A Sword Of Wrath, Book I by K. E. MacLeod (best way to read ebooks TXT) 📕

He left the baths and walked through the underground, stone-braced tunnels that led him directly to Euric's darkly lit office. As he approached, he saw the Vandal pouring over a scroll atop his desk. Juko took the opportunity to examine the lanista's office and noticed that set in amongst the candles that encircled a shrine to the Adversary goddess was the highly sought after Rudus. The Rudus was a ceremonial sword that not only symbolized freedom but also indicated that the lanista had once been a gladiator himself; this fact surprised Juko.

He stepped into the room and Euric looked up from his scrolls.

"Ah, Juko, my son, please sit," he indicated the chair before his desk. "Would you care for some water?"

"No, I am not here for water. Just information."

"Yes," Euric shook his head earnestly. "I will do as I promised but first, let me ask you something."

"What?" Juko's felt his annoyance with the lanista returning rather quickly.

"What is it that you want more than anything in this world?"

"The information that you have about my brother."

The lanista laughed and stood up from the desk. He continued to speak as he walked to where Juko sat, "Yes, but besides that. What else in this world would make you happy?"

"Happier than having my brother back alive?"

Euric nodded, "Yes, son, happier than that."

Juko's fingers tightened around the arms of the chair as various thoughts ran through his mind. There were only two things in this world that Juko wanted but only one that he would acknowledge aloud. "Revenge," he said.

The lanista smiled slowly, "Exactly." He sat on the corner of his writing desk, "And I may just be able to procure you your revenge. How does that make you feel?"

Juko shook his head, "No, Vandal! You are playing games with me again! You torture me, lie to me - but still, you tell me nothing! You said you are not a liar but you have yet to tell me any truths!"

Euric's smile faded as he sighed, "You're right, son. It is a failing of mine." He glanced at the shrine across the room, "Do you see that?"

Juko looked at the statue.

"I'm not even supposed to have that in here. It's... illegal. Did you know that?"

"But, isn't it one of your many gods?"

Euric laughed shortly, "Ah, yes, once. But see, now there are only three gods: The Twin Brothers and the She-Wolf Mother. Worshipping anything else is against the law."

"Your country is very strange to me. How can a god cease to be a god just because you make a law against it?"

He stared at the statue of the Adversary, her beautiful womanly form draped in cloth as a set of feathered wings rose up behind her. "And what do you worship, my son?"

Juko was slow to respond, "If I am honest?... nothing and... and no one." He looked over at Euric, "But the N'bari people have only one god: the Ancient God."

"What is his name?"

Juko shrugged, "His name is 'God.'"

"That's very odd, isn't it?"

"Lanista, I am confused by your questions. You should know all of this, as you have trained many N’bari-"

"Your brother was very religious." Euric turned back to face the young fighter. "Did you know that?"

"I... did, yes. He learned from my father."

"The Chieftain, correct?"

Juko nodded.

"Your brother talked of his clan very often. He spoke of your father, your mother and you, too."

"I'm surprised. He wasn't very fond of village life."

Euric laughed, "Oh, that much was very clear! But... he loved his family. They - you, were very important to him."

A rare smile touched Juko's eyes, "I am glad to hear that, at least."

The lanista sat back down behind his writing desk but when he spoke, his eyes seemed focused on something unseen, "Juko, what makes a man fight to the death?"

He shrugged, "Many men die for many different reasons."

"This is true, but your brother," he leaned in closer, "he only died for one reason and that reason was family."

Juko remained silent, cautiously watching Euric as he tried to understand what the shady man's angle was.

"You say you don't care that your brother had a woman-"

"No, I said I didn't care about her and I don't."

"Perhaps you should listen to what I have to say about her before you make such a judgment," Euric's eyed him with restraint. "She was like a daughter to me and your brother, a son."

"Fine," he said.

"Lady Catherine of Tyre was well-known and well-loved here in Odalia. But, first, you have to understand that not all Lords and Ladies bother themselves with the public. I mean, why should they, really? Our world does not revolve the same way as theirs does. Their concerns are not our concerns. Do you understand?"

"I suppose. As I mentioned, your country is very strange to me. In my clan, those that are highborn have a responsibility and a duty to those of the lower castes."

Euric let out a puff of air, "Well, they are quite the opposite here. Those that are highborn have very little time for the rest of us. Lady Catherine was different, though." His eyes misted over slightly with memory, "Her father became the representative for the Ala District when she was just a teenager."

"The Ala District?"

Euric nodded, "Yes, Odalia is separated into five districts and the Ala District is the worst of the bunch. It's an awful place steeped in poverty, crime, debauchery - every sin available! I have only been there once and, let me tell you, people will stab you in the back for a piece of moldy bread!"

Juko's eyebrows knitted together but he let the lanista continue uninterrupted.

"The Emperor would usually give such Districts to his most unpopular Lords. If they weren't murdered in their sleep by cutthroats, they usually left the Capital and returned to their homelands. So, for whatever reason, Emperor Tiberius didn't like Lord Heron, so he gave him the District as a joke.

"Only, it was never a joke to Lady Catherine and very soon after her father became the representative, she began to make visits to the District with her mother. At first, they started bringing bread and flour to the poorest of the poor about once a month. Then from there, after seeing the sadness and devastation that had spread to all of the District's inhabitants, their trips became almost daily affairs. Even after her mother grew ill, Lady Catherine still attended ceremonies there and always showed even the most worthless life a bit of kindness." An unconscious smile brushed across Euric's face as he continued, "But she detested the gladiatorial games!"

"How did you know?"

"Because she told me!" he laughed. "She had her entourage roll into here one day and demanded to see me. I was not amused, I have to say, but she stood in that exact spot and shouted at me for quite a while at our first meeting."

Juko seemed surprised, "And you... allowed that?"

"Oh no, not at all! I shouted back with all the fury that my ancestors had at their disposal but..." he held his hands up as if in surrender, "she was undeterred."

"What did she say to you?"

"Oh, she called me 'cruel' and said that I was a slave owner and that my gladiators were treated no better than animals."

Juko thought of what T'tembo had said to him when they had first met and then remembered his own subsequent punishment for 'disobedience.' "How did you respond?"

"As I said, I shouted the place down! Who knows what I said? I probably called her and her ancestors a few choice words but she didn't even shiver or back away in fear - not even once! She simply pursed her lips and demanded action."

"What sort of action?"

He looked down at his desk for a moment, then continued, "Well, I showed her the barracks. I made the men disrobe before her." He grinned devilishly, "I thought surely that would frighten her away! But, no, she simply held her head high and began to question them. She actually questioned them!" Euric sighed, "All except your brother. He had refused to disrobe or leave his bed. Something to do with your religion, I think."

Juko nodded, "Yes. Modesty is highly prized in our clan."

"Yes, well, she questioned a few of the men and found they weren't clamoring to break down the doors to leave, that they were well-fed and housed decently. I invited her to come see one of the practice sessions. It's," he laughed knowingly, "not unusual for highborn ladies to visit, so she wouldn't've been out of place - though they are rarely there for the men's benefit, if you-"

Juko grew impatient, "I don't understand where my brother-"

"Give it time, son, give it time! Storytelling is an art! A well timed, perfectly paced art! Now, where was I? ...Oh yes, your brother. So, she did begin to attend several practice sessions and she and I would have endless hours of conversation about the morality of bloodsport. I enjoyed her ideas very much and in my younger years, would have been proud to be her champion in the arena, but," he shrugged, "I couldn't change her mind. I think that she liked that I tried, though. Then, one day, just to prove a point, I called your brother over. I asked if he had ever felt like an animal."

"What did he say?"

"The truth. He told her that the only time he had ever felt like an animal was whenever he walked down the streets of the Margarite District." He leaned in closer to Juko, "See, the Margarite District is where she and her family lived. She was horrified at such a revelation and so I left them to talk about it with one another. Well, argue, really. A lot... loudly. And maybe that's where I failed."

"How do you mean?"

"Well, first you have to understand the laws of the land that had recently been passed. The harshest one being that anyone of Lycanian decent, as Lady Catherine was, cannot mix socially with anyone of a Bestial descent. We Bestials are just that to the Lycanians. We are animals. Less than, in some cases."

Juko frowned, "It is a ridiculous law."

"Ah, but is it? How about your clan?"

He looked at Euric matter-of-factly, "We marry and socialize with all members of the N’bari-"

"Yes, but what of someone outside of your people?"

"I... do not know."

Euric gave him a knowing look, "Listen, my son, it is human nature to separate ourselves into groups but it is equally just as much human nature to desire that which is forbidden." He sighed and rubbed his temples, "Of course I knew what was going on in the beginning. Suna thought he was so clever, sneaking her in at night. I let it go, thinking they were just young people enjoying what young people enjoy. But... before long..."

"What?"

"Suna became distracted during training. He then lost his first match in the arena after being undefeated for nearly an entire year. Luckily, it was not a death match but it soon became very apparent to me that they were in love and that was a dangerous thing." He took a deep breath, "I confronted Suna and he admitted that it was true. He belonged to her and she, him but, Juko, the law is the law and they both knew that what they wanted could never become a reality. I tried, son, I really tried to keep them apart... but, even I have a weakness for such things..." His eyes became far away again and he fell silent.

"Tell me what happened, lanista," he prompted, annoyed.

"Well, I will tell you this much," he looked at Juko, "those two became like my children. I found myself protecting them at the expense of my own life!