I live! Woo. Have two new chapters. Will try to have more regular updates going forward.
A few months later, it was March. Everything had gone so fast this year. Finally, it was time for the Spartacus play, and Connor and Rider had their work cut out for them. But, tonight was opening night. So far, it had gone well. Now, however, it was crunch time.
Connor took nervous breaths in his hiding place; it was almost time for the biggest scene of the play. The fourth act neared its end. Jeez, this play is long… He looked around the football field, watching as the Roman armies advanced toward them–they were surrounded. This production was stunningly huge. There was a collective groan from the audience as the death scene of Varina, Spartacus's wife, took place. Chills went down his back as Connor heard Rider scream in anguish; Rider made a great Spartacus. Then, the troop blocks rang out with a sound like a marching army. That was their cue. Connor grabbed a spear, along with all the other rebels, and tense music began to play in time with the marching sound as they emerged from hiding behind props. It had taken them a week to choreograph this. The audience cheered.
The Roman armies formed into block-like formations and yelled taunts at the rebels. The rebel army formed up into a loose circle, hammering their swords and spears on their shields in time with the troop blocks. After a few moments, the main block of the rebels lifted their shields above their heads, forming a sort of wall. Connor ran out in front of the group, followed by Rider. Connor screamed a battle cry, and the music went wild as they led a charge through the Romans. Another group split off with Rider and went toward the second group of Romans.
The fight was quite realistic, but the Roman army out-numbered the Rebels. Several of the Romans fell, but many more of the rebel army fell. Despite a valiant effort, they overpowered the rebels. Eventually, they were surrounded by the Roman legions and forced to surrender. The audience was silent; the fight had lasted a few minutes, and the air was tense.
The football stadium went quiet as Connor, Rider, and the other rebels were chained up by the Roman army and led onto the raised stage. An ornately armored Roman, Julius Caesar, held open a scroll as he stood over the rebels. With a hidden microphone amplifying him, he said, "I bring a message from your master... Marcus Licinius Crassus... commander of Italy. By command of his most merciful excellency, your lives are to be spared. Slaves you were... and slaves you remain." Chains rattled among the prisoners. "But the terrible penalty of crucifixion has been set aside on the single condition that you identify the body or the living person of the slave called Spartacus."
Rider looked around tensely; the stage was silent except for the rattling of chains and the groans of the wounded slaves. Rider started to stand up and reveal himself, but Connor darted up first. With an unflinching look, he cried out, "I am Spartacus!" Rider's expression turned horrified as more and more of the slaves stood behind him and repeated Connor's words. They all yelled it over and over, creating a strange clamor. Connor shouted again, "I am Spartacus!"
The actor playing Caesar looked over them and said into his hidden microphone. "So be it. Crucify them all." He eyed Connor and Rider; they had been the first two to stand up, and one of them never said anything.
The stadium lights went dim, and the pitch was covered in twilight. The director announced, "Ladies and Gentlemen, that is the end of Act 4. We will resume with the final act in 30 minutes." The crowd applauded and cheered for nearly a minute, and then dispersed from the stands to stretch their legs, buy concessions, and use the restroom.
Connor waved slightly up at his family and friends and then set about preparing the stage for the next act, along with the other actors. He and Rider clapped each other on the back at one point. This had gone great! That was the part of the play that had caused everyone to be the most nervous.
⁂ ⁂ ⁂
At the end of the intermission, Greg, Amaya, and Romeo watched as the lights came back up in the stadium. "After the Battle of the Silarius River, some thirty-six thousand rebels died during the battle. After the battle was lost, six thousand of the surviving slaves were rounded up and crucified along the Appian Way between the city of Rome and Capua. This slave rebellion ultimately led to reforms in the ways slaves were viewed and treated in ancient Rome. Spartacus did not sacrifice and labor in vain; in the coming decades, Romans enacted a constitution protecting slaves from unfair treatment by their owners and made it a capital crime to murder a slave that was infirm or old. Unfortunately, many historians believe Spartacus and his closest advisors died in the battle, but the events you're about to see are also possible."
The lights came on to their full brightness, revealing the stage was the only thing remaining on the field. Roman guards held Connor and Rider (Antonius and Spartacus). Caesar stood atop a set of stairs leading up the stage. The narrator continued, "The Romans spared Antonius and Spartacus from crucifixion, and they have been brought back to Rome by Caesar."
Caesar spoke, "You know, Spartacus, you and your friend would have been crucified with the rest, had it not been for one of my men recognizing you. He saw you when you were still gladiators. It did leave me wondering, though. Why did you allow your companions to bring on their deaths?"
Rider, whose makeup had been changed to show him bruised and bloody, replied, "For two years, they were free men, Caesar. They wanted to die like men, not slaves."
Connor, similarly bloodied and bruised, shouted, "And who better to do it for than for the man who would give everything for them! Spartacus was our liberator."
Caesar scowled at Connor. "They made a foolish decision. But, now, I'm going to allow the two of you to make a smart one." He snapped his fingers, and the guards formed into a circle around them. "Give them swords." Two of the soldiers threw short swords down in front of Antonius and Spartacus.
The crowd was tense as they waited for Caesar to continue. Connor nervously picked one of them up, but Rider kept staring Caesar down. Caesar said, "The two of you will fight. For our entertainment. Just as gladiators."
Rider asked, "And if we refuse?"
Caesar said, "Then, I will crucify you both. The winner will still be crucified, but at least the loser will have a quick death. You two are friends, yes? One of you grant the other mercy." He laughed cruelly.
Rider looked over at Connor, and they shared a tense look. Rider picked up his sword. Connor came at him quickly, and they separated. Fake blood had stained Rider's tunic, and he looked up at Connor. The audience gasped. The Roman guards jeered and taunted them.
Connor seemed near to tears. "I won't let them crucify you!" He came at Rider again, and their swords clashed several times, and they fought, swords ringed as they clashed. It was a hot night, and sweat had already been pouring from their bodies at the end of act 4, so now they were drenched in sweat, and it shined brightly in the stage lights.
Neither one landed a blow until Rider ducked and pushed Connor away. Holding Connor's sword arm, Rider immobilized him, saying, "What are you doing! Do you realize how long it takes to die on the cross?"
Connor broke free and pushed Rider away, crying, "I don't care!" They came back at each other fiercely, grunting and breathing heavily. The Roman soldiers watched closely, and Caesar stood from his vantage point, smiling at the fight.
Finally, Rider parried a stab from Connor, sending Connor's sword flying away. Connor dove for his sword, but Rider tackled him. The crowd gasped as they struggled for a moment, but finally, Rider immobilized Connor on the ground. "Forgive me, Antonius." He brought his sword down toward Connor at an angle, concealing it from the audience.
Connor went stiff, and Rider let him fall. Connor bit the small packet he'd had inside his mouth, popping it. He made the liquid leak from his mouth and cried out in pain. It was red food coloring in red grape juice, but from the stands, it looked exactly like blood. Defeated, Connor choked out, "I.. Love you, Spartacus, like I loved my own brother."
Rider cradled Connor gently in his arms. "And I loved you, Antonius. You were my best friend." And Connor went still. Rider gently sat him down, and a look of utter despair came over Rider's face. Everything was utterly silent for several moments. Caesar's face dropped – this display had taken some of the enjoyment from the fight. He stepped down from the stairs he'd been on, and two guards followed him into the circle. Rider looked up at Caesar, with pure hatred and contempt. For a few seconds, it seemed Rider would leap at him, but he took a breath and said, "Here's your victory. He'll come back… He'll come back, and he'll be millions!"
Caesar looked around and then back to Rider. "I wonder what Spartacus would say… If he knew Antonius's wife and child were slaves in my household."
Rider blinked and started to say something. He stood up, and two guards nearby restrained him. He blinked, and some of his sadness was gone.
Caesar started to walk away, ordering, "Crucify him."
The lights on the stage went dark, and that was the end. A shorter act than the rest, but it was necessary. The crowd stood and applauded. After several seconds, the lights came back up, and Connor stood up. Connor, Rider, and Caesar went to the front of the stage, bowing. The director came back over the speakers. "Ladies and Gentlemen, continue applauding for the rest of our cast." All the other actors and the crew came out in front of the stage to bow.
"The theater club thanks you, the audience, for buying tickets and attending the play, and we would like to name our cast, from the main characters down to the extras and the crew. These names can be found in your program as well." She started reading off names. Connor and Rider stood back up, Rider kissed Connor on the cheek, and they clasped hands over their heads when their names were called, bowing together once again. Connor felt himself blushing from the smooch as the director tiresomely announced the names of the nearly two hundred cast members and thanked the audience for their support once more before it was over.
Once the audience dispersed, everything blurred together for Connor. In the next few hours, he helped stow away the props and clean up the stadium, and then afterward, the night became a celebration with the rest of the cast.
⁂ ⁂ ⁂
Later that night, Greg woke up to a call from Romeo. "Greg?"
Greg grunted back. "hmm?"
Romeo sounded distressed. "I need your help. Something funny is going on up here. I've got Amaya awake already, and she's waking up Connor. Something is wrong with the ship."
Greg rubbed his eyes tiredly and sat up. "Alright. How can I help?"
Romeo said, "Throw on your slippers, and I'll teleport you aboard the ship."
Greg stood up and sighed. "Alrighty."
⁂ ⁂ ⁂
Ten minutes later, Romeo looked up as Amaya stepped off the transporter. "Ah, you're here. Greg, open the comm line to HQ." Greg nodded and clicked a few buttons. There was a click, and Romeo said, "Connor, you on?"
Connor's voice tiredly came over the line. "Yep. Catboy here. What's the issue up there?"
Romeo said, "Good. We're experiencing some strange behavior with power systems... Energy generation is at a 3% deficit and increasing..."
"That's odd." Amaya squinted and walked over to a console as Romeo and Greg continued examining their console.
"Yeah, the main power return is acting unusual, but everything seems–" Romeo was interrupted when a quiet alarm sounded, and Amaya raised an eyebrow.
Amaya looked at her console and mumbled, "The sensors indicate... That we're being bombarded by a field of intense radiation!"
Romeo's eyes widened. "Shields up!" He looked up at the Anomaly and then back to Greg and Amaya.
Greg tapped a few commands and nervously observed, "Shields up... Energy loss is increasing. 9%."
Amaya cried, "The radiation bombardment is unaffected. It must be something aboard the ship." She tapped a few buttons and exclaimed, "I've got it localized... It's on the bridge."
Romeo poked his chin and picked up his coffee mug. "I wonder if it's one of our artificial gravity plating units... Robot is up there." He tapped a button on a console. "Romeo to Bridge. Robot, check the deck plating up there. I think we've got a radiation leak in one of the gravity panels."
Robot replied over the intercom, "Yes, Master. I believe I can pinpoint the issue. There is an area of high thermal energy near the auxiliary communications panel."
A louder alarm sounded, and the computer declared, "Danger! Lethal radiation levels! Fatal exposure in twenty minutes."
Over the intercom, Catboy said, "That doesn't sound good…"
The three of them exchanged nervous looks before Romeo said, "Uh... Prepare to cut power to the bridge. This definitely isn't good, whatever it is."
Amaya nodded and said, "Alright, Greg, grab a screwdriver, we'll have to take a panel off the wall."
Greg nodded as he started toward the toolbox, and the last thing Romeo remembered was a bright flash coming from the console next to Greg and then a loud rushing sound.
