your feelings at that juncture?”

\Nathaniel\

“At that time I was thankful Thor was using his head.  It’s easy for a fine athlete to rely only on his muscles alone, but the designers of these games are fond of throwing curve balls at the contestants, and a dull wit can be every bit as devastating as a dull sword.  Those rocks had been very costly to get.  Initially they slowed Thor down considerably in the water and were in part responsible for Raptshot’s early lead.  At the tightrope, Thor redeemed himself for picking them up.  Raptshot was an exceptionally quick swimmer, but those rocks gave him pause and saddled him with a shark.  My faith in Thor was renewed in that moment.”

\Tom Crowder\

“Once you knew Raptshot would have to fight a shark, Lord Caezal, did you believe the bout was lost?”

\Lord Caezal\

“I was displeased.  I knew that the Ellis boy’s yellow tactics were going to hurt Raptshot badly, and that’s exactly what they did.  Raptshot’s speed was one of his best assets, and the shark, by wounding his leg, took that away from him.”

\Tom Crowder\

“Master Ellis, did you feel your boy took unfair advantage of the situation at that time?”

\Nathaniel\

“Not unless using one’s head is an unfair advantage,” Nathaniel smiled.  “Thor knew what the rules of engagement were.  At the start of the game, the master of ceremonies underscored the fact that getting across a bridge first had distinct advantages.  He also said that the winner would not win until he stood victorious on the central platform.  Thor respected his opponent’s ability with weapons.  He used his running ability to damage his opponent’s fighting ability.”

\Tom Crowder\

Once he knew Raptshot was battling a shark, why do you think he continued on to the central platform rather than trying to kill Raptshot while he was in the water?

\Lord Caezal\

“I keep telling you, the boy was yellow!  He was afraid to face Raptshot in an unweakened condition.”

\Tom Crowder\

“Master Ellis?”

\Nathaniel\

“Lord Caezal is right, of course.  Thor was still scared that Raptshot could best him in combat.  He knew from recent experience that attacking a man as he came out of the water was not always a sure thing.  After all, it hadn’t worked on Thor himself just a few moments earlier.  I believe Thor decided that there was no strategic reason to fight when he had another chance for weakening his opponent by making it to the central platform before Raptshot.”

\Tom Crowder\

“What were your feelings when your gladiator dragged himself out of the water after the shark had wounded his leg, Lord Caezal?”

\Lord Caezal\

“I was angry my boy let the yellis boy turn the rigors of the game against him.  I realized my boy’s chances of winning took a dive when he did.  The bloody leg just confirmed what I knew would happen.”

\Tom Crowder\

“Master Ellis, Thor vaulted to the final platform and took up the long sword and put it in his belt.  Were you confident you would win the games at that time?”

\Nathaniel\

Nathaniel smiled, “It’s never over until it is over.  I was pleased, however, and I will admit that I took a certain amount of pleasure in my boy’s taunts when he threw rocks and swung the vaulting pole at Raptshot.  At this point I knew we had a good chance to win, and I knew Thor would not let up until he had the victory.”

\Tom Crowder\

Were you worried about the knives Raptshot threw?

\Nathaniel\

“Yes, but I thought Thor handled them pretty well.  He was still wounded, by the smaller blade but it was relatively minor.  The important thing was that he anticipated the flame blade after the knife.  If he had not, he could easily have been killed

\Tom Crowder\

“Lord Caezal, what was your opinion of the missile and pole battle?”

\Lord Caezal\

“I thought it was just another cowardly attempt to weaken my gladiator using tactics calculated to be impossible for Raptshot to adequately defend against.”

\Tom Crowder\

“Master Ellis?”

\Nathaniel\

“Yes indeed, Thor was trying to bring his opponent to his knees.  I believe the crowd enjoyed it.  I know I did,” Nathaniel grinned.  I also feel that Raptshot’s knives were not a shabby defense.  Both throws were quite accurate even though neither blade had been designed for throwing.

\Tom Crowder\

“We all know that Raptshot made a supreme effort to jump across the water while Thor was posturing to the crowd, but what went through your mind when Raptshot got out of the water and Thor cut the head off the shark that clung to his arm?  I noticed you stood as Thor swung the blade, Lord Caezal.”

\Lord Caeazal\

“Yes I did, because I thought Thor would just end it there.  His yellow tactics had been successful.  He had ruined two of my boy’s limbs without inflicting a single blow up close and personal.”

\Tom Crowder\

“What did you think when you realized that Thor had merely cut the head off the monster?”

\Lord Caezal\

“It made me sick, he was toying with my boy.”

\Tom Crowder\

“Then would you say you had given up all hope of victory?”

\Lord Caezal\

“No, Ellis is right about one thing, it’s never over until it’s over.  I knew I had an outside chance as soon is it became obvious that Thor was letting my boy have a shot at a short sword battle.  I was not particularly optimistic about my chances though, and I resented Ellis’ boy playing with Raptshot like that.”

\Tom Crowder\

“Master Ellis, what do you think of Thor’s actions on the central platform.”

\Nathaniel\

“I thought Thor went out of his way to be gentlemanly.  He had inflicted some wounds on his opponent by besting him at the contest of the bridges just as the master of ceremonies had talked about.   At that point Thor knew the foot race part of the game was over, and he was willing to face Raptshot toe to toe armed with the same weapons even though he didn’t have to.  Thor had proved he was stronger and faster.  I’m not sure that he really could prove he was a better swordsman, given Raptshot’s wounded condition, but he did give the man a final chance.  Of course, it didn’t help Raptshot any.  Thor still won, but he was able to do so without killing his opponent.  Raptshot would be alive for you to interview if Lord Caezal had waved the white flag.”

\Tom Crowder\

“That’s my next question, Lord Caezal, you did not wave the white flag and save your slave’s life.  Why is that?”

\Lord Caezal\

“That boy’s stupidity lost me half my fortune.  He deserved to die,” Lord Caezal scowled.

\Tom Crowder\

“As you know, Lord Caezal, there has been a lot of talk in the press about the size of your bets with master Ellis.  Now that you have lost half your fortune, will you be betting as much money?”

\Lord Caezal\

“I will bet whatever amount I see fit when it is my option to set the bet.”

\Tom Crowder\

“What about you, Master Ellis, would you be likely to bet a large amount if Lord Caezal were to challenge one of your gladiators?”

\Nathaniel\

“I would not bet my entire fortune by any means, but I would risk a large chunk of money on a bout I thought I had a chance of winning.  House Ellis and House Caezal have a bit of a rivalry going, I believe, and I would not want to disappoint the fans by offering up five hundred gold pieces as I might to a house with which no rivalry existed.”

\Tom Crowder\

“Now that this bout is concluded, Lord Caezal, will you and the gentlemen of the prime time slots be challenging house Ellis?”

\Lord Caezal\

Lord Caezal looked offended, “That was part of the bet, Crowder.  It would not matter if Nathaniel Ellis were the devil himself.  When a Caezal makes a bet, he honors it!  I hope Ellis has plenty of gladiators, because he is going to receive challenges from the gentleman of prime time.”

\Tom Crowder\

“Fair challenges?”

\Lord Caezal\

“I cannot say he will not be tested with some mismatches, but I am sure there will be plenty of fair challenges in the mix for him to accept or reject as he sees fit.”

\Tom Crowder\

“There has been a lot of talk in the news that you have been trying to ruin Master Ellis.  Is your apparent campaign to oust him from the games over?”

\Lord Caezal\

“As Master Ellis himself stated, House Caezal and House Ellis are rivals.  I expect no quarter, and none will be given!”
 

[Pedigree]010 Dealing Like The Devil

 \Nathaniel Ellis\

 “No, I don’t believe I would have a use for that property.  I have an interest in this acreage just outside Richlund.  I do believe it would be advantageous for me to own some land near the capitol.  Now as for the rest of this, I would buy it for five gold an acre.

  \Attorney Hemshark\

“But it’s worth at least three times that.”

  \Nathaniel Ellis\

“Well now, it might be worth that to someone who has an interest in agricultural land, but I have no such interest.  If you can find a buyer at 15 gold an acre, then I would suggest you sell, attorney Hemshark.  A bet is normally settled in cash.  I am only entertaining your proposal to trade assets for reductions in the amount owed out of respect for Lord Caezal.  I will give you a fair price for assets I have an interest in, however, I do not have any obligation to buy, and I would a be a fool to pay good money for things I have no use for.”

  \Attorney Hemshark\

Hemshark’s stomach twisted.  He had gone into these negotiations fully believing he would pay Lord Caezal’s debt by trading a host of overvalued or prestigious but useless assets to an unschooled Master Ellis.  That was not how things were turning out.

  \Asheika\

 Asheika deftly refilled Attorney Hemshark’s goblet with wine.

  \Attorney Hemshark\

Hemshark inhaled involuntarily as he looked at Asheika.   No woman could possibly be that beautiful. 

A few hours later, a shaken Attorney Hemshark left the posh conference room in the Atlanna training camp of House Ellis and returned to confer with his employer, Lord Caezal.

---

\Lord Caezal\

“You look a bit edgy, Henry. How did the negotiations go?  Did you reel him in like a fish?”

\Attorney Hemshark\

“Up until today Lord, I was a man with a great deal of confidence.”

\Lord Caezal\

“As well you should be, you have always performed above even my expectations when it came to business negotiations.  Have a seat and tell me how you did with Ellis.”

\Attorney Hemshark\

“Yes, milord.  Ellis offered fair, though not fat prices for anything you had that he was interested in.  That turned out to be a river-shipping company, an ocean-shipping company, a shipyard, mines, distilleries, vineyards, breweries, medical and pharmaceutical enterprises, a few forges and smithies, some Inns, taverns and restaurants, and your bank, which I did not even offer him.  Anything he was not interested in, including nearly all of the unprofitable and prestige businesses I had expected to unload on him, he offered sums that were so low as to be nearly insulting.”

“I entered the negotiations with the utmost confidence, and used all my favorite tricks, but Ellis seemed to know whenever I was overstating the value of an enterprise to a degree of accuracy that was nothing short of frightening.  Negotiating with that man is like negotiating with the devil.”

\Lord Caezal\

Lord Caezal raised an eyebrow, “Did he have a good lawyer?”

\Attorney Hemshark\

“He had four of them, my Lord.  At first I thought perhaps they would speak for him, or through him, but he seldom conferred with them.  Any conversations they had, occurred before I arrived.  While I was there, they merely observed.  All were men known to me, and recognized for their prowess in business negotiations, or at least the number of businessmen their firms serve.  I have personally dealt with two of them.  Both are good, but Master Ellis made them look like schoolboys.  Ellis had a poker face that revealed nothing save what he wanted it to reveal, and he seemed to see through me as though I were made of glass.  I don’t know if it was that unnervingly beautiful slave girl of his, or the way his lawyers looked at one another each time Master Ellis saw through one of my better bluffs, but I had the distinct impression that I was negotiating with Satan himself.”

\Lord Caezal\

Lord Ceazal grimaced, “Was it really all that bad?  Show me your results.

A couple hours later Caezal stood and shook his head.  “Damn it!  It really was that bad.  You got away with absolutely nothing.  The only sweet offer he made was the offer he made for my bank, something I do not wish to sell!  Couldn’t you do better than that?

\Attorney Hemshark\

Hemshark sucked on a tumbler of expensive brandy.  “It appears not, my Lord.  You may relive me of this job and get someone else.  I will waive my fee.”

\Lord Ceazal\

“No, that will not be necessary.  In view of the somewhat underhanded ways I have tried to get the better of him in the past, it is no wonder that Ellis did his homework.  He knows the value of what I have, and I doubt he will budge.  I will need your skills, however.  We will simply have to sell to men less shrewd than Ellis, and give him cash.  After all, he cannot offer us a bad deal on the king’s gold.  If we come up short, then we will have to entertain some of his better deals.”

------

\Nathaniel\

Nathaniel smiled at the two magnificent naked slave girls.  Their dusky skin was slick with the scented oils they used to ply the masseuse’s trade, and the air was as heady with the scent of female arousal as it was with the scent of the oils.  “Jenette, Avaine, you have been doing a lovely job, don’t you think, Asheika?

\Asheika\

Asheika, her bare skin glossy with oil, her hand caressing Jenette’s inner thigh as the slave girl rubbed oil into her lush breasts, grinned hungrily, “Yes Massa!”

\Nathaniel\

“Indeed, I have seldom seen Asheika so thoroughly aroused, and I must admit that every time I looked up from my work at the three of you, it was difficult to get back to business, and now I find myself much more interested in your assets than Lord Caezal’s,” Nathaniel pointed back to the papers on his desk as he began to disrobe.

“You and Avaine are masters of the art of erotic massage,” Nathaniel said, removing his breeches and freeing a massively engorged erection.  Now Avaine, you look as if you could use a little release.  I would like to plunge myself into your beauty; would you enjoy that?” Nathaniel said hypnotically as his fingertip lightly encircled the fullness of the slave girl’s wet nether lips.

\Avaine\

“Oh, yes massa,” the girl moaned.

\Nathaniel\

“Good, I am going to thrust vigorously, and forcefully, Avaine, will that feel good?”

\Avaine\

The girl breathed heavily, “Yes massa.”

\Nathaniel\

“Lower your hips down so that Asheika can taste you and pleasure you as I fill you, and Jenette, let us all concentrate on Avaine for the moment, shall we?”

\Jenette\

“Yes massa.”

\Nathaniel\

Standing behind the low massage table on which the women had been working, Nathaniel took Avaine’s hips in his hands and drove himself into her.  Were it not for her wet readiness and the precision with which he entered her, his savage thrust might have caused her a great deal of pain, instead Avaine gasped with pleasure.  Her master’s powerful thrusts rocked her entire body and made her lush rear quiver.

\Asheika\

Ashieka’s skillful tongue toyed with Avaine’s clit as her master’s powerful thrusts spattered Aviane’s juices over Asheika’s beautiful face.

  \Nathaniel\

“Mmm, you are so aroused, Avaine, so very aroused,” Nathaniel murmured hypnotically as he thrust into her dripping wetness.

\Avaine\

Avaine could not believe what was happening.  She was young, having only recently come from the pens within the island.  She had been trained in the art of massage. Her learning of the pleasuring of women had been an extracurricular activity that had evidently reached the master’s ear.  She had not expected to be entertaining the master so soon.  Her feelings about him had been dubious.  The women she had met most recently in the slave quarters behind the master’s estate house in the big world had made her feel that the master was evil, and that his touch was a fate to avoid, or, if inevitable, to be endured.  Now her mind had melted and all she felt in his touch was arousal.  Every savage thrust made her want him to take her harder and deeper, harder and deeper, again and again.  Time seemed to blur and become a steamy mixture of intense pleasure and arousal until at last Avaine could stand it no longer, she screamed as a magnificent orgasm tore her mind asunder and left her panting atop Asheika trying to catch her breath.

  \Nathaniel\

“Ahh, there is nothing so precious as a woman who abandons herself to her arousal,” Nathaniel grinned evilly.  I believe Jenette is as wet as I’ve seen her…

When Jenette was satisfied, Nathaniel sent the two girls away and smiled at Asheika.  He sat down on a leather-upholstered footstool and motioned Asheika to him.   She straddled him and sat facing him in his lap, engulfing his somewhat waning erection inside her and lending it new life.

“A most delicious entertainment the three of you cooked up for me”

\Asheika\

“Thank you massa.”Asheika smiled.  “A girl cannot shake her curiosity.  She might wonder why massa had four lawyers at the negotiations today when he knew perfectly well what Lord Caezal’s attorney was thinking.”

\Nathaniel\

Nathaniel chuckled, “Simple my dear, those four attorneys are heads of firms with numerous clients and contacts.  They saw the negotiations, and they know what bluffs Caezal is using because I exposed them right before their eyes.  I believe some of that information might find its way to their clients, and the way businessmen talk, I believe Lord Caezal will have a difficult time unloading his more dubiously profitable businesses for the inflated prices he has been seeking.  I did consult with them; of course, one should always have a backup plan in case one’s victim’s counter-magics are beyond his skill to penetrate.  Such a pity for Lord Caezal that they were not.”

\Asheika\

“Massa is so powerful.”

\Nathaniel\

“My skills are appreciable in my area of specialty, however I am a young man and not nearly so well rounded as my more venerable colleagues,” Nathaniel Caressed the luxurious orb of Asheika’s left breast.  “On the other hand, I believe Lord Caezal’s money will allow me to procure some additional materials for study,” Nathaniel grinned and kissed her perfect ebon nipple.

A girl might wonder why massa makes it more difficult for Lord Caezal to sell his assets. Doesn’t massa want Lord Caezal to make money so he can pay massa’s debt?

\Nathaniel\

“There is no doubt Caezal can pay the debt, my pet, its just a matter how dearly it will cost him, and how many of his better businesses he will be forced to sell to me or someone else because the business community has been warned of the bluffs he tried to pull on me.”

\Asheika\

“A girl might wonder if massa is using this to make Lord Caezal look like less of a gentleman to the other masters of the prime time arena.”

  \Nathaniel\

Nathaniel chuckled, “Lord Caezal, attempts to ruin house Ellis, Lord Caezal attempts to sell businesses of dubious value for high prices, it is true those things begin to add up after a while, yet Ceazal’s name is too big for this to do more than whittle away a few paltry chips, then again, every little bit counts.  Lord Caezal made the mistake of believing that I would be quite eager to get into the prestigious but marginally profitable businesses of those with old wealth.  He believed that my yearning to be accepted by the elite would tip my hand, but he was wrong.  I am well aware that the elite will never accept me as one of their own.  Perhaps they will accept my son, but never me.  My goal therefore is to amass as much wealth as is humanly possible.  Let them keep their social cliques; I know they will look upon me dubiously until the day I die.  I have studied it.” 

\Asheika\

“I girl might wonder if Lord Caezal kept his bargain to encourage the other masters of prime time to challenge house Ellis.”

\Nathaniel\

“Roderick Caezal is a man of his word when it comes to wagers.  So far my gladiators have received and accepted some reasonable challenges from other prime-time houses, but I have no wish to see that trend fade away.  The rumors from our little negotiations today should add fuel to my popularity with businessmen and the commoners who work for them.  I do believe there are those in the prime time slots who may grow to like me, at least in private,” Nathaniel smiled.

\Asheika\

“A girl might wonder what massa will do with all that money.”

\Nathaniel\

“I am a firm believer that investment in human frailty will always provide a bountiful return, my dear,” Nathaniel squeezed one of Asheika’s high yet massive breasts.  “Moreover, the laws of this kingdom are little short of ideal for my favored businesses.  The production of alcohol and other drugs and their distribution, gambling and debauchery of all kinds, these things are quite profitable, and if I happen to open my best casinos and brothels right near the border close to foreign cities, then I can take advantage of their more restrictive laws.  People will cross the border to spend their leisure funds where their debauchery can truly flower.”  Nathaniel gripped his girl’s lush rear.  “The resulting influx,” Nathaniel sunk himself deeply into Asheika’s loins, “of foreign coin is likely to make our king happy,” Asheika moaned, “for kings are ever seeking a favorable balance of trade with their neighbors.  I have no doubt my fortunes will grow enough to enrich any banker lucky enough to harbor them, Nathaniel grunted, the veins standing out from his forehead.  This is precisely why I shall own the bank in which I deposit my gold.  The slave master groaned with pleasure as he spent himself in his girl.

----+======+++======+----

[Pedigree]011 A Road Paved In Blood

\Narration\

Months later…

The crowd roared as the two gladiators urged their mounts towards one another and brandished their spears.

\Asheika\

Asheika grimaced as the House Garound gladiator opened a rent in the side of Ellis’ champion with his spear.  “A girl might wonder if we can win this bout, massa.”

\Nathaniel\

“I believe we will loose.  Lord Garound is the master of all things equine, my pet.  He knows horses so well I believe he must sleep with them.  Bareback riding is tricky, frankly I am surprised my boy has not fallen off his horse.”

\Asheika\

“A girl might wonder why massa entered Mugamo if he has no chance…”

\Nathaniel\

Nathaniel cupped his hand and whispered into Asheika’s ear, “Mugamo trained hard for this bout and fell off various horses many times.  He is not a bad warrior, but he has absolutely no aptitude as a teacher.  He is one of my earlier gladiators, and in spite of his experience, he is no match for Thor and his predecessors.   No matter how good my gladiators are, I invariably loose a few good men to bad luck, but the quality of my newer men is so fine that I must purposely put my older, less important warriors at considerable risk.  If my win to loss ratio were too good, then my competitors would suspect I was cheating, and I do not want to deal with the kind of scrutiny that would involve.”

“Every soldier, and every gladiator knows he will probably not die of the wasting diseases of old age.  Mugamo has a chance at glory, and that includes a glorious death.  I am not worried, however.  Baron Garound is a prudent man, and not a heavy wagerer.  He also runs in the same circles as Lord Caezal, and is therefore a good man to loose to. After all, I do not want anyone to be under the impression that my gladiators are invincible.  That might induce Ceazal to cool on our rivalry, and the popularity of house Ellis would suffer.  It has been many months since our houses have had a bout together, but we keep the rivalry alive by taunting one another in the press.  In order to win at the games I must sometimes loose.  Indeed, I periodically buy quality natural men to be trained as gladiators for no other reason than that I need to have a sufficient number of losers among my winners.”

“I am an evil man, my dear; my empire is built on the suffering and frailty of thousands of human beings.  The difference between men like Caezal and myself is that I embrace what I am rather than attempting to hide it from myself behind the guise of honor and nobility.  I hold power over others because I can manipulate them, dominate them and bend them to my will.  These games are simply a means towards becoming the premier house of slavery in the land.  If I can win and hold that title, then my slaves will command prices commensurate with their quality.”

---

\Narration\

Nathaniel sat in the vacant dining room of his suite on the Island that housed the main training camp and slave breeding facilities of house Ellis. 

\Ashieka\

Good Afternoon, massa.

\Nathaniel\

Nathaniel looked up and smiled as Ashieka came in, her rich chocolate skin burnished with sweat from her dance lesson.  “Good afternoon, my pet.  You’re looking as breathtaking as ever.  Did you have a good lesson?”

\Ashieka\

“Ashieka was stupid today and twisted her leg on a bad landing from a jump.”

\Nathaniel\

“Nonsense, my dear, you are brilliant.  It is not uncommon for dancers learning and practicing advanced moves to injure themselves.  When you are done with your bath, I will take a look at the leg.”

\Ashieka\

“Yes massa.”

\Nathaniel\

When Ashieka came out of the bath, she was not wearing a stitch.  “Come my pet, sit down on my lap and I will inspect your lovely leg.

\ Ashieka\

Ashieka sat on her master’s lap. 

\Nathaniel\

Ahh, my dear, your derrière is a masterwork.  Now it is this leg that is in pain. Correct?

\Ashieka\

“Yes massa.  A girl might wonder how her massa knew?”

\Nathaniel\

As a mind magician I must be a keen observer of human behavior, my dear.   Now, let me feel this leg.   Mmm, the pain is here on the inside of the thigh, certainly not an area I wish you to be injured in.

\Ashieka\

“Ashieka is sorry massa.”

\Nathaniel\

It’s no matter, my pet, you feel no pain from that hurt.  Nathaniel felt the injured area.  Ashieka did not flinch.

\Ashieka\

“How you do that massa?”

\Nathaniel\

Nathaniel chuckled.  “Sadly the damage is still there, as is the pain, but your mind refuses to feel it because I have ordered it so.”

\Ashieka\

“But massa, Ashieka has no control over the pain in her leg, how can massa?”

\Nathaniel\

“The mind has deeper levels, my pet, and the more advanced one is at mind control, the more able he is to influence them, but this was a simple exercise.  I am presently working on the crown jewel of mind magic.”

\Ashieka\

“A girl might wonder what that is, massa.”

\Nathaniel\

“Possession, my pet.  With this ability I could take over control of someone completely, submerge their personality and walk about in their body as if it were my own.”

\Ashieka\

Ashieka shivered, “You can do that massa?”

\Nathaniel\

“I have tried some experiments, but we shall see how I do as time progresses.  It is an outgrowth from my studies designing and commanding slaves.  My work creating slaves has led me to specialize in divination to find appropriate characteristics, and domination to control slaves.  One aspect of the divinations I use for dealing with finding characteristics, includes clairvoyance or mental projection which is seeing things with the mind even though one is not able to see them with the eyes because one’s body is not in the right location or because the things are too large or small to see from the vantage point of the eyes.  Projection leads to being able to leave the body entirely and travel as a spirit.  If one can leave his body and is good at dominating others, possession is the next logical step.  It has taken time to develop my ability with divination and domination, but I have become expert in both.  Now I must perfect their fusion, the art of possession.   In the future, if you believe someone other than me to be me, then you may act accordingly.”

\Ashieka\

“Yes massa.”

\Nathaniel\

“You will again feel the pain from your leg injury as you normally would.”

\Ashieka\

“Ow,” Ashieka shook her head.  A girl marvels at massa’s magic.

\Nathaniel\

I do have a spell that produces a minor healing effect, however I need to work on it further.  For now there is this magical ointment from Jalan’s laboratory.  Nathaniel donned thin rubber gloves and massaged the ointment into Ashieka’s inner thigh.  Her scent was intoxicating.  Nathaniel chuckled, “You have the most magnificent sex my dear.  Already I can see the moisture.  Unfortunately, I must not disturb this ointment with my lusts.  We shall have lunch and let it soak in and do its work.”  Nathaniel nudged Ashieka to stand and slapped her exquisite rear.  “Now get dressed, my pet, your body is much too tempting unclad.”  He smiled as he watched the resilient cheeks of her rump quiver from his spank.

\Ashieka\

“But massa…”

\Nathaniel\

Nathaniel chuckled, “You must obey, my dear.  We can make love anytime, but your leg must be healing now.”

\Ashieka\

“Yes massa.  A girl will get dressed for lunch.”

\Nathaniel\

“Good.  I never cease to marvel at your magnificent capacity for sex, my pet.  There are many things that can go right, wrong, or somewhere in between when one designs a body.  Chance and inspiration play their parts, and in your case, there must have been a muse on each of my shoulders, for you are magnificent.”

\Ashieka\

“Thank you massa.”

\Narration\

A few minutes later lunch was served and Ashieka, now dressed, came out to join her master.

\Ashieka\

“A girl might wonder if Lord Caezal has been paying his debt.”

\Nathaniel\

 “There are still a few suckers in this world, but the business community has been far wiser of late than Caezal had bargained for.  Such a pity,” Nathaniel chuckled.

\Ashieka\

“Massa’s plan is working?”

\Nathaniel\

“Indeed it is.  Unfortunately, although our personal rivalry seems to be doing just fine, the rivalry of our houses has begun to fade from the news.  I did not wish to Challenge Ceazal until he was paid in full, and given the size of the bet, it has taken him months to deliver.  I must get Caezal to challenge me again.  I have wanted to test the quality of some of the new trainers I have gleaned.  I will make it known that Odin will entertain one of those toe-to-toe bouts Caezal seems certain I am too chicken to take him up on.  It is true his gladiators are more mature than mine, but I must give him a reasonable chance at winning from time to time or he will loose heart, or worse become suspicious.  I believe my loss to Lord Garound has helped in that regard, but I must not discourage Ceazal, for I am not yet finished with him.”

\Ashieka\

“Why Odin, massa?”

\Nathaniel\

“You are perceptive my pet.  It is true that Tyr or Thor would have a better chance, but I have a new crop of gladiators only a bit over a year out of pen 81 and tests show that they are head and shoulders above even Thor.  Chief among these are Thundershock and Tornado.  Thor has been mentoring them.  Now as for the current bout Odin is stronger but slower than Thor, and Thor has been quite fearsome for Caezal.  I believe a poorer gladiator coupled with the kind of bout Ceazal seems to prefer will be necessary to lure the nobleman to challenge me.  My odds must not be too good or I shall receive no challenge.  Perhaps he is right, his trainers are superior to mine, but I have been acquiring better trainers and more experienced gladiators who will help training their less educated brethren.  I must give Caezal a shot to keep him interested in this rivalry we have going, but I cannot allow it to be on an occasion when I challenge him or he will set the amount of the bet far too high.  Since this bout is to be risky, I dare not risk Thor; he is intelligent, experienced and personable.  He makes a fine mentor for the newest crop of gladiators.  Odin, on the other hand is gruff and not particularly gifted as a teacher.”

---

The Coliseum crowd was large that day, even for a Saturday morning.  Ceazal had brought his boy out for the usual threats and insults, and then it was time for House Ellis to say its peace.  Asheika had performed a lovely ballet number, much to the awe of the crowd.  Now Nathaniel Ellis stood before them to offer a wager to Lord Ceazal on the bout, since it was Ellis who was challenged.

\Nathaniel Ellis\

“Raptaur will cut through my Odin like a hot knife through warm butter?  I think not, Lord Caezal,” Nathaniel Ellis said confidently as he stroked the tail feathers of Asheika the “swan” who held her bountifully sculpted chest forward and upright while her lower body trailed back onto a water-blue platform next to her master.  Her dance had been as stunning as ever, and he could see the green of envy or the slack jaw of lust on the faces of thousands of spectators.  “I am confident Odin will give your boy a run for your money, so confident I am willing to wager two hundred million on it.”

\The Crowd\

The crowd roared its approval.  Although only half as large as Ceazal’s bet on their previous bout, it was an astonishing sum by the standards of the arena.

\Lord Ceazal\

“I accept your wager, Ellis, and it will be my pleasure to take your money,” Ceazal smiled regally.”

\Master of Ceremonies\

"Then Let the Games begin!”

\Nathaniel\

Nathaniel picked his girl up from the stand and carried her down into the area inside and beneath the stage.  There he set her before Odin.  “Your intensive training should give you an edge, Odin, however it is likely Ceazal’s warrior has been training just as hard, so beware.  Gain victory, and House Ellis will see you amply rewarded.”

\Odin\

Odin nodded.

\Nathaniel\

Nathaniel started to walk away then stopped, approached Odin and stood on his tiptoes to whisper in the gladiator’s ear, “In the event you make a deadly mistake, Odin, take out the other man’s leg with your dying breath.  Ceazal will no doubt sell your opponent if you mangle his leg, and if he is good enough to best your skill, then your fellow gladiators could use his teaching to prevent their own deaths in the future.”

\Odin\

“Yes master; if I die I will take a piece of him with me.”

\Master of Ceremonies\

“This morning, two powerful gladiators, Raptaur of House Ceazal and Odin of House Ellis will face off in a toe to toe battle in the center ring!

\The Crowd\

The sizable Saturday morning crowd cheered from the stands.

\Master of Ceremonies\

“This bout is a test of skill at arms.  No tricks and no strategies are required other than weapons skill and agility.  The bout takes place on the uneven platform formed by the cluster of monolithic stones we have standing in the center of the coliseum this morning.  These stones vary from three to twelve feet in height, and from two to six feet across.  No blow may be struck unless a gladiator is on or above the platform.  Weapons have been liberally scattered around the base of the cluster of stones.  As you can see, a wide variety of weapons have been set out, so each gladiator is likely to pick up his favorites.  No missile weapons have been included, and there is to be no use of non-missile weapons as missiles.  The combat will be strictly hand to hand.  …And now, let the bout begin!”

\Odin\

When the wooden platform he stood on raised to the level of the sands he could not see the other gladiator, only the uneven platform made of huge blocks of stone at the coliseum’s center.  The armor provided was shark’s leather.  It would protect against relatively ineffectual blows, but little more.  Odin trotted forward and to the right.  If the other gladiator could not strike him until he mounted up on the rocks, he would take his time to skirt the platform and see what weapons were available.  On his side there were daggers, rapiers, short swords, and clubs.  Odin snatched up a short but hefty dagger and stuck it in his boot.  If he were disarmed, the dagger would serve as a parrying weapon.  He found a pair of heavy cesti and donned them.  The armored gloves would give him a weapon even if he lost all his others.  Next he took a heavy cinqueda dagger and stuffed it in his belt.  It was a good, fast parrying weapon that would serve well in his off hand. 

There were no pole-arms, nothing with extensive reach.  As he rounded the platform of stone blocks, he saw his opponent limbering up with a saber and a wave-bladed dagger.  The gladiator was a big man, near as big as Odin with considerable muscular development.  Judging from the man’s choice of weapons, it would be a contest of speed and skill.  Odin passed the man and found what he was looking for, a two-handed poleaxe.  It might have been a bit longer of haft, but still it had more reach than anything he had seen.   He picked it up and trotted back to the side of the platform he started on, stuck a rapier in his belt and jumped up on the first stone.  

The master of ceremonies had said there was no strategy necessary, but that was for the audience.  Odin knew better.  He stayed low, hiding behind the taller rocks of the platform, keeping quiet, straining his ears to hear any sounds his opponent might make.  If he could catch the man off guard, then the advantage would be his.  He heard the footfalls.  Raptaur had taken to the highest stones in the platform in an effort to get a bird’s eye view of the scene, but the highest stone was East of center, and did not afford an unobstructed view because other tall stones got in the way.  Raptaur seemed to be attempting to remedy this by jumping from one tall stone to another, counting on movement and elevation to give him a view of Odin’s position and keep him out of harm’s way.  Odin grinned and put his back against the tallest stone on his side of the platform.  He stood on a three-foot tall block with his back against a ten-foot tall block.  Raptaur would not be able to see him until it was too late.  Odin heard his opponent land on the rock above.

\The Crowd\

 “Below you Raptaur!” screamed one of the louder fans, but it was barely audible above the other competing screams of advice from the crowd.

\Odin\

Odin knew he only had a second before his opponent got enough information from the crowd to figure out exactly where Odin was.  Odin looked up and smiled.  He saw the toe of a boot at the edge of the tall stone above him and swung his axe.

\Raptaur\

Chang!  Sparks erupted from the stone at his feet as the lower curve of an axe blade rasped over the stone and through the toe of his boot.  Raptaur danced backwards but was unable to avoid a deep cut between his toes.

\Master of Ceremonies\

“First blood belongs to Odin!”

\The Crowd\

The crowd was a tumultuous mixture of cheers and jeers.  “Coward,” one man screamed.   Ambush! Ambush!  Shouted a group ringside, and a multitude of others praised or derided Odin’s use of stealth.

\Odin\

Odin jumped to a taller stone and swung his axe again, but his opponent dodged backwards, brandishing his saber and dagger.  A quick jump and swing crashed through Raptaur’s guard and opened a gash across his backpedaling belly.  Odin was at least as fast as his opponent with slightly longer arms and a longer weapon.  He tortured his opponent with sheer reach. 

\Raptaur\

Raptaur knew the axe and its weaknesses.  It had reach, but not speed.  Two more jumps and Odin again swung at him.  This time he was ready.  He dodged with an inch to spare, and when the blade had passed he jumped, lunged and swung.

\Odin\

Odin dropped the axe as blood oozed from his knuckles.  Had it not been for the heavy cesti, Raptaur might have split his hand in two.  Now disarmed, Odin was forced to flee, while he drew the rapier and cinqueda.

\Raptaur\

His opponent now on the run, Raptaur gave chase and managed to open a bloody rent across his opponent’s back before Odin turned and parried with rapier and dagger.

\Odin\

Although both men jumped on occasion when a dodge was necessary, the bout had turned into a test of skill.  Odin’s speed and strength were not so much greater than Raptaur’s as to make a great deal of difference.  He still had reach over his opponent, for the rapier was slightly longer than the saber, as were Odin’s arms.  He opened the other man’s kneecap with a swift swing, but Raptaur sprang to the side and took off one of Odin’s toes.

\Raptaur\

“That’ll teach you for attacking a man’s boot from below, sneak-thief!”

\Odin\

Odin growled, and then parried a blow but realized too late that his opponent’s lunge had been staged to tie up both of Odin’s hands in a wild parry while the flame-bladed dagger struck.  Odin twisted but took a wound in his side before jumping clear of his opponent.  The two maneuvered from stone to stone attacking and parrying, dodging and jumping.  Raptaur was a fine swordsman, finer than Odin himself was, he feared. 

On the tallest rock he stood against his opponent, toe to toe, their blades ringing furiously as each tried to outdo the other.  Parry, dodge, lunge, stab, swing, block, feint, the combat was too fast for any lapse in concentration.  Odin tried a trap, but Raptaur parried his way out of it, and only moments later used his own trap to tie up Odin’s blade.

Aii! Odin roared as Raptaur’s saber cleaved sensitive flesh.

\Raptaur\

“There, now you can live up to your name, old one-eye.  Hahaha!”

\Nathaniel Ellis\

High above the combat in his owners’ box, Nathaniel cupped his hand over his girl’s ear and whispered, “I fear we have just lost this bout.”

  \Odin\

The pain was furious, and his opponent was already beginning to take advantage of his blind left side.  Odin knew he could not win.  At first he fled to the lower stones, but that only bought him a couple of gratuitous wounds that opened up his left thigh and slowed him down.  The fight had been so close before, and now he was at a grave disadvantage.  He turned and lunged like a charging bull, but Raptaur jumped deftly and laughed as Odin crashed into the stone behind him.  Odin lost consciousness for a second as his head hit the rock.  When he came to he found his weapons had been dashed from his hands and he had somehow rolled onto his back.  Raptaur was standing beside him, his blade gaining speed from a high, swift swing.  The target was Odin’s neck.  Odin sacrificed his right arm to live through the blow.  He rolled to his left forcing Raptaur to abort his follow-up dagger stab and jump to avoid having his feet knocked out from under him.  Odin was in no condition for planning, but he knew what he must do, and his training did the rest.  As Raptaur sprung into the air, Odin reversed the direction of his roll.  When Raptaur landed his foot was wedged against the stone by Odin’s bloody right side.  Odin heard the saber coming, but it was no matter.  His left fist was already cocked back.

\The Crowd\

The crowd rose to its feet as Odin’s head rolled to the sound of a sickening crack from Raptaur’s knee.

\Raptaur\

As his saber snatched victory before Odin’s return to consciousness could steal it, Raptaur felt his opponent’s left fist strike his knee like a sledgehammer.  He fell forward, his right leg bending in the opposite direction as nature had intended.   Although the pain was excruciating, Raptaur hauled himself up with his arms and stood on his left leg holding his saber high.

\Lord Ceazal\

“Victory!” Ceazal bellowed, his fist shaking high in the air.

\Elaina Ceazal\

Her opera glasses in hand, Elaina spied across the arena at Ellis.  She sighed with satisfaction.  Ellis had stood, and the slave master’s hand was over his mouth in shock.  His gladiator had lost!  Had she realized his hand hid a satisfied grin, her elation might have turned cold and ran chillingly down her spine.

---

Nathaniel Ellis arrived at the post-bout news conference as punctually as always.  He smiled as Tom Crowder motioned him over.  Crowder had already started interviewing Lord Ceazal.

\Tom Crowder\

“At what point did you know you had won, Lord Ceazal?”

\Ceazal\

“I knew from the start that Ellis’ boy would not be able to stand up to my Raptaur in a toe to toe bout.  Even with the stones for him to hide behind, his rogue strategy failed.  When Raptaur made him drop that axe that’s when I knew Odin was headed for a fall.”

\Tom Crowder\

“When did you start to worry that you might loose the bout, Master Ellis?”

\Nathaniel Ellis\

“Ceazal’s boy was definitely in fine form.   I believe his swordsmanship had greatly improved since the last time I saw him perform, but so had Odin’s.  Odin tried to use what strategy he could, but it was not sufficient to gain an easy victory.  Once they did engage toe to toe, Odin showed himself to be a good swordsman, but Lord Caezal is correct; Raptaur’s use of clever feints to draw Odin into committing his blade when he might better have dodged proved Raptaur to be the better bladesman.  Eventually Raptaur’s saber found Odin’s eye, and it was at that point that I feared we would loose.”

The story continues in [Pedigree]012 Raptaur Resurrection 

copyright 2000-2002, by Rapina

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