Two days later, Kerovas walked once again on the sand of the ludus by Batiatus' side. The lanista gestured for Oenomaus to approach, "Doctore, this is Kerovas, he will work with you in training Ashur and Indus". The tall Numidian blinked, "Dominus?", was all he said, as he didn't dare question his master, but his puzzlement was written on his face in bold letters.
"Dear friend has decided to patronize them both and wants him to teach them fighting style other than the Thraex style they are learning", Batiatus explained, "And I think it's excellent idea: those two are not at the same level as others, so anything that can increase their chances of victory is welcome", he added.
Oenomaus nodded, "Your will, my hands". "Good. Now get to work". Kerovas nodded as well, though it was only a small nod, nothing like the deference he reserved for his domina, "Dominus". As the master went back to the house, the younger slave turned to doctore, "Shall I begin training the recruits now, or would you rather have them start with the usual routine and have my additional lesson after lunch?".
The older man thought about it for a moment, "I think it better to have them start now: no reason to waste time", he answered, walking towards the weapon rack, "So, different style, uh?". "Yes: I was trained by dominus' satelles, he was quite a good gladiator in Rome once and before that, he was member of army in his homeland".
"If he was so good, why was he sold, then?". Kerovas smirked, "He fucked lanista's wife and daughter". Oenomaus' eyes went wide as dinner plates, "And he wasn't killed?". "My dominus offered to buy him for twice the value and his former owner's greed was too great to let such an opportunity pass him by".
"I see. But isn't your dominus worried he could do the same thing again?". The younger man shook his head, "Domina has no interest in him, she has eyes only for another man. As for dominus' wife, she has…Different tastes, if you catch meaning", he said with a mischievous grin as he placed his hands on his chest to imitate a pair of big breasts. "Really?". "Yes". "Ah", doctore was clearly surprised by that revelation, but shook it off and called, "Ashur, Indus! Come here!".
The two recruits quickly obeyed, wooden swords and shields still in hand. "This is Kerovas, he will train you every morning for...", Oenomaus trailed off and looked at Kerovas, "For how long, exactly?". "Until the day of Test". "If they survive that long", he said with obvious skepticism.
"They will learn and they will prove themselves worthy of receiving the Mark of the Brotherhood, or my domina will be quite disappointed in me and I don't want to disappoint her", Kerovas said, his voice gaining an edge as he looked at the recruits pointedly, "And neither do you, I hope". Indus shook his head, "Of course not! We will make her proud, you'll see", he said in a rush, clearly intimidated by Kerovas' size and burning eyes.
Ashur for his part wasn't impressed, but he still seemed nervous as he looked at the taller man, "You came here two days ago", he noted, "With Flaminia". "I did". "Why isn't she with you? How is she? Did your domina hurt her?". Kerovas arched an eyebrow, "I fail to see what business it is of yours".
"I...It's just that she is nice person and...". "You're worried about her". "Yes". A corner of his mouth quirked upward, "How noble of you. And you have no reason to worry: she is in full health, safely at home". The Syrian relaxed at that and smiled, "Good". "Enough wasting time now: we have lot of work to do".
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Morning passed quickly, at least to Kerovas, but to Indus and Ashur it lasted a lifetime: their new teacher was faster and stronger than they were used to and they ended up battered, bruised and exhausted, because Kerovas was not the type to pull blows, though he took care to never hit them in the face since he had promised his domina not to.
On the bright side, they learnt three new moves in a style they had never seen before, named 'ittou', or something similarly exotic. The tall warrior seemed satisfied with his students and nodded with a small smile, "You are taking it seriously. Good, I have no patience for fools and no desire to waste my time. Lesson is finished for today, but I expect you to practice more this afternoon and tomorrow, I will teach you some moves for unarmed combat".
The Macedon blinked, "We don't need to learn unarmed combat, we always have weapons", he said. "What will you do, if your opponent manages to disarm you?". "Oh. I hadn't thought of it". "Mind is the most important weapon fighters have at their disposal", Kerovas told him, then he shot a look at Barca and smirked, "But there are exceptions".
Ashur cleared his throat, looking slightly embarrassed, "Will Flaminia accompany you tomorrow?". The smirk widened, "She is busy, but if you do a good enough job with your training, I may convince her to come". Indus brightened at that, "When?". "It depends on your progresses. Now go and eat, I'll see you tomorrow", the taller man replied, turning to leave. "Please, bring her my greetings", the Syrian said, instantly echoed by Indus. "Bring her mine too!". "I will".
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In the following weeks, it became clear that the additional training was bearing fruit: both Ashur and Indus were improving, learning to rely on their speed and agility more than on brute strength and using the techniques they had been taught to defeat their opponent, or rather, try to, since Kerovas was always two steps ahead of them.
Their progresses were more evident when they sparred with the others in the afternoon, to the point that one day, Oenomaus decided to see just how much that training had worked by pairing Ashur against Auctus.
The gladiator smirked as he moved to stand before the Syrian, "I will make you eat shit, little cunt", he declared confidently. "Not great improvement than eating piss at lunch", Ashur commented, hiding a grin and twirling the practice sword with feigned goofiness. "You will eat that too". "We'll see".
Auctus lunged forward, spear at the ready, but the recruit quickly sidestepped and kicked him in the back of the knee, bringing him down, then he struck him on the back of the head with the shield, took a step forward, twirled on his axis and struck the gladiator again, this time in the face with his heel, not hard enough to knock out a tooth, but enough to make him spit blood.
The young man wanted to play, though, to repay the gladiator of the many humiliations he'd had to suffer at his hands, so he made room for Auctus to get back up and twirled the wooden sword again, this time with practiced ease.
The older man was obviously pissed off and the hand that held the spear was clenched so tightly that his knuckles paled, "Fucking cunt!", he snarled, trying to impale his spear into the Syrian's chest, but Ashur slammed it aside with his shield as he had learned and stepped closer to the other man, thrusting the pommel of the sword against his stomach and then upward against his chin.
Again, he stepped back to allow his opponent to regain his balance and the gladiator made a feint to the right only to then lunge to the left, but he was ready: he waited until the last second, bent and thrust forward with the flat of his sword, hitting his opponent in the groin, then placed the shield flat above his head and stood abruptly, sending the gladiator sprawled on the ground.
As a final touch, while Auctus was still dazed by the blow, Ashur knelt and placed the tip of his sword on the other's throat, finally allowing himself to smile, "I am fucking victor!", he shouted with triumph.
A stunned silence fell on the training ground, nobody could believe that the Syrian, a mere recruit, had been able to defeat none other than Auctus, one of the senior gladiators and among the best of House of Batiatus.
Gannicus' loud laughter broke the spell, "Seems like you're not as good as you used to be, if recruit can get you on your back like whore about to be fucked", he addressed his fellow gladiator, then moved forward to clap Ashur on the back, "You did well, for fucking recruit". The Syrian felt a rush of pride at those words: he had just been complimented by the champion! Now all it needed to make this day perfect would be to...
The sound of enthusiastic clapping came from the balcony above their heads and looking up, he saw that his prayer had been answered before he could even finish the thought: Flaminia stood there, beaming and looking straight at him with a warm, proud smile that made his heart race like a wild horse.
He raised his wooden sword and smiled back and she blew him a kiss, but then turned as Batiatus came to stand beside her and with obvious reluctance, she followed the lanista inside the house, leaving Ashur quite disappointed.
"Enough wasting time!", doctore ordered, making his whip snap on the ground, "Auctus, spar with Barca. Ashur, with Dagan. Go back to work", he said in his usual brisk tone, though he was secretly impressed by Ashur's progresses: he would have never placed a bet on such an outcome, when he had paired the Syrian with Aucuts and yet...
He would have to keep an eye on that recruit.
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That evening, while Ashur, Indus and Dagan, the only recruits out of eight to still live, were resting in their cell, sitting with their backs against the cold steel of the bars, the outer door opened and a man was forcibly tossed in the cell next to their own by a guard. The stranger was tall and had a bulky frame, with long, wild black hair and a short, unkempt beard. "Fucking Gaul!", the guard spat, locking the door again as the newcomer rose from the ground and sat up.
"Another sacrifice for the gods of the arena", Ashur told Indus, smirking. Dagan looked the stranger over for a moment, "Weak and flabby, looks like a cheap whore", he commented spitefully in his native language. His countryman burst out laughing at that, then composed himself as he turned to address the new arrival, "Dagan thinks you've form to...Even odds in your favor". "Odds?", the stranger repeated, frowning.
"Do you know where you are, friend?", Indus asked him, worried. "The house of Batiatus, trainer of gladiators", the other man answered, revealing a gruff and raspy voice. "Yes. You stand among the slaves as recruits, bound by pain and blood", Ashur said, taking a handful of sand and pouring it on Dagan's open palm, "Together we toil under the cruel sting of doctore's whip".
"There were eight of us when training began", Indus added and Ashur's good mood evaporated in an instant as he gritted his teeth in mixed anger and sadness, remembering the fallen companions. "Now we're but three".
The newcomer smirked confidently, "Four", he stated. The Syrian watched him for a moment and chuckled at the resolute expression on his face, "And how are we so blessed by our swelling number, hm? By what means did you find yourself among our storied company?". "My own".
Indus' eyes widened in shock, "You willingly present ass for fucking?!". "No", Ashur shook his head, never taking his gaze off of the newcomer, "No, young Indus. Do you not see it in his eyes? This is a man with dreams of blood and glory". "I doubt he'll live to see the Test", the Macedon replied.
"Test?", the stranger asked, confused. "Our last trial", the younger Syrian explained, "We must all face one of the seasoned men and demonstrate to the dominus what we have learned. Live and receive the Mark of the Brotherhood, proving yourself worthy of the arena". The Gaul's lips curved in a proud and confident smirk once again, "I will stand upon that sand".
Dagan grinned, "Shitty little man", he told him, "You won't even have the strength left to suck my cock". "Uh, he longs to call you brother", Ashur mistranslated for the newcomer, "And join you as gladiator". The Gaul shot a look at Dagan, noticing the mocking grin on his face and understood that something had gone lost in translation, "Tell him the feeling is well shared".
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Thraex:it is one of the typical gladiators fighting styles. A Thraex gladiator was equipped with a small round shield called 'parma' or 'parmula' and a short sword called 'sica'. The Thraex fighting style was suited for men who had long and toned bodies, resembling the tall and slender Thracian warrior and they fought with a fast paced and agile style.
Author note: The alternative sword-fighting style Kerovas is teaching Ashur and Indus is inspired by the ancient japanese fighting style known as "Ittoryu" (literally 'one sword style').