Above the shop in the quiet of her family's appartment Silvia was taking a break from the hot sun. Hunched over a small plate of dates and water she munched happily, after working four hours streight during rush hour she relished every break she could get. Despite being two levels up she could still hear her father's booming voice in the streets, this time arguing with some other merchant over something petty probably. "make sure to drink enough water my dearest" her mother added filling up her daughter's water goblet. "dont forget we are closing up early today to go to the Arena, where we will be sitting there are no shaders."

"What happened to our regular seats?!" she replied in confusion almost spitting out her water, the last time she recalled her family usually had their own small booth. Although much more meger compared to the Patrician class it still served its purpose to keep them comfortably in the shade. "well.." her mother sighed "thank your father, who lost our box in a bet he made with someone over a game of Senet" Suddenly they herd thundering steps asend the stairs as her father burst into the room, "Silvia! help me pack up the front I want to get to the Arena before it gets too crouded!" All she could do was cross her arms and glair.

He immedietly knew the source of his daughter's annoyance, "what did you tell her Calissa!"

"she would find out eventually" her mother responded "I dont know why your so upset you big boar, it was your fault we are sitting in the Plebian seats!"

"Calm yourself wife this is a great match today! besides think of it like this, its a great match! Gladiators from the well respected houses of Vala and Crispus with be fighing practically right in front of us! Do you know how close those cheap seats can get us to the bloodshed?!"

If there was one thing father relished it was a good bloodsport. "Vala?" Silvia interupted, "who from Vala?"

"Arcadius verses Baalhanno. I herd he's a brute of a man."

"think of it Silvia! If Vala wins we will be dining with champions come Monday! haha, Crido will not know what to think once I tell him the House of Vala is one of my clients."Silvia rolled her eyes, "of course Father." she said sarcastically. Crido Dairus Manius was another wealthy merchant living in the City who was her father's biggest competition.

With no shade, she concluded she had to make due with a Parasol and a cotton veil.

"Just make sure to be heavy on the Kohl, Silvia" her mother ended the conversation optimistically. "If we can survive in the Egyptian heat Im sure Antica will be a simple day by the Nile Banks."

Doctore put his hand on Aurelia's shoulder before the lot entered the arena gates.
"Aurelia." He said. "I hope you aren't worried about your speech. Just tell them who you are- since everyone is expecting Publius to be giving a speech today, give thanks to the gods, the host of the primus- Aedile Gaius Antonius, and the spectators. You know Antonius right? He was the man Publius threw a party for. And thats basically all you need to say, unless there are other things you would like to mention as well. Understood?"

Underground, Arcadius, Donaris, and the others suited up and prepared themselves. Arcadius, looking rather nervous, suited into his armor http://i533.photobucket.com/albums/ee340/XlordbrimestoneX/Apparel/leather-armor.jpg.
Tepemkau put his hands on Arcadius's shoulders and looked him in the eyes.
"Grecian. You will do fine." Tepemkau said. "I'm sorry if the things I said earlier discouraged you. It's just that, I'm sincerly worried for you and I'm not the type to sugar-coat things. I hope you understand."
"I'm sorry too Tep. Yeah I understand. I got mad because, I was feeling a bit intimidated by all the stories about Baalhanno. I mean, since nobody really knows me yet, I'm probably not going to get killed. Right?"
"Yes... and no. Baalhanno is famous for killing his opponents before the judges get to decide. But yes, if you fight defensively today and survive for a good amount of time, the judges will just call it draw and say you fought well enough. Remember the training with Donaris. A downwards right swing, then pull back a half step before you block with your shield. If he tries to stab you from below his waist, remember to tilt your shield slightly towards your upper body- that way he'll get a bigger withdrawal. Since he's slightly taller than you and right-handed, performing a wide left swing is going to get you killed. And-"
"Yeah, yeah, yeah." Arcadius replied impatiently.

Aurelia took a steading breath, before she turned to the Doctore. "I-I am fine. It will be easy, right? Four minutes and it will be over and I'll be able to sit back and relax... Then pray our gladiators will prove victorious. Easy, right?" She said, walking into the gates.

In a few moments she was standing on the platform,preparing to speek. She cleared her throat before she began. "Salve! I know it should be Publius standing here but he is gone for the moment- in his place, I will be speaking. I am his.... Daughter... Aurelia. Some of you may know me" she smiled before continuing. "I would like to thank the gods for allowing us the minds to adapt and to put food on the table, as well as protecting us," she steadied herself "and for watching over us." She said, and paused before she said anything else- her mind was racing and she was steadily forgetting what she needed to say. "I would also like to thank the host of these wonderful games, for... Well... Hosting the games" she laughed lightly "and lastly, all the people in attendance, because without everyone showing up it would die out pretty quickly" she said, even though she was shaking by this point.

She stepped down and walked over to the place she and the others would watch the primus from, and sat down. "That was horrible..." She berated herself between steading breaths.

Claudia sat next to the client as he took a seat, his view was rather high up and quite spectacular. She listened to the young girl as she introduced the games. Claudia recognised her, but with Claudia's job, many faces were familiar to her. She looked down at the arena below and anxiously awaited the gladiators to make their appearance.

"Look at him, sitting there proud in our seats like he was Jove himself." Silvia's father huffed noticing his friend's family sitting comfortably in their Arena box. Sitting in between her parents, she couldn't tell if he was red from the Sun or from anger. Before it got to crowded they managed to get seats that turned out to be not too bad, save an occasional odor of fish that came from the man sitting behind them. "Next time Ill-" not before finishing his thought all eyes were turned to a young woman who opened the games. Despite being far away she could recognise Lady Vala from earlier that day at the Market. After she sat back down they could hear vendors from down below " Get your Wine! We have spiced meat! Get your refreshments before its too late!"

Now all they had to do was wait for the games to begin. Twidling her thumbs Silvia eyed the large door where the Gladiators were to enter.

Arcadius nervously stood waiting for the gates to roll up.
"Hey you." A man said behind him. Arcadius turned his head around to look at him.
"Listen." The man said. "I know you're new to this gladiator business, and you probably haven't even seen Baalhanno fight before. But let me tell you this- you don't even have a chance to win this one. Me and my friends bet alot of money on Baalhanno, so, I want you to just lose this one. Just act like you're fighting the best you can, then act like he disarmed you or something. Then the judges get to decide if they want you to live or not. They'll let you live for sure since nobody really knows you that well. If you lose for me today, I'll give you a small percentage of the money I win from the bets, and even that will be more than what you'll earn if you win him. That is of course, if you survive."

"Ladies and gentlemen" Shouted the tournament announcer. "We will begin the anticipated match featuring the return of Baalhanno of the House of Crispus!"
The crowd roared with excited at the mention of his name.
"The contender for today's match is... uh.. Arcadius of the House of Vala!"
There was minimal applause and people looking at one another with a 'Who' look on their faces.
Arcadius walked out after the iron gates rolled up.
"At the opposite end we have the undisputed ghoul from Hades, the killer of Kings, the indestructible Baalhanno of the House of Crispus!"
The crowd went wild as the man emerged from the opposite wall.
Arcadius peered at him from the dark of his helmet to see a rather tall and semi-bulky looking man in gleaming armor.
"Begin!" Shouted the announcer.

Lykos grumbled slightly as he was forced into the seats reserved for the soldiers. A group had wanted to attend the nights match, and decided it would be a good idea to drag the new guy along. Slumping between two rather large soldiers, Lykos allowed his eyes to roam the stadium before settling on the fight below. This was going to be... Fun?

----

A familiar glint of golden hair shone among the crowd. Nikolas, after performing his daily chores with his current Master, had been given leave to come to the days match. He bore new clothes, nothing to extravagant - a tunic dyed to match the blue in one of his eyes, sandals on his feet , and the smallest amount of gold, a necklace a customer had given him as a thank you gift.

Today's mission was to again, infiltrate the crowd. See who was who and keep his master updated on the idle gossip and goings on of Rome.

Slowly, his eyes turned down toward the floor, gazing over the fighters. He thought he recognized one of them... but... it couldn't be, not the scrawny man he had stood on the docks with...

Aurelia sat back in her chair, her hand covering her eyes. "I can't watch this..." She murmured, but she uncovered her eyes nonetheless. "Doctore? How does Publius do... All of this? I can't even look at the numbers I have to without my head hurting, and this- this is manslaugter... I understand now why Publius and the Gladiators never ate together now" she said, leaning over the crowd from her vantage point. "I suppose it cannot be helped though, I want Publius to be happy when he returns..." She said, standing and walking over to a small girl who was holding a cup and a plate of snacks. She took the cup and a few cheese cubes before she handed the girl a few coins and she walked away. She stress ate sometimes, and as she walked back over to the seats where she has been sitting and she saw the match begin, she was most definitely Stressed. She couldn't wait until Publius was back.

Straining her neck to see, the crowd where Silvia and her family sat were getting restless for violence, "Go for the throat!" she heard a man behind her yell hungrily. She didn't know what to think of the spectacle, flitching every moment each man's sword got close to dealing a fateful blow. "Oh your brother would love this..." her mother noted fanning herself with an ostrich feather fan. "Especially that Arcadius fellow, he always rooted for the underdogs." It would have been five months to this day that he left to join Rome's calvary. "you better write write about this in your next letter" her mother said before the crowd burst into another roar of cheer.

Watching Arcadius he even reminded her of Marcus' spirit, who although smaller than his enemy had much smoother footwork using the giant's weight against him.

The sound of swords clashing filled the arena as the spectators watched silently. The arena was hushed-silent except with the noise of metal clashing and the grunts of the two gladiators below. Arcadius stumbled and staggered at each blow of Baalhanno's sword against his shield. The man's attacks were swift and perfectly coordinated. Baalhanno thrilled like a lion marking a fresh prey, striding forth like a beast upon an antler or stag. His attacks were bold and challenging, threatening yet encouraging to fight face-to-face in mortal combat. Arcadius struggled to keep a balanced stance and his knees shook as he resisted each blow. Clouds of dust rose around them as Baalhanno pushed him further and further back and knocked him to the ground with a bash of the shield. Arcadius crashed to the ground; his skin brushed roughly against the course sand. With a booming warcry Baalhanno brought his sword down upon him; Arcadius shook as he luckily blocked with his own. In a desperate move, he quickly got up; jumping to the back to gather himself. Shaken and exhausted, Arcadius propelled himself forward and thrust his sword- yet struck only air. In a terrifying moment Arcadius was slashed across his left thigh; thick blood splurted across the arena sand. He staggered back and struggled to recompose himself. Breathing heavily, he clenched his bloody wound; for a moment looking up at the crimson-hued sky. Time seemed to have slowed as Baalhanno rushed forward like a mad bull; raising his arm up to bring down a deadly and decisive strike.

For a brief time Arcadius's eyes were glued to the sky, as if waiting for some god or goddess to come and save him. Baalhanno's sword came down like thunder, yet in a swift and graceful motion Arcadius disarmed him of his sword and tripped him to the ground. As if possessed by the god of war, Arcadius pinned him down and held his sword against the man's neck. It was over. Arcadius, son of Deinomenes of Laodiceia, had won the match.

Claudia sat, not really interested in the fight, her client, however, couldn't contain his cheers or shouts. Claudia sighed shaking his head. 'I wonder where the Arcadius one comes from to deserve this...' She thought to herself. 'If a greek lady has been forced into prostitution.' She pondered for a moment. 'Maybe a greek himself?' Claudia watched the fight closer now, her eyes focused on Arcadius. She watched on the edge of her seat as the other man charged at Arcadius. She leapt from her seat, cheering as Baalhanno was disarmed. She sat back down and smiled. 'Finally, a Greek that can make a name for himself in this city.' She thanked the gods and looked to the client, he didn't look to happy. "What's the problem?"
"I bet on Baalhanno to win." He moaned, Claudia rolled her eyes and looked back down at the arena. 'Moany bastard.' She thought to herself.

Where Silvia was sitting at the edge of her seat, overwhelmed with both relief and joy in Arcadius' victory both her parents got up from their seats to cheer, while all she could do was clasp her hands thankful it was over. "I knew it! haha he did it!" her father shouted. From behind a woman started to chant in glory "Arca-di-us! Arca-di-us!".

Aurelia sat in her chair, her expression somewhere between shock and joy. "He- He... He did it!" she all but jumped out of her seat, her smile widening before she sighed with relief. "I can't believe he did that! He was... almost destined to die in that fight. And he didn't!" she screamed, settling back in her chair. She turned to her accomplice. "You.... you trained him well, for such a short time, Doctore, but you can't say that was at least half complete and utter natural talent and luck. Mostly luck" she laughed, her giddy mood affecting everyone around her, it seemed, because he smiled, too.

The crowd went wild. Mostly frustrated people who bet their money on Baalhanno. People were booing and throwing leftover food down into the arena grounds.
Arcadius held his sword against the man's neck from behind him and looked up to where the judges sat. Aedile Gaius Antonius, the game host, stood up and tried to calm the crowd from going berserk. He was going to call the shots as to whether Baalhanno should live or die. The crowd shouted that he should not live.
"Damn these Romans." Baalhanno said. "One moment they worshipped me like a god, now that I finally lost my winning streak, they call out for my blood."
"I won out of pure luck." Arcadius said. "What's going to happen now?"
"You have to end my life here warrior. My defeat has disappointed many and robbed them of their coin purse."
"What?!" Arcadius protested. "I don't want to do that."
"I haven't tasted defeat like this in a long, long, time. I guess you are the one who has come to replace me of my title as a champion of the arena. I always expected this to happen sooner or later. It's gonna happen to you to someday as well. Someone is going to come and replace you while you look up to see the 'thumbs-down'. They think themselves gods, passing judgement on a man's life like this."
As Baalhanno predicted, Antonius gave the 'thumbs-down- sign.
"Do it!" Baalhanno growled.
"Whats going to happen if I refuse?"
"There's no room for soft-heartedness as a gladiator. They'll kill you."
Arcadius looked about the crowd with a glowering expression on his face. He ran his blade through Baalhanno's throat swiftly.
The man's limp body collapsed to the ground with a thud. The crowd went wild as they chanted Arcadius's name.
Arcadius slowly walked back into the gladiator quarters with downcast eyes, dropping his blood-stain sword along the way.

Arcadius returned to the preparation chambers under the arena to be greeted by Tepemkau and several others who had watched the fight.
"Yessss!" Tepemkau cried. "I can't believe you actually beat him! Oh happy day!"
Arcadius tried to look happy and hugged him with one arm. "Didn't think I had to kill the man though. And most of the people didn't seem too happy that I won."
"Well at least you survived. Thats something worth celebrating right? Oh, and the arena master told me to give you this."
Tepemkau handed Arcadius a small purse of gold coins.
"This is quite alot of money I won.." Arcadius said. "But, this is hardly enough to buy my freedom right?"
"Hardly." Tepemkau said and chuckled. "But, I bet you can get a very comely lady to spend the night with you tonight?"

After the games of the day were over, everyone had returned to the Vala ludus to rest and celebrate the victories. As predicted, Donaris had won his match rather easily, as well as the few others who had participated that day. There was an air of relief and celebration in the House of Vala that day.
Arcadius sat at the edge of his straw bed in his chambers, munching on some fresh-baked bread and contemplating the events of the day. He didn't seem too happy and there was a look of guilt in his eyes. Meanwhile the other gladiators and slaves were celebrating and merry-making.

Claudia celebrated the young gladiators victory at the expense of her client. She felt the need to congratulate him but all the gladiators had already left by the time she got down to the preparation chamber. She sighed before returning to her client, "I can't believe that Greek bastard beat Baalhanno." Claudia blinked at him.
"I'm Greek." She informed him, "Our fighters are just as capable as yours." She gave him a sly smile before walking along. "Back to yours?"
"No, I've had enough excitement for one night, tell Quintas I'll pay him tomorrow." Claudia bowed her head and continued on her way, but instead of heading back to the 'house' she snuck up to the Vala Iudus and entered the slave chambers and looked for the gladiator, she found him sitting on a straw bed. "Arcadius?" She asked, to be sure it was him, but she continued to speak anyway. "Well, I just wanted to say you have done our gods and families proud by beating Baalhanno and wa ted to thank you for that." She smiled and bowed before turning to leave.

"Your gods?" Arcadius stammered. "What did your gods have against that man that they're pleased at his death? The only thing I beat today is death himself. But only for a while... There are no victor and loser when two men are forced to fight each other to the death. Only a man who died for the entertainment of the masses, and a man who survived to live just a while longer. I."

Claudia give a little laugh, "The gods gave you the ability to beat him, you used that ability correctly and they are proud of that." She smiled, "Better to prove us Greeks have a fighting chance against the other races." She didn't know where she was going with this but continued to talk. "They were your gods once, you may forsake them but they'll never forsake you, especially when you need them most." She then got up and started to leave.

Aurelia sat on her bed, trying to wipe the ever-present smile off her face and calm her elated mood. It really wasn't any use- for what seemed like the first time in a long time, she had come home without someone dead. She still wanted sleep- begged for it. She fiddled with her clothing again (she still didnt like sleeping naked, as this wasnt her real 'family') as she laid down, looking up. She closed her eyes, but after a few moments that proved useless, she groaned and sat up and stepped onto the cold flooring, then into her sandals. As late and everyone in the house- and else where- were either celebrating or mourning over loss of money as it was and they were, she doubted she would be missed. She slipped out of her room and walked down the corridors, not really making sure anyone saw her.

She was soon walking in the street under the watchful eye of the moon, towards her old home- there had been nothing to bury, so the old burnt home was left a shell like a grave. She wasn't sure if she was grateful for this or not. The air blew her hair into her face, as it wasnt put up anymore, and she constantly swatted it away so she could see better. She walked down the road. Eventually she walked up to her old home. She stepped onto the ashes, looking around. She could see a few things that weren't completely destroyed, but she couldn't bring herself to touch them- what if they broke? She kneeled down and looked at the ashes, and a tear slid down her cheek. "No one from the house died today, mother. The fight was wonderful though, father... Brother" she nodded and wiped away a stray tear. "I miss you..." She trailed off as she stood up, walking through the burned house. She ended up where she assumed her room used to be. "I met an old friend today... The jewler's daughter. The one I said showed me the birds..." She smiled as the gleam of somthing caught her eye. She leaned down, dusting the ashes away and picking up a small golden charm. It was her mothers neaklace- it had been a gift from Publius on her mom's wedding. She smiled and hugged it to her chest. She must have wandered into her mother's room, not her own.

As she stood up to go back, she realized just how charred she looked, with ash all over her feet. She sighed and began to walk back. Eventually she got back- abit a little worse for wear. She stopped by the slaves quarters. "Hey" she wispered to the air, just so if anyone wanted to strike up a conversation in wouldn't be uninvited. "Didn't think so" she wispered into the medalian in her hand.

The next day, Silvia was busy preparing for the dinner party she and her father would attend at the house of Vala. Usually client visits wern't anything to get nervious about, all it was involved simple charm and social knowlege to help get the customer what they wanted for their outfits. This time however, it was different since this visit would be with a personal friend.

Fixing her light blue colored tunic in the mirror, Silvia brushed a piece of hair away from her face having one last look in the mirror. Wearing simple gold hoops from her workshop she made sure to dress pleasing enough for the occasion but not too elegant to outdo her patrician customers.

"take care to stand tall Silvia" her mother said peaking her head into her bedroom "who knows who you might meet there" she said with a mischivous wink.

"mother!" she glaired turning around "will you please?!"

"what?" she said shugging her sholders innocently as she helped her daughter with her necklace "Im only looking out for whats best for my daughter. This is a gladatorial school after all Im sure some patrons are going to be there at the dinner party." Any social events buisness or not her mother always got excited to have her daughter meet boys her age. It was in moments like these Silvia realized where she got her Ambitious personality from.

"Do you have any shame? Im going here to help a friend, not to meet men!" she said sternly. Silvia had to admit though that it did get kind of lonely working all day with just her father.

"oh?" her mother concluded elbowing her with a grin. It was as if she was able to read her mind at that very moment "whatever you say my dear."

After her mother left, Silvia sat at her vanity with a sigh. Looking down at the box carrying Arcadius' belt she opened it with new found curiocity. Looking over the custom made item she had to admit that her father had outdone himself this time. Hopefully Lady Vala would find this gift as suitable for Arcadius.

Aurelia brushed her hair again, humming a tune that reverberated through the walls. Today they would have guests. She tied her hair back and smiled into the mirror. Today would be fun. She had already informed the kitchen to prepare basically a feast. She hadn't really invited any people, but she planned to have all of the winners of the games and whoever they chose to bring to dinner. It was almost time, anyway. She stood up and fiddled with her clothing, again, makeing sure she was still in order.

"Almost dinner!" Her voice rang through the walls of the house as her footsteps stepped sloftly down the halls. She walked towards the slaves quarters, her mantra of 'almost dinner!' still sounding. Her steps kicked up with purpose when she spotted the Doctore. "Our four winners and their guests, please. Tell them to send as many as they would like. I had the kitchen prepare more than enough food" she laughed. She was still smiling- and it was a mostly ginuine smile. There was still the edges of the smile though, that teatered. She had woken up with that medallion still clutched in her fingers, and as she was still proud of the victorious, her visit to the burned home was still saddening. "Of course" he said, and she turned to go. "And don't forget to come as well!" She said over her back as she walked towards the dinning area.

After arriving at the gates of the Villa with her father, Silvia stood at the enterence in trepidation. Holding the intricate wooden box that protected the belt her father had another chest on his sholders that had encased more exceptional pieces for the family to see. Recalling those memories made Silvia strangely relax and stand tall with newfound excitment. "dont worry bright eyed Silvia..." her father whispered to her as they crossed a small courtyard to the enterence hall "everything with turn out alright" As a servant greeted them with a polite bow she could smell the wonderful aromas coming from the kitchen...was that Lamb? Such olfactory notes brought Silvia back to her childhood at Grandmothers, in a way reasuring her that she was going to have an enjoyable time at the house of Vala with her old friend.