Chapter Two

We were walking to our holding cells—temporary holding places for future gladiators. Many of these were spread out in the city of New Titania. My holding cell consisted of a bucket for a restroom, a boar skin for a bed, and a stool to sit on.

I knew that soon we would be sorted out and separated into different activities in the coliseum. Most would become standard gladiators and fight each other for 'glory and honor'. Some, however would be hunter class gladiators, those who fought mythical creatures such as the minotaur or Cyclopes.

If you survived long enough and had sufficient skill, you could get one of the Titans to make you their champion, fighting in the name of that Titan or Titaness. In those cases, you would be granted a salary to buy food, weapons, armor, etc. You would fight higher ranked monsters and gladiators.

If you survive for that long, and if you have enough money and fame, you may be granted freedom of the coliseum. Only those with strength, skill, and brains could accomplish this.

However, I do not wish to do that. As soon as my chance arises, I'm outa here.

We trained and trained for two weeks. Our Titan keepers taught us to fight and kill without mercy. I was in the middle of a training session with another gladiator when the instructor came up to me and said, "You are wanted in my office."

Once I heard this, I wondered who wanted me, and what their purpose was for summoning me. Perhaps this could be my chance for escape? It wouldn't be very hard, I could just charge out and go into hiding.

As I was thinking of ways I could escape my captors, we reached the warden's office. And sitting in a chair in front of the warden was the Titaness Rhea! 'hmm' I thought. 'Rhea wishes something of me. Perhaps I could convince her to help me escape.'.

Rhea motioned for me to sit and for the warden and instructor to leave. I sat in a chair as the goons left.

Rhea started the conversation bluntly, saying, "I wish for you to be my champion".

'What the hell?' I thought. 'I haven't done anything except train and sleep. Why would Rhea ask me?'

"You have a spark in you, something that tells me that you have much potential to bring me glory. If you accept, I can take you out of this pig sty and give you proper housing and diet. You would be free to roam my Palace and the Market if you desire to."

"I gladly accept your most generous offer, Lady Rhea." I said, thinking, 'Yes! The perfect escape plan!'

And so we signed my release forms and teleported to Rhea's Palace. It was truly a magnificent sight. The outside gardens were beautifully trimmed to perfection with flowers budding all 'round in all colors. In the middle of the pathway up to the Palace, a marble statue of Kronos and Rhea together. The Palace itself was very impressive to the eyes. It was made of pure gold, windows of silver and black. The doors were twelve feet tall carved with scenes of great battles and heroes. The inside, however, was even more dazzling.

The ceiling was an oval shape, with chandeliers hanging within ten feet of one another. The floors were made of marble and obsidian. A staircase starting twenty feet from the door lead up to the second floor. Golden columns held up the ceiling from crushing the inhabitants.

The dining hall was amazing. There were burning braziers in every corner. The table was of marble and the chairs of gold.

The bedrooms each held king-sized beds and soft-looking golden sheets and mattress. Too bad I would scram as soon as possible, this place I could live in.

Rhea started, "You will be staying in this room. My servants will bring you new clothes and a sword. They will be here within the hour. Dinner is at seven o'clock sharp, you are expected to be there at the second."

"Yes ma'me" I replied.

"Very well, rest now" She said and closed the door. I sighed, this was going to be hard if I expected to fight the new Titan Empire by myself. I looked out my room's window and observed the countryside. I would stay the night and then slip out the next.

I lay down and took a quick nap. When I woke up, I had these funny looking clothes that looked fit for a clown. I sighed once again, put them on, and made my way to the dining area. I checked my watch. 6:50. I had some time to hang out. Although, hanging out is kind of hard when there's nothing to do. So I waited ten minutes.

Promptly at seven, Rhea popped in and sat at the table. I sat at the other end of the table. We ate Pork chop and vegetables. The dinner was eaten in silence. I then headed to my bedroom to sleep. My sleep was dreamless.

I woke up to find golden armor with the symbol of Rhea on it on top of my dresser. I assumed she wanted me to wear it, so I put it over my sleeping gown and grabbed the sword belt witch held my new sword.

I made my way to the courtyard and found a burly man in his twenties at least, hacking and slashing at training dummies. I could tell this man was a veteran. He noticed me and made quick work of the remaining dummies before acknowledging me.

He held out his hand to me and said, "Roy, Lady Rhea's personal guard. Nice to meet you".

I replied, saying, "Perseus, sir. So when do I start training."

"Why not now" the man, Roy said.

That day Roy taught me special moves for advanced gladiators to use against other individuals. For dinner we had rib-eye steak and mashed potatoes. I excused myself and ventured to my room.

Late in the night, I awoke, making as small noise as possible to not attract attention. I gathered up my extra clothes, and my sword, leaving my armor as it would be too heavy, noisy, and easy to see at any time.

I then made my way out the door, down the pathway, and into the fields. From there, I ran. I ran as fast as I could, not stopping to rest. I kept running until dawn could be seen clearly. I jumped into a ditch covered with moss and foliage. I realize that I'm now winded from all the running. I decide I should rest and gain some strength back.

After about twenty minutes of resting, I get up and walk carefully, not wanting to be caught and brought in for execution. I continued walking into a forest cautiously, knowing there could be anything lurking in these woods. I unsheathed my sword from my belt. I heard a snap of a twig, and spin around to find two men wearing black suits of armor. They see me and unsheathe their swords. I get in a defensive position. They charge toward me. The first raises his sword high above his head. 'Too easy' I thought. I swung my sword low and decapitated his right leg. He fell with a cry of agony. The second halted his charge and watched me cautiously, not wanting the same fate as his comrade. We stalk each other for a while, watching each other's stance and weapon. In this time, I watched the woods around us for any more black armored men. There were none. Satisfied, I engaged in one on one combat with the remaining man. I could tell this one was more experienced than his fallen comrade.

The battle lasted for two minutes, neither man gaining the upper hand. Then, the black armored man slipped on a water-crested rock and knocked himself out. I walked over to the man and searched him for any valuables he may have had. I found fifteen golden coins on both of their bodies. I decided to put on some of the black armor they carried with them. Relieved that I may now not have to worry about enemies too much, I dwelt on the thought of how much had changed in such short a time. People still rode in carriages and carts around the world. Gun powdered weapons were still in short supply, and only given to High King Kronos's guards. If there was anything that didn't change, I still had horrid luck.

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