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forget I said that.
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Despite their crying, eventually Arik and Scales both went to sleep, each suffering nightmares. In the end, they were thankfully woken up from the horrible dreams by the crowing of the archaeopteryx and got ready for breakfast, somewhat reluctantly. When Scales finally got downstairs, she found Arik waiting for her as usual. He obviously hadn't gotten much sleep that night. He looked up as she approached and couldn't help grimacing. "I look that bad, huh?" Scales asked. "I imagine I look no better." Mumbled Arik. Scales sat down, and they both ate for a few moments, tentatively. In the end, Arik broke the ice. "Scales, I'm sorry for last night." "It was perfectly understandable." She muttered. "No, really, I'm sorry. Just because my best friend was killed before me was no reason for me to act like I did." Arik said. "Yes it is." Said Scales slowly. "You had every right to act that way. You obviously cared about Hercules and were hurt by his sudden demise. You have no need to apologize." Arik frowned. "Then why do I feel I should be apologizing to you? I mean, I worry that I hurt your feelings back there." "You didn't hurt my feelings." Scales lied. She didn't plan on revealing her feelings to Arik. Chances were he didn't feel the same way, and she would just be hurting both of them. "I'm fine, really." "Then why are your eyes as red as mine, like from crying most of the night?" asked Arik. "I couldn't get much sleep. That implosion kept haunting me." She lied again. "Well, it haunted me too. Hercules was supposed to live a lot longer than that and die when someone laced the inside of his jacket with Hydra venom." He hesitated. "What happened yesterday hurt me a lot. And it'll hurt for a while longer, I think." He paused again. "I will try to honor Hercules' memory by finishing what we've begun. We will gather the remaining Rubies. And I will kill Sauron." "Sounds like a good plan to me." Said Scales. "I suppose I should stop moping around and find out where the next time period is. Maybe it'll be somewhere nice, where we can relax for a little bit." He pulled out the Master Ruby and examined it. The spinning globe appeared on it once more. It stopped spinning and zoomed in to Italy. An X appeared near the middle of it, and the words 48 BC appeared. Arik actually smiled. "Well, what do you know, I ask for something, I get it! We're going to Rome!" Scales cheered up a little as well. "Ooh, I've always wanted to go there! Are we going to see Julius Caesar?" Arik nodded. "Of course, this time period is when he ruled. In fact-" "Let me guess, you're close friends?" Scales said, grinning. Arik smiled, nodding. "Exactly! I helped him a bit during the campaign in Gaul, and also with a few of his renovations to the city. I don't really approve of the slave labor, but it's not like I can convince them to change tradition, right?" "Right. Can we go now?" Scales said eagerly. "Not until you finish your-" Scales devoured her steak before he could finish his sentence. "-Breakfast. Jesus, you're fast." "As I said before, I'm a lady of many talents." She said proudly. "Can we go already, if you're full?" "Of course I'm full! Come on." He said. He took her hand. Scales' heart fluttered for a second. "Chronos Control!" They vanished in a flash of light.
Our heroes reappeared in the Time Stream. Arik quickly lead Scales over to a strand of light. "Hey Arik, you said something about Rome being what you were looking for. What did you mean?" Scales asked. Arik pressed the proper year, causing the menu to pop up. He looked over his shoulder at Scales. "Well, Rome was a very good place to go if you wanted to relax. They have excellent service in all the shops and restaurants, and many ways of enjoying oneself. They have a complete spa that can't be beat! And then of course, there is the greatest form of entertainment, the Coliseum." "Ah, the Coliseum." Said Scales dreamily. "I've always wanted to fight in there." Arik snorted in laughter. "You wish! Only criminals or slaves can be gladiators, and you are neither." "Ah, man!" said Scales disappointedly. Arik sighed. "Well, maybe I can talk with Caesar, we'll see about it." "Okay." She said. Arik punched through the menus and inserted the Ruby into the hole. He grabbed Scales' hand. "Here we go! Chronos Control!" They warped away to ancient Rome.
They reappeared on top of a building. Scales looked out in wonder at the ancient city alive before her. The buildings were made out of marble and clay, many with either wooden roofs or ones made of red shingles. The roads were made of tiles, and many marvelous statues abounded everywhere. Humans and anthropomorphs walked the streets together, with no visible conflict. The city seemed to be built on a hill, with more and more buildings sprawling out all around. The structures got greater and greater as they got up the hill, culminating in a magnificent temple to Jupiter at the top. "Wow, this is wonderful!" she said. Arik frowned. "Not that I don't enjoy the view, but I just realized we're on top of a building." "Yeah, so?" Scales asked, peering around at Rome and trying to spot the Coliseum. "Well, in all the times I've been here, I've always materialized in the square with that bare-naked Minerva statue. Why did we show up here?" he asked rhetorically. Scales shrugged as she turned around. "There may have been a mistake in the system. No transport is infallible, it was probably just a glitch or something that we showed up here for once." "I guess so." Arik relented. He looked around. "I suppose we should head for the Imperial Palace. We should get down from here so we can start off." "Why bother? It would be much easier to jump from rooftop to rooftop. We wouldn't have to deal with any street traffic or possible muggers." Suggested Scales. Arik looked at the nearest building. "I don't doubt that we could easily make the trip by jumping, but what's to keep people from noticing us?" Scales shrugged. "Who cares whether we're caught or not? I for one think we could just warp directly to the palace if you pointed it out to me, but I don't want to startle anyone when we reappear. Going across the rooftops would be faster and cooler than just walking. Besides, I'd love to race you." Arik started grinning. "You're challenging me to a race?" "You know it!" Scales said. "All right, I accept!" said Arik. "The palace is the building with the gold spire sticking out from a large white dome. Can you see it from here?" Scales looked around. "Is it the one next to that building with the three stories?" "That's the one. It's not far from here, so it shouldn't be a long race. Now, are you ready?" asked Arik. "Sure, let's just get into position." Said Scales. They walked to the edge of the rooftop, facing the palace building. They crouched down. "Ready?" "Ready!" "On your mark...get set...go!" They were off, jumping across the gap to the next rooftop. The next roof sloped down and forwards. They slid down the incline, Scales taking the lead. She jumped from the end of the incline, falling into an open market. She bounced off the top of a tent, bouncing off another tent, and bouncing off a canopy to land on the next rooftop. She ran forwards and saw Arik catching up out of the corner of her eye. They ran to the end of the building and jumped off, finding another open market. Scales had still been slightly in the lead, so she hit and bounced off the first tent before Arik could. She bounced off another two tents before bouncing from a canopy to another rooftop. This building was curved like a quarter of a circle. Scales ran along the curve, jumping from the end of the building and landing on a bridge coming out of a doorway on the building. She ran down the bridge, startling several people with Arik hot on her tail. When the bridge went into another building, Scales jumped up to the roof of that building and followed it to the left. She leaped off the end of the building and nearly fell to the streets. She grabbed onto some vines growing from the side of a nearby building and started climbing up the growth. Arik caught up to her and jumped out, grabbing the vines as well and climbing after her. Scales reached the top of the vine-covered wall and climbed up to the roof. She ran to the end of it and slid down the angled shingles there. She dropped from the shingles and landed on a bridge coming out of the building, startling more citizens. They were startled again when Arik dropped down only seconds later, racing down the bridge after Scales. Feeling a little adventurous, Scales jumped off the side of the bridge, landing on a lower one. Arik cursed her danger-loving spirit and jumped after her. Scales ran a ways down the bridge then jumped off again, landing on a canopy. She bounced off the canopy and landed on another one, and another one, and another one. She bounced from the last one to the top of a small building and ran across the roof, jumping to the next one across a gap. Seeing the next one ahead of her was too far to jump to, she leaped to the one on her right instead. She leaped from building to building after that, so caught up in the race that she didn't even care whether Arik was catching up or what she was going to do with her feelings for him. She hovered over a slightly larger gap to another building, then jumped down from there to a canopy. She bounced from the canopy to another rooftop. She ran across that rooftop and dropped down. She had reached the palace! Only a millisecond later, Arik dropped down as well. "What took you so long, slowpoke?" she asked jokingly. Arik didn't even look winded! "Well, I must admit that was a very good race Scales. I think you won, barely." "Nobody can touch this lizard! Hah!" Scales said, still a bit hyper from the run. "You do realize you've probably given a few civilians heart attacks with that little race." Arik said blandly. "They'll be fine. Now come on! Let's see Caesar!" she started walking towards the fabulous palace. Arik shook his head and followed her. Two chimpanzees that looked strangely familiar guarded the gates to the magnificent structure. They lowered their spears over the palace gates as Scales approached. "Halt! No trespassers are allowed!" said the monkey on the left. "That's right, so go away!" said the one on the right. Arik walked up. "Scales, I see you've met the guards." "Would they happen to be related to Champ and Chump?" Scales asked. Arik looked at them. "I'm not sure, but I think they're descendants. Let's see if their memory is better. Hey, Chomp and Chemp! It's me, Arik!" he said to the chimpanzees. The monkeys scratched their heads. "Eric? Do we know any Eric?" asked Chomp. "Uh, I don't think so." Said Chemp. Arik groaned. "For the love of God, not again! Look, I have a token from Caesar that'll clear everything up, okay?" Arik pulled out a gold coin with a hole in the center. "See? Caesar gave this to me as a token of safe passage, so I can pass through anywhere in the empire safely. Now can you let Scales and me in?" The chimpanzees looked at the coin. "No, I don't think so." Said Chomp. "Yeah, it looks fake." Said Chemp. Arik growled. "Fine, I'm sick of this! Chronos Control!" Everything took on a reddish tint as time froze. "There, that'll do it. Scales, come on, we're going in!" Scales, who had been unaffected by the time freeze, followed Arik as they pushed the guards' spears away and opened the doors. They went in and quickly closed them just before the time freeze wore off. Scales looked around the opulent interior. "Hey, plush digs!" Arik nodded. "Yes, Julius is a bit on the extravagant side, isn't he? Personally, I think he should lay off all the tapestries and those incredibly fancy and expensive wall hangings, but I can't just tell him that! We may be friends, but it would be rude to insult his choice in décor, now wouldn't it?" "Good point. So, where is the big guy?" Scales asked, tearing her eyes away from a large mosaic depicting Romulus and Remus founding Rome. "If I know Julius, he's resting in his throne room. Come on, let's go." Arik led the way through the magnificent palace, passing by guards who were more intelligent than the chimpanzees and were able to recognize Arik's token. After a few minutes of going through vast and beautiful rooms, they entered the throne room. It was, just like the rest of the palace, quite beautiful. The back wall opened onto a large courtyard filled with trees and flowers, lined by ornate columns. The floor tiles formed the pattern of a mosaic of a wolf nurturing two baby cheetahs. (For historical notation, the babies were Romulus and Remus.) A raised platform held a large and comfy couch. Lounging on the couch was a proud and handsome anthropomorph, a lion. He wore sandals large enough to fit his clawed feet, a purple toga, and a gilded laurel wreath. He was quite muscular, and had a long orange mane with purple streaks in it. The lion noticed Arik and pushed himself up on the couch. "Ah, Arik! 'Tis good to see you again!" Arik bowed a little. "Same here, Julius." The Emperor of Rome noticed Scales. "Ah, and who is this fine lady whose presence graces my throne room?" As Scales blushed a little, Arik elbowed her. "Bow a little!" he hissed. She quickly gave a little bow, and got up. "My name is Scales, Caesar. I've heard a lot about you." "I'm sure you have, my dear. For what reason have you come to see me, old friend?" Julius asked of Arik. Arik walked forward, pulling out the Master Ruby. "Scales and I are searching for jewels like this one here. We have reason to believe that one of these jewels is somewhere here in Rome." Caesar got off his couch and came down to the reptiles to get a closer look at the Ruby. His eyes lit up in recognition. "Hey, I've seen something just like that!" "Where?" Scales and Arik both asked hopefully. "There's a gray gemstone just like this one in the centerpiece of the big statue of Jupiter in the main temple. It's been there for decades before I started ruling, or so I hear." Julius explained. "Can we go there now?" Scales asked eagerly. "Sorry, but no." said Julius. "Why not?!" Arik demanded. "The temple's closed for the morning. Some ceremonial thingy, I don't really know the details. But nobody can go into Jupiter's temple until the ceremony's over, which should be sometime this afternoon." Said Caesar. Scales pouted. "What are we supposed to do until then?" The lion thought for a moment. "Well, I was planning on attending the gladiator fight in just a little while. Would you like to join me?" "Gladiator fight? OH! I'd love to see that!" Scales said, practically jumping around. Arik glanced at her, then shrugged. "Well, I guess if there's nothing else we can do." The Emperor seemed pleased. "Great! I've just got to get a few things ready, okay? Meet me out front." With that, he exited the room. Scales and Arik headed back for the main entrance, where they were glad to find that Chomp and Chemp were gone. After a few minutes of waiting outside the palace, a chariot with white horses pulled up, Caesar on the reins. "Nice horses." Scales commented. "Thank you, I bred them myself." Said Caesar. "It's one of my hobbies. Now get in, we don't want to be late for the fight! They're probably still working through the less interesting stuff. If we hurry, we can still make it!" "Well, though I am a little disappointed at missing the pregame show, I guess I'll have to settle for watching brutes beat the crap out of each other." Said Arik, climbing into the back of the chariot. "Woohoo! Senseless violence, here we come!" said Scales, leaping behind Arik. Caesar cracked the reins, and they were off! As they started through the streets of Rome, passing citizens who immediately kneeled when they saw who was at the head of the chariot, Arik thought of something. "Uh, Julius?" "Yes Arik?" Caesar asked. "You said the temple was closed. Would it happen to be guarded?" he asked. "By none other than some of the city's finest guards. Why?" asked Caesar. "Well, we're kind of trying to get the jewels before a bunch of villains can get to them. I think Arik's a little worried that they'll break into the temple and steal the jewel." Scales quipped. Julius chuckled. "There's no need to fear old friend, some of the guards at the temple were heroes in the Gaul campaign! Nothing will get past them while they're on watch."
Bodies of men and anthropomorphs in armor littered the courtyard in front of the temple of Jupiter, a large white portal lying open at the base of the great statue of the god of thunder. Sauron pounded on the temple doors. "Damn it, open already!" he shouted. There was no response from behind the thick doors. He growled and turned to his troops, still fresh from their slaughter against the Roman soldiers. "We need to get in the temple! Go back through the portal and get something big enough to knock down these doors, a captive three-horn or two should do the trick. Get it, and get it fast! There's no telling when those meddlers will get here." "At once, sir!" said a raptor. The dinosaur led a few others back down to the bloody courtyard. Sauron turned to the remaining soldiers. "Well, what are you waiting for? Let's try to get this thing open!" "But sir, couldn't you use that Temporal Implosion thingy to destroy the doors?" asked a Massopondylus. "The Implosion technique only works on living things, regrettably. Why do you think I couldn't get into the temple on our first sojourn?" Sauron said, keeping his temper down. "Well, can't you just use Chronos Control to move back or forward a day or two in the past to when this place might be open?" asked the same Massopondylus. Sauron paused, considering that comment. "Because there's a chance I would manifest right inside of a person standing where I was when I warped, killing me." He finally said. "Now enough questions, start pushing on those doors!" The dinosaurs saluted and started slamming into the door, causing it to budge just a tiny bit. Sauron sneered and looked out over the city. Pathetic life forms. How they had ever managed to evolve to this level was a mystery to Sauron. Well, soon enough he would have the power to erase them permanently from history and erect a timeline of his own. Soon enough...
"Like I said, there's no way these enemies of yours are getting past the guards. Ah, here we are!" said Caesar, slowing down the chariot. "Whoa, it's just like I imagined!" said Scales. The Coliseum looming over the three was no crumbling ruin like in the present, but a bright, vivid structure! The whole thing was a huge circular amphitheater, with lots of arched windows to let people wandering through the corridors within the building's walls see where they were going. A great arch with a raised portcullis allowed entry to the Coliseum. A few valets waited near the entrance to pick up chariots. They all bowed low when they saw Caesar. The trio dismounted from the chariot. The imperial lion handed a few coins to one of the valets. "Here, take the horses to your best stall and give them something to eat, okay?" The valet nodded and led the horses off. Caesar beckoned his companions. "Come on then, they'll be starting the fighting part soon! I know a shortcut to my special area." "I can't wait to see this!" said Scales, obviously enthusiastic as they walked into the building and through some corridors and staircases. "Scales, I'm a little surprised you're so happy. I had no idea you liked fighting this much." Said Arik, a little dismayed. Scales shrugged. "Hey, my mind was probably warped a little by being stuck in that capsule for so long. I guess it's not surprising that I seem to have gained an increased bloodlust. But I'm not really worried that I'm not worried about my love for fighting." Arik grunted. "I like fighting as much as the next carnivore, I'll grant you that. But I feel it's a little wrong to exploit people like this in gladiatorial combat, even if they are criminals. I really appreciate a fight I'm participating in, not one I'm just watching." Scales shook her head. "Arik, Arik, Arik, I pity you. You've never experienced the excitement and fraud that is professional televised wrestling." "We're here!" said Caesar, breaking off Scales and Arik's discussion. They had come out of a dim corridor into bright sunlight. They were in a large booth formed by curtains and an overhead canopy, each made of bright red silk. All around the booth were seats filled with Roman citizens eager to see some fighting. The booth contained a few very nice couches and bowls with fruits. The booth was set up to give those sitting in it an excellent view of the sand-filled arena in the center of the Coliseum. The lion sat down in one of the larger couches and started eating some grapes from a nearby bowl. As Scales and Arik sat next to him, they saw a man running out of the center arena, towards an exit. A minute later, the exit sealed shut and holes opened in the sand. Rising up on hidden elevators were the participants for the first match of the day. "So Julius, who's going to be fighting right now?" asked Arik. Caesar picked up a schedule sitting next to him on a small table. "Well, let's see...ah, here we are! Okay, we first have a fight between Spartacus; who's in for a slave rebellion, and Odiferous; who's in for polluting the city with his vile stench and trash revolt." "Which is which?" asked Scales, trying to tell the gladiators apart. One of them was a tall mink with yellow fur. He had chain mail covering his right arm and held a trident in that same arm. His other arm had a large bronze plate on the shoulder, and he held a net. A shield was fastened to his wrist, to protect him from harm. He had shin guards and a half-armored helmet to protect his head. The other guy was a brown weasel (I know, I know, another weasel!) with about the same armor and weapons, but he had no helmet. "The mink is Spartacus, the weasel is Odiferous." Caesar explained. "Why doesn't Odiferous have a helmet?" asked Arik. Caesar scowled. "Because whenever they put a helmet on him, it has to be thrown in the sewer afterwards! Odiferous sweats too much, mixing with his fur and causing him to smell to high heaven. The stink clings to anything he wears, making it uncleanable. After half a dozen bronze helmets were completely ruined, the officials decided to just leave him open to fresh air completely. It might help air out the smell." "So Arik, who will you be rooting for? I'm personally hoping Spartacus will win. I hate weasels." Said Scales. Arik shrugged. "I don't really care who wins. Oh Caesar, that reminds me, Scales wanted to know if she could fight in the arena." Caesar blinked and kept a straight face for five seconds before bursting out, laughing. Scales scowled at him. The emperor pulled himself together after a moment, then grinned at Scales. "Are you serious? Women are not allowed to fight in the ring! Besides, you are neither a criminal or a slave, you cannot fight!" Scales growled. "Oh, I know how to fight! I've taken on entire armies and beaten them single handedly!" "She's not lying Julius, she really is good at fighting." Said Arik. Caesar frowned and examined Scales. "You really want to fight in there?" "Just once, sir!" said Scales. The lion tapped his chin, then grinned slyly. "How about this Scales? I suggest a little wager. If the mink wins, you can have one fight in the arena under some disguising armor. But if the weasel wins, you have to go out on a date with me. Okay?" Scales snorted. "Ha! I accept! There's no way Odiferous can defeat Spartacus." "We'll see about that!" He looked out to the arena. "Hey, why haven't they started yet? Oh that's right, I have to do my thing! Hold on." Caesar got off the cushion and walked forward out of the booth, onto a small balcony. All cheering stopped, as everyone noticed their emperor. Caesar coughed and spoke loudly, his voice echoing throughout the Coliseum. "Friends, Romans, and countrymen, lend me your ears! Today we shall bear witness to a battle between Spartacus the Rebel, and Odiferous the Odorous! Which of these two shall win this fight? Well, let's watch and see for ourselves! Let the games begin!" The two gladiators raised their right arms in salute. "We who are about to die salute you!" they yelled. They turned to each other, roared, and charged. Odiferous made the first attack, driving his trident at Spartacus. The mink blocked the thrust with his shield and hurled his net at the weasel. Odiferous speared the net on his trident and tossed it away, snickering. Spartacus tried a thrust, only to be blocked by the weasel's shield. Odiferous slammed his shield into the side of Spartacus' helmet, knocking him away. The mink was stunned by the attack, allowing Odiferous to charge forward with his trident. Spartacus suddenly dashed the opposing trident away with his own and kicked Odiferous in the chest, knocking him to the ground. Before Spartacus could take advantage of the weasel's vulnerability, Odiferous threw his net at the mink, ensnaring him. Spartacus struggled, trying to free himself from the net. Odiferous got to his feet and charged at Spartacus, yelling. The mink managed to tear his way out of the net at the last second, allowing him to jump away from the weasel's charge. As Odiferous ran past him, Spartacus clouted him on the back of the head with his shield, stunning him. The mink then smacked the weasel with his trident and ran away to get his net. Odiferous recovered and ran after Spartacus, trident raised. Spartacus grabbed his net and quickly raised his shield arm to block the attack from his foe. Spartacus jumped back to get a better advantage and looked for an opportunity to use the net. Odiferous pounced towards him, intending to impale the mink on his trident. Spartacus leaped away and threw his net at the weasel when he landed, trapping him. Spartacus grabbed the ends of the net and held them tightly as the weasel struggled to get free. The mink raised his trident high in the air, tensing for a strike. He looked up, waiting for the crowd's approval. One by one, everyone in the audience (including our friends in the Emperor's booth) turned their thumbs down. Spartacus nodded and thrusted the trident down, skewering the body of the smelly weasel. As blood began to ooze out, the mink stumbled away from the weasel and started waving to everyone as the crowd went wild. An elevator hole opened up in the sand. Spartacus went over and hopped in, as some slaves came out of a gate and started dragging the corpse from the arena. Scales smiled from ear to ear as Julius Caesar pouted. "Well Julius, looks like I won our bet." Scales said sweetly. Julius sighed. "So you did. Well, a deal's a deal, and I suppose I have to hold up to my side of the bargain." He got up. "Scales, please follow me. Arik, keep my seat warm, I'll be back soon." As Scales and Julius left the booth, Arik sat down in the Emperor's couch. Hey, his seat is much more comfortable than mine is! He thought.
A little later, after an interesting fight between Claudius the Chimpanzee and Tonius the Tiger, Caesar returned alone, not looking too pleased. "Did I miss anything?" he asked as Arik quickly let him have his seat back. "Not really, just a fight between a tiger and a chimpanzee. The tiger won, by the way." Said Arik. "Is something wrong?" Julius nodded. "Your friend refused to wear any armor except for a helmet and breastplate to conceal her more feminine attributes. She refuses to wear anything else but that, and has also declined the use of any weapons, not even a net! She's going to get killed out there, literally!" Arik chuckled and shook his head. "Julius old chap, you're underestimating Scales the Lizard. She will beat whomever she's going to fight." Julius groaned. "I wouldn't be so sure of that, she insisted we pit her against the toughest gladiator we had! Maximus will tear her apart, he's been the reigning champion for five years now!" Arik shook his head. "As I said, you're underestimating Scales. She will find a way to win." Caesar sighed. "If you say so. Well, here they come now." The elevators rose up, carrying a different fighter on either one. The first one to get to the top was Scales. She had a featureless breastplate and a helmet, just as Julius had said. She didn't intend on talking during the fight, since that would give away her gender. The other guy looked just plain nasty. He was a huge gorilla, with blue fur stained with what looked like blood. He had a pair of spiked shoulder guards and knee guards. His skin was scarred repeatedly from several fights, making his extremely muscular chest look like a jigsaw puzzle. He had a pair of manacles with broken chains dangling from his wrists. A metal grille was strapped to his face, covering his mouth, which could be seen to have numerous misshapen teeth through the slits in the grille. The ape had no weapon, but seemed to be dragging a broken net around in his left hand. His eyes were bloodshot and had a crazy look in them. Caesar got up and walked to the balcony, getting everyone's attention. "Friends, Romans, and Countrymen, lend me your ears! Today we see a newcomer to the arena, a fiend that dares to challenge our reigning champion! Let's give it up for this fight's gladiators, Scales the Slayer and Maximus the Murderer!" Cheers erupted from the crowd. Scales raised her arm in salute. Maximus merely stared at Scales, foam bubbling from his mouth and dripping through the grille. "Let the games begin!" Maximus roared and ran at Scales, flailing his arms wildly. Scales stood there, not moving. Maximus got closer, his flailing arms moving faster and faster. Scales still didn't budge. Maximus started screaming, foam flicking all over the place as he shook his head madly. Scales stood stock-still. Maximus started taking leaping bounds, moving faster and getting closer and closer to the lizard he intended to tear apart. Scales didn't move a muscle. Maximus screeched and pounced at Scales. She shot a foot forward, hitting Maximus right where his legs met. The gorilla wheezed and fell to the ground, temporarily paralyzed by Scales' blow to his groin. She grabbed Maximus' foot and swung him off the ground, spinning in circles to pick up momentum. She flung Maximus away, sending him hurtling across the arena. The gorilla hit the ground face-first, plowing a trail through it until he slammed right into the wall of the arena. The wall cracked from where he had hit it. Scales tensed, expecting another attack. Maximus twitched and lumbered to his feet. He turned around, revealing he was bleeding. Also, his face grille was severely dented, and the straps looked ruined. The gorilla realized this and ripped the grille off his face, allowing him to drool and foam properly. Maximus bellowed in rage and lumbered towards Scales. In her helmet, she narrowed her eyes. As the brute broke into a run, Scales got ready for her next attack. Right when Maximus was only a yard away, she jumped up and hit him in the face with her Homing Kick. As the ape stumbled back, Scales unleashed a blizzard of slashes and cuts at Maximus' chest, carving it up even more. The gorilla recovered and grabbed Scales with both arms before she could move away, squeezing her in a death hug. As the life was strangled from Scales, she unsheathed her blades, piercing the gorilla's chest. Maximus wailed in pain and let go of her, blood welling up from the wounds on his arms. Scales quickly caught her breath, then spun her tail around, smacking the gorilla in the face with the spikes on the end. She followed that up with a powerful uppercut to the beast's jaw. Maximus tried to punch her, but she ducked under the blow and kicked the gorilla in the groin again. As he fell down, Scales curled into a ball and spun as her blades shot out. She used her spindash on the gorilla, rolling right over his back and leaving a long narrow cut that would definitely scar if he survived the match. She kept up her spindash until she reached the edge of the arena, then uncurled and turned to face Maximus. The gorilla got to his feet and bellowed in agony, the pain from Scales' attacks really taking effect. He was beyond simple rage as he charged towards the lizard, intending to smash her into little pieces. Scales curled into a ball and started spinning. There is one new change to Scales I forgot to mention. Her Light Attack was replaced with one twice as strong, one reflecting the true source of her power. The Dark Attack. As she spun in place, shadows streamed to her, turning her orange-red and partially black hide to a ball of darkness. After five seconds, she got up, her body pulsing with dark power. "You're toast." She whispered. She unleashed the Dark Attack. All viewers saw a sudden black streak moving at the speed of light, zooming past Maximus and stopping at the other side of the arena, fading away to reveal Scales. She smirked and turned around to look at the confused Maximus from afar. The gorilla's confusion didn't last long as his upper body suddenly detached from his legs and fell to the sandy floor, dead. Scales clutched her chest for a moment, panting. That attack always took a little out of her. After a moment, like from a delayed reaction, the crowd burst into applause, cheering and clapping. Scales recovered and waved to the people, taking her bows. Caesar stood up and went to the balcony. "Scales the Slayer, please come over here!" he said. Scales quickly ran over. Julius pulled out a wooden sword. "For this excellent fight you have shown us all, I grant you your freedom. Take this sword as a symbol of your victory." He tossed the sword at Scales' feet. She picked it up and raised it in the air triumphantly. As the crowd applauded again, she gave a bow to Caesar and headed for the waiting elevator. As she was lowered underneath the Coliseum, it was all she could do to keep from bursting. That had been exactly how she had always imagined it would be! It seemed that another childhood dream of hers had come true, thanks to Arik. She sobered up at the thought of him. How was she going to get through her feelings for Arik? There had to be some way they could be together! Ah, she was getting ahead of herself. She didn't even know how Arik felt about her. Well, she would know soon enough. And things would go on from there, hopefully. A smile came to her face. No matter what, Arik would be hers. She realized this now. Even if it meant he would die and leave her alone, she would have him all to herself. She hoped he loved her too.
The priests of Jupiter panicked as the temple doors shuddered and a large dent appeared in it. There were grunts from outside, and the doors shook again. There were more noises, and then the huge doors were smashed off their hinges, falling to the floor and getting trampled flat as a pair of Triceratops ran over them. The three-horned reptiles bellowed, scaring the minor disciples away. The raptors and Massopondylus swarmed around the Triceratops, followed by Sauron. The evil omnivore pushed his way past the crowd of his minions, allowing him to see the great statue of Jupiter. The statue was tall and handsome, a man with bulging muscles and a toga. Jupiter had a neck-length beard, and fairly short hair. In its left, upraised arm the statue clutched several thunderbolts. In its right, it held a large gray gem in an open palm. Sauron sneered. It seemed the Chronos Ruby was his.
Here's another chapter completed! I hope you like it, it took a while to do this! Accursed school, soon you will be NO MORE!!!!!!!!! Um, ignore that. Anyway, it's time for another interview with your favorite lizard! Scales: Hi everybody! Me: Yes, hello Scales. How do you like Rome? Scales: I love it! That race with Arik was sweet, and I had so much fun in the Coliseum! Me: So it's always been a dream of yours to fight there? Scales: Yeah, ever since I saw Gladiator when I was a little girl I wanted to fight in the arena. I'm glad I had the chance. Me: Yes, so are we all. So, how do you plan on getting Arik to love you? Scales: Why do you want to know? Me: (Muttering under breath.) So I can know what to sabotage. (Out loud.) Out of curiosity. Scales: So far, I've got no real ideas. I'm thinking of just hanging back for a little while and talking to him about it at a later date. Me: Well, I guess that works. Anyway, we have some gifts from your fans! Scales: No more weasels, I hope. Me: Not exactly. First, Maverick gave you these weasel shaped gold filled piñatas! (Hands her the piñatas.) Scales: More weasels? Well, at least I don't have to eat them. (Puts them away.) What else did I get? Me: Well, 272 suggested I send you a little further in the future to Greece so you would be forced to deal with Socrates to get the next Ruby. What do you say to that? Scales: No dice. When Slashfang scattered the Rubies, he made sure no two would be in the same country, even if they were separated by history. It was sort of a safety measure. Me: Okay, he also has a strange gift for you! Scales: What is it? Me: This! (Pulls out portable hard drive.) This thing contains the program for something called Fluffy. Scales: What's a Fluffy? Me: Good question. Perhaps 272 would be good enough as to tell us who Fluffy is in his next review. (Hint, hint!) Anyway, he wants you to destroy it. Scales: Okay! (Puts hard drive on floor and rolls over it several times in spindash, smashing it to pieces.) There, all done. Me: Okay. Maverick also was going to give you an elixir that would have made Arik immortal, but it just makes people explode instead. Scales: (Slumps, depressed.) That's too bad. Me: Yes, too bad. (Struggling to keep from laughing.) Oh, and a new reviewer named HobbesKnux wants you to have this basket that contains a small dimension full of everything you love except for Arik. Enjoy! (Hands over basket.) Scales: I plan to. Thanks to everyone for their reviews!
Me: Yeah, thanks! Now, leave a review and a gift for this chapter, or I will make sure you're first on the wall when I TAKE OVER THE WORLD! (Looks around nervously.) Uh, forget I said that! Here, take some amnesia dust! (Throws dust that makes everybody forget the last few seconds and runs away.)
Despite their crying, eventually Arik and Scales both went to sleep, each suffering nightmares. In the end, they were thankfully woken up from the horrible dreams by the crowing of the archaeopteryx and got ready for breakfast, somewhat reluctantly. When Scales finally got downstairs, she found Arik waiting for her as usual. He obviously hadn't gotten much sleep that night. He looked up as she approached and couldn't help grimacing. "I look that bad, huh?" Scales asked. "I imagine I look no better." Mumbled Arik. Scales sat down, and they both ate for a few moments, tentatively. In the end, Arik broke the ice. "Scales, I'm sorry for last night." "It was perfectly understandable." She muttered. "No, really, I'm sorry. Just because my best friend was killed before me was no reason for me to act like I did." Arik said. "Yes it is." Said Scales slowly. "You had every right to act that way. You obviously cared about Hercules and were hurt by his sudden demise. You have no need to apologize." Arik frowned. "Then why do I feel I should be apologizing to you? I mean, I worry that I hurt your feelings back there." "You didn't hurt my feelings." Scales lied. She didn't plan on revealing her feelings to Arik. Chances were he didn't feel the same way, and she would just be hurting both of them. "I'm fine, really." "Then why are your eyes as red as mine, like from crying most of the night?" asked Arik. "I couldn't get much sleep. That implosion kept haunting me." She lied again. "Well, it haunted me too. Hercules was supposed to live a lot longer than that and die when someone laced the inside of his jacket with Hydra venom." He hesitated. "What happened yesterday hurt me a lot. And it'll hurt for a while longer, I think." He paused again. "I will try to honor Hercules' memory by finishing what we've begun. We will gather the remaining Rubies. And I will kill Sauron." "Sounds like a good plan to me." Said Scales. "I suppose I should stop moping around and find out where the next time period is. Maybe it'll be somewhere nice, where we can relax for a little bit." He pulled out the Master Ruby and examined it. The spinning globe appeared on it once more. It stopped spinning and zoomed in to Italy. An X appeared near the middle of it, and the words 48 BC appeared. Arik actually smiled. "Well, what do you know, I ask for something, I get it! We're going to Rome!" Scales cheered up a little as well. "Ooh, I've always wanted to go there! Are we going to see Julius Caesar?" Arik nodded. "Of course, this time period is when he ruled. In fact-" "Let me guess, you're close friends?" Scales said, grinning. Arik smiled, nodding. "Exactly! I helped him a bit during the campaign in Gaul, and also with a few of his renovations to the city. I don't really approve of the slave labor, but it's not like I can convince them to change tradition, right?" "Right. Can we go now?" Scales said eagerly. "Not until you finish your-" Scales devoured her steak before he could finish his sentence. "-Breakfast. Jesus, you're fast." "As I said before, I'm a lady of many talents." She said proudly. "Can we go already, if you're full?" "Of course I'm full! Come on." He said. He took her hand. Scales' heart fluttered for a second. "Chronos Control!" They vanished in a flash of light.
Our heroes reappeared in the Time Stream. Arik quickly lead Scales over to a strand of light. "Hey Arik, you said something about Rome being what you were looking for. What did you mean?" Scales asked. Arik pressed the proper year, causing the menu to pop up. He looked over his shoulder at Scales. "Well, Rome was a very good place to go if you wanted to relax. They have excellent service in all the shops and restaurants, and many ways of enjoying oneself. They have a complete spa that can't be beat! And then of course, there is the greatest form of entertainment, the Coliseum." "Ah, the Coliseum." Said Scales dreamily. "I've always wanted to fight in there." Arik snorted in laughter. "You wish! Only criminals or slaves can be gladiators, and you are neither." "Ah, man!" said Scales disappointedly. Arik sighed. "Well, maybe I can talk with Caesar, we'll see about it." "Okay." She said. Arik punched through the menus and inserted the Ruby into the hole. He grabbed Scales' hand. "Here we go! Chronos Control!" They warped away to ancient Rome.
They reappeared on top of a building. Scales looked out in wonder at the ancient city alive before her. The buildings were made out of marble and clay, many with either wooden roofs or ones made of red shingles. The roads were made of tiles, and many marvelous statues abounded everywhere. Humans and anthropomorphs walked the streets together, with no visible conflict. The city seemed to be built on a hill, with more and more buildings sprawling out all around. The structures got greater and greater as they got up the hill, culminating in a magnificent temple to Jupiter at the top. "Wow, this is wonderful!" she said. Arik frowned. "Not that I don't enjoy the view, but I just realized we're on top of a building." "Yeah, so?" Scales asked, peering around at Rome and trying to spot the Coliseum. "Well, in all the times I've been here, I've always materialized in the square with that bare-naked Minerva statue. Why did we show up here?" he asked rhetorically. Scales shrugged as she turned around. "There may have been a mistake in the system. No transport is infallible, it was probably just a glitch or something that we showed up here for once." "I guess so." Arik relented. He looked around. "I suppose we should head for the Imperial Palace. We should get down from here so we can start off." "Why bother? It would be much easier to jump from rooftop to rooftop. We wouldn't have to deal with any street traffic or possible muggers." Suggested Scales. Arik looked at the nearest building. "I don't doubt that we could easily make the trip by jumping, but what's to keep people from noticing us?" Scales shrugged. "Who cares whether we're caught or not? I for one think we could just warp directly to the palace if you pointed it out to me, but I don't want to startle anyone when we reappear. Going across the rooftops would be faster and cooler than just walking. Besides, I'd love to race you." Arik started grinning. "You're challenging me to a race?" "You know it!" Scales said. "All right, I accept!" said Arik. "The palace is the building with the gold spire sticking out from a large white dome. Can you see it from here?" Scales looked around. "Is it the one next to that building with the three stories?" "That's the one. It's not far from here, so it shouldn't be a long race. Now, are you ready?" asked Arik. "Sure, let's just get into position." Said Scales. They walked to the edge of the rooftop, facing the palace building. They crouched down. "Ready?" "Ready!" "On your mark...get set...go!" They were off, jumping across the gap to the next rooftop. The next roof sloped down and forwards. They slid down the incline, Scales taking the lead. She jumped from the end of the incline, falling into an open market. She bounced off the top of a tent, bouncing off another tent, and bouncing off a canopy to land on the next rooftop. She ran forwards and saw Arik catching up out of the corner of her eye. They ran to the end of the building and jumped off, finding another open market. Scales had still been slightly in the lead, so she hit and bounced off the first tent before Arik could. She bounced off another two tents before bouncing from a canopy to another rooftop. This building was curved like a quarter of a circle. Scales ran along the curve, jumping from the end of the building and landing on a bridge coming out of a doorway on the building. She ran down the bridge, startling several people with Arik hot on her tail. When the bridge went into another building, Scales jumped up to the roof of that building and followed it to the left. She leaped off the end of the building and nearly fell to the streets. She grabbed onto some vines growing from the side of a nearby building and started climbing up the growth. Arik caught up to her and jumped out, grabbing the vines as well and climbing after her. Scales reached the top of the vine-covered wall and climbed up to the roof. She ran to the end of it and slid down the angled shingles there. She dropped from the shingles and landed on a bridge coming out of the building, startling more citizens. They were startled again when Arik dropped down only seconds later, racing down the bridge after Scales. Feeling a little adventurous, Scales jumped off the side of the bridge, landing on a lower one. Arik cursed her danger-loving spirit and jumped after her. Scales ran a ways down the bridge then jumped off again, landing on a canopy. She bounced off the canopy and landed on another one, and another one, and another one. She bounced from the last one to the top of a small building and ran across the roof, jumping to the next one across a gap. Seeing the next one ahead of her was too far to jump to, she leaped to the one on her right instead. She leaped from building to building after that, so caught up in the race that she didn't even care whether Arik was catching up or what she was going to do with her feelings for him. She hovered over a slightly larger gap to another building, then jumped down from there to a canopy. She bounced from the canopy to another rooftop. She ran across that rooftop and dropped down. She had reached the palace! Only a millisecond later, Arik dropped down as well. "What took you so long, slowpoke?" she asked jokingly. Arik didn't even look winded! "Well, I must admit that was a very good race Scales. I think you won, barely." "Nobody can touch this lizard! Hah!" Scales said, still a bit hyper from the run. "You do realize you've probably given a few civilians heart attacks with that little race." Arik said blandly. "They'll be fine. Now come on! Let's see Caesar!" she started walking towards the fabulous palace. Arik shook his head and followed her. Two chimpanzees that looked strangely familiar guarded the gates to the magnificent structure. They lowered their spears over the palace gates as Scales approached. "Halt! No trespassers are allowed!" said the monkey on the left. "That's right, so go away!" said the one on the right. Arik walked up. "Scales, I see you've met the guards." "Would they happen to be related to Champ and Chump?" Scales asked. Arik looked at them. "I'm not sure, but I think they're descendants. Let's see if their memory is better. Hey, Chomp and Chemp! It's me, Arik!" he said to the chimpanzees. The monkeys scratched their heads. "Eric? Do we know any Eric?" asked Chomp. "Uh, I don't think so." Said Chemp. Arik groaned. "For the love of God, not again! Look, I have a token from Caesar that'll clear everything up, okay?" Arik pulled out a gold coin with a hole in the center. "See? Caesar gave this to me as a token of safe passage, so I can pass through anywhere in the empire safely. Now can you let Scales and me in?" The chimpanzees looked at the coin. "No, I don't think so." Said Chomp. "Yeah, it looks fake." Said Chemp. Arik growled. "Fine, I'm sick of this! Chronos Control!" Everything took on a reddish tint as time froze. "There, that'll do it. Scales, come on, we're going in!" Scales, who had been unaffected by the time freeze, followed Arik as they pushed the guards' spears away and opened the doors. They went in and quickly closed them just before the time freeze wore off. Scales looked around the opulent interior. "Hey, plush digs!" Arik nodded. "Yes, Julius is a bit on the extravagant side, isn't he? Personally, I think he should lay off all the tapestries and those incredibly fancy and expensive wall hangings, but I can't just tell him that! We may be friends, but it would be rude to insult his choice in décor, now wouldn't it?" "Good point. So, where is the big guy?" Scales asked, tearing her eyes away from a large mosaic depicting Romulus and Remus founding Rome. "If I know Julius, he's resting in his throne room. Come on, let's go." Arik led the way through the magnificent palace, passing by guards who were more intelligent than the chimpanzees and were able to recognize Arik's token. After a few minutes of going through vast and beautiful rooms, they entered the throne room. It was, just like the rest of the palace, quite beautiful. The back wall opened onto a large courtyard filled with trees and flowers, lined by ornate columns. The floor tiles formed the pattern of a mosaic of a wolf nurturing two baby cheetahs. (For historical notation, the babies were Romulus and Remus.) A raised platform held a large and comfy couch. Lounging on the couch was a proud and handsome anthropomorph, a lion. He wore sandals large enough to fit his clawed feet, a purple toga, and a gilded laurel wreath. He was quite muscular, and had a long orange mane with purple streaks in it. The lion noticed Arik and pushed himself up on the couch. "Ah, Arik! 'Tis good to see you again!" Arik bowed a little. "Same here, Julius." The Emperor of Rome noticed Scales. "Ah, and who is this fine lady whose presence graces my throne room?" As Scales blushed a little, Arik elbowed her. "Bow a little!" he hissed. She quickly gave a little bow, and got up. "My name is Scales, Caesar. I've heard a lot about you." "I'm sure you have, my dear. For what reason have you come to see me, old friend?" Julius asked of Arik. Arik walked forward, pulling out the Master Ruby. "Scales and I are searching for jewels like this one here. We have reason to believe that one of these jewels is somewhere here in Rome." Caesar got off his couch and came down to the reptiles to get a closer look at the Ruby. His eyes lit up in recognition. "Hey, I've seen something just like that!" "Where?" Scales and Arik both asked hopefully. "There's a gray gemstone just like this one in the centerpiece of the big statue of Jupiter in the main temple. It's been there for decades before I started ruling, or so I hear." Julius explained. "Can we go there now?" Scales asked eagerly. "Sorry, but no." said Julius. "Why not?!" Arik demanded. "The temple's closed for the morning. Some ceremonial thingy, I don't really know the details. But nobody can go into Jupiter's temple until the ceremony's over, which should be sometime this afternoon." Said Caesar. Scales pouted. "What are we supposed to do until then?" The lion thought for a moment. "Well, I was planning on attending the gladiator fight in just a little while. Would you like to join me?" "Gladiator fight? OH! I'd love to see that!" Scales said, practically jumping around. Arik glanced at her, then shrugged. "Well, I guess if there's nothing else we can do." The Emperor seemed pleased. "Great! I've just got to get a few things ready, okay? Meet me out front." With that, he exited the room. Scales and Arik headed back for the main entrance, where they were glad to find that Chomp and Chemp were gone. After a few minutes of waiting outside the palace, a chariot with white horses pulled up, Caesar on the reins. "Nice horses." Scales commented. "Thank you, I bred them myself." Said Caesar. "It's one of my hobbies. Now get in, we don't want to be late for the fight! They're probably still working through the less interesting stuff. If we hurry, we can still make it!" "Well, though I am a little disappointed at missing the pregame show, I guess I'll have to settle for watching brutes beat the crap out of each other." Said Arik, climbing into the back of the chariot. "Woohoo! Senseless violence, here we come!" said Scales, leaping behind Arik. Caesar cracked the reins, and they were off! As they started through the streets of Rome, passing citizens who immediately kneeled when they saw who was at the head of the chariot, Arik thought of something. "Uh, Julius?" "Yes Arik?" Caesar asked. "You said the temple was closed. Would it happen to be guarded?" he asked. "By none other than some of the city's finest guards. Why?" asked Caesar. "Well, we're kind of trying to get the jewels before a bunch of villains can get to them. I think Arik's a little worried that they'll break into the temple and steal the jewel." Scales quipped. Julius chuckled. "There's no need to fear old friend, some of the guards at the temple were heroes in the Gaul campaign! Nothing will get past them while they're on watch."
Bodies of men and anthropomorphs in armor littered the courtyard in front of the temple of Jupiter, a large white portal lying open at the base of the great statue of the god of thunder. Sauron pounded on the temple doors. "Damn it, open already!" he shouted. There was no response from behind the thick doors. He growled and turned to his troops, still fresh from their slaughter against the Roman soldiers. "We need to get in the temple! Go back through the portal and get something big enough to knock down these doors, a captive three-horn or two should do the trick. Get it, and get it fast! There's no telling when those meddlers will get here." "At once, sir!" said a raptor. The dinosaur led a few others back down to the bloody courtyard. Sauron turned to the remaining soldiers. "Well, what are you waiting for? Let's try to get this thing open!" "But sir, couldn't you use that Temporal Implosion thingy to destroy the doors?" asked a Massopondylus. "The Implosion technique only works on living things, regrettably. Why do you think I couldn't get into the temple on our first sojourn?" Sauron said, keeping his temper down. "Well, can't you just use Chronos Control to move back or forward a day or two in the past to when this place might be open?" asked the same Massopondylus. Sauron paused, considering that comment. "Because there's a chance I would manifest right inside of a person standing where I was when I warped, killing me." He finally said. "Now enough questions, start pushing on those doors!" The dinosaurs saluted and started slamming into the door, causing it to budge just a tiny bit. Sauron sneered and looked out over the city. Pathetic life forms. How they had ever managed to evolve to this level was a mystery to Sauron. Well, soon enough he would have the power to erase them permanently from history and erect a timeline of his own. Soon enough...
"Like I said, there's no way these enemies of yours are getting past the guards. Ah, here we are!" said Caesar, slowing down the chariot. "Whoa, it's just like I imagined!" said Scales. The Coliseum looming over the three was no crumbling ruin like in the present, but a bright, vivid structure! The whole thing was a huge circular amphitheater, with lots of arched windows to let people wandering through the corridors within the building's walls see where they were going. A great arch with a raised portcullis allowed entry to the Coliseum. A few valets waited near the entrance to pick up chariots. They all bowed low when they saw Caesar. The trio dismounted from the chariot. The imperial lion handed a few coins to one of the valets. "Here, take the horses to your best stall and give them something to eat, okay?" The valet nodded and led the horses off. Caesar beckoned his companions. "Come on then, they'll be starting the fighting part soon! I know a shortcut to my special area." "I can't wait to see this!" said Scales, obviously enthusiastic as they walked into the building and through some corridors and staircases. "Scales, I'm a little surprised you're so happy. I had no idea you liked fighting this much." Said Arik, a little dismayed. Scales shrugged. "Hey, my mind was probably warped a little by being stuck in that capsule for so long. I guess it's not surprising that I seem to have gained an increased bloodlust. But I'm not really worried that I'm not worried about my love for fighting." Arik grunted. "I like fighting as much as the next carnivore, I'll grant you that. But I feel it's a little wrong to exploit people like this in gladiatorial combat, even if they are criminals. I really appreciate a fight I'm participating in, not one I'm just watching." Scales shook her head. "Arik, Arik, Arik, I pity you. You've never experienced the excitement and fraud that is professional televised wrestling." "We're here!" said Caesar, breaking off Scales and Arik's discussion. They had come out of a dim corridor into bright sunlight. They were in a large booth formed by curtains and an overhead canopy, each made of bright red silk. All around the booth were seats filled with Roman citizens eager to see some fighting. The booth contained a few very nice couches and bowls with fruits. The booth was set up to give those sitting in it an excellent view of the sand-filled arena in the center of the Coliseum. The lion sat down in one of the larger couches and started eating some grapes from a nearby bowl. As Scales and Arik sat next to him, they saw a man running out of the center arena, towards an exit. A minute later, the exit sealed shut and holes opened in the sand. Rising up on hidden elevators were the participants for the first match of the day. "So Julius, who's going to be fighting right now?" asked Arik. Caesar picked up a schedule sitting next to him on a small table. "Well, let's see...ah, here we are! Okay, we first have a fight between Spartacus; who's in for a slave rebellion, and Odiferous; who's in for polluting the city with his vile stench and trash revolt." "Which is which?" asked Scales, trying to tell the gladiators apart. One of them was a tall mink with yellow fur. He had chain mail covering his right arm and held a trident in that same arm. His other arm had a large bronze plate on the shoulder, and he held a net. A shield was fastened to his wrist, to protect him from harm. He had shin guards and a half-armored helmet to protect his head. The other guy was a brown weasel (I know, I know, another weasel!) with about the same armor and weapons, but he had no helmet. "The mink is Spartacus, the weasel is Odiferous." Caesar explained. "Why doesn't Odiferous have a helmet?" asked Arik. Caesar scowled. "Because whenever they put a helmet on him, it has to be thrown in the sewer afterwards! Odiferous sweats too much, mixing with his fur and causing him to smell to high heaven. The stink clings to anything he wears, making it uncleanable. After half a dozen bronze helmets were completely ruined, the officials decided to just leave him open to fresh air completely. It might help air out the smell." "So Arik, who will you be rooting for? I'm personally hoping Spartacus will win. I hate weasels." Said Scales. Arik shrugged. "I don't really care who wins. Oh Caesar, that reminds me, Scales wanted to know if she could fight in the arena." Caesar blinked and kept a straight face for five seconds before bursting out, laughing. Scales scowled at him. The emperor pulled himself together after a moment, then grinned at Scales. "Are you serious? Women are not allowed to fight in the ring! Besides, you are neither a criminal or a slave, you cannot fight!" Scales growled. "Oh, I know how to fight! I've taken on entire armies and beaten them single handedly!" "She's not lying Julius, she really is good at fighting." Said Arik. Caesar frowned and examined Scales. "You really want to fight in there?" "Just once, sir!" said Scales. The lion tapped his chin, then grinned slyly. "How about this Scales? I suggest a little wager. If the mink wins, you can have one fight in the arena under some disguising armor. But if the weasel wins, you have to go out on a date with me. Okay?" Scales snorted. "Ha! I accept! There's no way Odiferous can defeat Spartacus." "We'll see about that!" He looked out to the arena. "Hey, why haven't they started yet? Oh that's right, I have to do my thing! Hold on." Caesar got off the cushion and walked forward out of the booth, onto a small balcony. All cheering stopped, as everyone noticed their emperor. Caesar coughed and spoke loudly, his voice echoing throughout the Coliseum. "Friends, Romans, and countrymen, lend me your ears! Today we shall bear witness to a battle between Spartacus the Rebel, and Odiferous the Odorous! Which of these two shall win this fight? Well, let's watch and see for ourselves! Let the games begin!" The two gladiators raised their right arms in salute. "We who are about to die salute you!" they yelled. They turned to each other, roared, and charged. Odiferous made the first attack, driving his trident at Spartacus. The mink blocked the thrust with his shield and hurled his net at the weasel. Odiferous speared the net on his trident and tossed it away, snickering. Spartacus tried a thrust, only to be blocked by the weasel's shield. Odiferous slammed his shield into the side of Spartacus' helmet, knocking him away. The mink was stunned by the attack, allowing Odiferous to charge forward with his trident. Spartacus suddenly dashed the opposing trident away with his own and kicked Odiferous in the chest, knocking him to the ground. Before Spartacus could take advantage of the weasel's vulnerability, Odiferous threw his net at the mink, ensnaring him. Spartacus struggled, trying to free himself from the net. Odiferous got to his feet and charged at Spartacus, yelling. The mink managed to tear his way out of the net at the last second, allowing him to jump away from the weasel's charge. As Odiferous ran past him, Spartacus clouted him on the back of the head with his shield, stunning him. The mink then smacked the weasel with his trident and ran away to get his net. Odiferous recovered and ran after Spartacus, trident raised. Spartacus grabbed his net and quickly raised his shield arm to block the attack from his foe. Spartacus jumped back to get a better advantage and looked for an opportunity to use the net. Odiferous pounced towards him, intending to impale the mink on his trident. Spartacus leaped away and threw his net at the weasel when he landed, trapping him. Spartacus grabbed the ends of the net and held them tightly as the weasel struggled to get free. The mink raised his trident high in the air, tensing for a strike. He looked up, waiting for the crowd's approval. One by one, everyone in the audience (including our friends in the Emperor's booth) turned their thumbs down. Spartacus nodded and thrusted the trident down, skewering the body of the smelly weasel. As blood began to ooze out, the mink stumbled away from the weasel and started waving to everyone as the crowd went wild. An elevator hole opened up in the sand. Spartacus went over and hopped in, as some slaves came out of a gate and started dragging the corpse from the arena. Scales smiled from ear to ear as Julius Caesar pouted. "Well Julius, looks like I won our bet." Scales said sweetly. Julius sighed. "So you did. Well, a deal's a deal, and I suppose I have to hold up to my side of the bargain." He got up. "Scales, please follow me. Arik, keep my seat warm, I'll be back soon." As Scales and Julius left the booth, Arik sat down in the Emperor's couch. Hey, his seat is much more comfortable than mine is! He thought.
A little later, after an interesting fight between Claudius the Chimpanzee and Tonius the Tiger, Caesar returned alone, not looking too pleased. "Did I miss anything?" he asked as Arik quickly let him have his seat back. "Not really, just a fight between a tiger and a chimpanzee. The tiger won, by the way." Said Arik. "Is something wrong?" Julius nodded. "Your friend refused to wear any armor except for a helmet and breastplate to conceal her more feminine attributes. She refuses to wear anything else but that, and has also declined the use of any weapons, not even a net! She's going to get killed out there, literally!" Arik chuckled and shook his head. "Julius old chap, you're underestimating Scales the Lizard. She will beat whomever she's going to fight." Julius groaned. "I wouldn't be so sure of that, she insisted we pit her against the toughest gladiator we had! Maximus will tear her apart, he's been the reigning champion for five years now!" Arik shook his head. "As I said, you're underestimating Scales. She will find a way to win." Caesar sighed. "If you say so. Well, here they come now." The elevators rose up, carrying a different fighter on either one. The first one to get to the top was Scales. She had a featureless breastplate and a helmet, just as Julius had said. She didn't intend on talking during the fight, since that would give away her gender. The other guy looked just plain nasty. He was a huge gorilla, with blue fur stained with what looked like blood. He had a pair of spiked shoulder guards and knee guards. His skin was scarred repeatedly from several fights, making his extremely muscular chest look like a jigsaw puzzle. He had a pair of manacles with broken chains dangling from his wrists. A metal grille was strapped to his face, covering his mouth, which could be seen to have numerous misshapen teeth through the slits in the grille. The ape had no weapon, but seemed to be dragging a broken net around in his left hand. His eyes were bloodshot and had a crazy look in them. Caesar got up and walked to the balcony, getting everyone's attention. "Friends, Romans, and Countrymen, lend me your ears! Today we see a newcomer to the arena, a fiend that dares to challenge our reigning champion! Let's give it up for this fight's gladiators, Scales the Slayer and Maximus the Murderer!" Cheers erupted from the crowd. Scales raised her arm in salute. Maximus merely stared at Scales, foam bubbling from his mouth and dripping through the grille. "Let the games begin!" Maximus roared and ran at Scales, flailing his arms wildly. Scales stood there, not moving. Maximus got closer, his flailing arms moving faster and faster. Scales still didn't budge. Maximus started screaming, foam flicking all over the place as he shook his head madly. Scales stood stock-still. Maximus started taking leaping bounds, moving faster and getting closer and closer to the lizard he intended to tear apart. Scales didn't move a muscle. Maximus screeched and pounced at Scales. She shot a foot forward, hitting Maximus right where his legs met. The gorilla wheezed and fell to the ground, temporarily paralyzed by Scales' blow to his groin. She grabbed Maximus' foot and swung him off the ground, spinning in circles to pick up momentum. She flung Maximus away, sending him hurtling across the arena. The gorilla hit the ground face-first, plowing a trail through it until he slammed right into the wall of the arena. The wall cracked from where he had hit it. Scales tensed, expecting another attack. Maximus twitched and lumbered to his feet. He turned around, revealing he was bleeding. Also, his face grille was severely dented, and the straps looked ruined. The gorilla realized this and ripped the grille off his face, allowing him to drool and foam properly. Maximus bellowed in rage and lumbered towards Scales. In her helmet, she narrowed her eyes. As the brute broke into a run, Scales got ready for her next attack. Right when Maximus was only a yard away, she jumped up and hit him in the face with her Homing Kick. As the ape stumbled back, Scales unleashed a blizzard of slashes and cuts at Maximus' chest, carving it up even more. The gorilla recovered and grabbed Scales with both arms before she could move away, squeezing her in a death hug. As the life was strangled from Scales, she unsheathed her blades, piercing the gorilla's chest. Maximus wailed in pain and let go of her, blood welling up from the wounds on his arms. Scales quickly caught her breath, then spun her tail around, smacking the gorilla in the face with the spikes on the end. She followed that up with a powerful uppercut to the beast's jaw. Maximus tried to punch her, but she ducked under the blow and kicked the gorilla in the groin again. As he fell down, Scales curled into a ball and spun as her blades shot out. She used her spindash on the gorilla, rolling right over his back and leaving a long narrow cut that would definitely scar if he survived the match. She kept up her spindash until she reached the edge of the arena, then uncurled and turned to face Maximus. The gorilla got to his feet and bellowed in agony, the pain from Scales' attacks really taking effect. He was beyond simple rage as he charged towards the lizard, intending to smash her into little pieces. Scales curled into a ball and started spinning. There is one new change to Scales I forgot to mention. Her Light Attack was replaced with one twice as strong, one reflecting the true source of her power. The Dark Attack. As she spun in place, shadows streamed to her, turning her orange-red and partially black hide to a ball of darkness. After five seconds, she got up, her body pulsing with dark power. "You're toast." She whispered. She unleashed the Dark Attack. All viewers saw a sudden black streak moving at the speed of light, zooming past Maximus and stopping at the other side of the arena, fading away to reveal Scales. She smirked and turned around to look at the confused Maximus from afar. The gorilla's confusion didn't last long as his upper body suddenly detached from his legs and fell to the sandy floor, dead. Scales clutched her chest for a moment, panting. That attack always took a little out of her. After a moment, like from a delayed reaction, the crowd burst into applause, cheering and clapping. Scales recovered and waved to the people, taking her bows. Caesar stood up and went to the balcony. "Scales the Slayer, please come over here!" he said. Scales quickly ran over. Julius pulled out a wooden sword. "For this excellent fight you have shown us all, I grant you your freedom. Take this sword as a symbol of your victory." He tossed the sword at Scales' feet. She picked it up and raised it in the air triumphantly. As the crowd applauded again, she gave a bow to Caesar and headed for the waiting elevator. As she was lowered underneath the Coliseum, it was all she could do to keep from bursting. That had been exactly how she had always imagined it would be! It seemed that another childhood dream of hers had come true, thanks to Arik. She sobered up at the thought of him. How was she going to get through her feelings for Arik? There had to be some way they could be together! Ah, she was getting ahead of herself. She didn't even know how Arik felt about her. Well, she would know soon enough. And things would go on from there, hopefully. A smile came to her face. No matter what, Arik would be hers. She realized this now. Even if it meant he would die and leave her alone, she would have him all to herself. She hoped he loved her too.
The priests of Jupiter panicked as the temple doors shuddered and a large dent appeared in it. There were grunts from outside, and the doors shook again. There were more noises, and then the huge doors were smashed off their hinges, falling to the floor and getting trampled flat as a pair of Triceratops ran over them. The three-horned reptiles bellowed, scaring the minor disciples away. The raptors and Massopondylus swarmed around the Triceratops, followed by Sauron. The evil omnivore pushed his way past the crowd of his minions, allowing him to see the great statue of Jupiter. The statue was tall and handsome, a man with bulging muscles and a toga. Jupiter had a neck-length beard, and fairly short hair. In its left, upraised arm the statue clutched several thunderbolts. In its right, it held a large gray gem in an open palm. Sauron sneered. It seemed the Chronos Ruby was his.
Here's another chapter completed! I hope you like it, it took a while to do this! Accursed school, soon you will be NO MORE!!!!!!!!! Um, ignore that. Anyway, it's time for another interview with your favorite lizard! Scales: Hi everybody! Me: Yes, hello Scales. How do you like Rome? Scales: I love it! That race with Arik was sweet, and I had so much fun in the Coliseum! Me: So it's always been a dream of yours to fight there? Scales: Yeah, ever since I saw Gladiator when I was a little girl I wanted to fight in the arena. I'm glad I had the chance. Me: Yes, so are we all. So, how do you plan on getting Arik to love you? Scales: Why do you want to know? Me: (Muttering under breath.) So I can know what to sabotage. (Out loud.) Out of curiosity. Scales: So far, I've got no real ideas. I'm thinking of just hanging back for a little while and talking to him about it at a later date. Me: Well, I guess that works. Anyway, we have some gifts from your fans! Scales: No more weasels, I hope. Me: Not exactly. First, Maverick gave you these weasel shaped gold filled piñatas! (Hands her the piñatas.) Scales: More weasels? Well, at least I don't have to eat them. (Puts them away.) What else did I get? Me: Well, 272 suggested I send you a little further in the future to Greece so you would be forced to deal with Socrates to get the next Ruby. What do you say to that? Scales: No dice. When Slashfang scattered the Rubies, he made sure no two would be in the same country, even if they were separated by history. It was sort of a safety measure. Me: Okay, he also has a strange gift for you! Scales: What is it? Me: This! (Pulls out portable hard drive.) This thing contains the program for something called Fluffy. Scales: What's a Fluffy? Me: Good question. Perhaps 272 would be good enough as to tell us who Fluffy is in his next review. (Hint, hint!) Anyway, he wants you to destroy it. Scales: Okay! (Puts hard drive on floor and rolls over it several times in spindash, smashing it to pieces.) There, all done. Me: Okay. Maverick also was going to give you an elixir that would have made Arik immortal, but it just makes people explode instead. Scales: (Slumps, depressed.) That's too bad. Me: Yes, too bad. (Struggling to keep from laughing.) Oh, and a new reviewer named HobbesKnux wants you to have this basket that contains a small dimension full of everything you love except for Arik. Enjoy! (Hands over basket.) Scales: I plan to. Thanks to everyone for their reviews!
Me: Yeah, thanks! Now, leave a review and a gift for this chapter, or I will make sure you're first on the wall when I TAKE OVER THE WORLD! (Looks around nervously.) Uh, forget I said that! Here, take some amnesia dust! (Throws dust that makes everybody forget the last few seconds and runs away.)