Muted shouts and screams echoed down into the emptied gladiator room.
The round taking place above the four men's heads wouldn't last much
longer. It was this urgency that forced them to prepare quickly for their
escape attempt.
Kenshin kept a firm grip on the neck of his sheath. He knew that the few moments ahead would require super god-like speed, something that he honestly didn't know if his body could handle it. But despite his hesitations, Kenshin was ready. There were a few guards standing in front of the armor and shielding rack, and two standing opposite them next to a small weapons rack.. Lance had walked right between them a few minutes earlier, but the soldiers didn't move. However, when the professor from the future would provide his distraction, the guards would most likely turn toward the other end of the room, leaving their backs to Kenshin. That would be when he would begin his assault.
It was Mark and Nick who were a little uneasy. They doubted things would ever work out as planned. It all seemed too simple. Still, they did manage to gather enough courage to run.
Lance stood near the rear tunnel entrance, which led up to the garrison. He walked slowly back and forth, keeping an eye on the soldier standing guard in front of the stairwell door. The soldier was about Lance's height, with the same build and weight. But the armor, sword, and spear were a bit intimidating. At least he didn't have to be the one to do the action though. All he had to do was get the guards attention, which he seemed to be doing pretty well.
"Hey," came a translated shout from the guard. "Get back with the others."
For a moment, the professor paused, almost shaking. But he quickly reclaimed his objective. Lance started walking slowly toward the tunnel, slow enough for Kenshin to clearly see when the guard would move.
Frustrated with the spy's apparent lack of respect for his authority, the soldier moved from the doorpost, walking firmly toward Lance. The other soldiers, who had been standing guard next to the equipment turned to see what the commotion was about.
Kenshin immediately launched forward, leaving a wake of wind behind him that ruffled the ragged shirts of Mark and Nick. Mark barely caught a split-second glimpse of blurred motion as the head of one of the two guards who were standing next to the weapons flipped high into the air. Just as soon as the blade had come through the neck, the battousai sliced back to his right, cutting right through the second soldier's armor, sending a gurgling spray of blood through the air. Still keeping his momentum, Kenshin then shoved his sword straight through the armored chest of one of the other three guards, managing to run the tip of the blade into the neck of a second soldier.
It was now that Nick and Mark felt the rush of air against their face, the wake of Kenshin's first movement. The two men never saw anything more than a blur of the small warrior. All they saw for certain were the gruesome deaths of five soldiers in the blink of an eye.
The third soldier now was pulling his short sword out of his leather sheath. But his thoughts drifted to blackness as the world around him dimmed to darkness.
Lance gulped down bile when he saw Kenshin shove his sword up the third soldier's neck and out of his armored helmet. Blood shot like a fountain out of the open wound, running in streams down the soldiers face. But Kenshin had disappeared again. Now Lance came back to reality. He looked left to see the guard he had distracted. The man was a statue, a look of horror and disbelief imprinted on his pale face. Blood suddenly began dripping from his slightly open mouth. The man's waist became a fountain of crimson waterfalls, soon spewing forth intestines and a portion of his liver. The torso toppled over the waist, and the hips fell backwards, splattering a gallon of blood into the moist dirt.
Still in the position his swing had left him, Kenshin gripped his sword tightly. He breathed deeply, but slowly. That series of attacks used more energy than he thought he actually had. His body was trying to catch up to him. Nevetheless, he had done it without any screams from the Romans. Now he stood, still holding his sword at his side as he turned for the door.
Lance was the first to follow. He dared not say anything to Kenshin, but he knew he had to inform Conway of their situation. He cupped his hand to his ear and whispered as he walked.
"Conway," Lance said, hearing his transmitted voice in his own earpiece. "We're about to go upstairs. It'll be about a minute for us to reach you once we get up the stairs, but as soon as you see Kenshin on the balcony, get up there."
"I got it," came Conway's voice over the transmitter.
With that taken care of, Lance joined Nick and Mark beside the separated waist of the fallen Roman soldier who had been the door's guardian. But to their disappointment, there was no key on the blood- covered belt. The three men kept scanning the corpse and the ground around him. Suddenly, a loud thud filled the air, followed by splinters and metal hinges. The three archeologists turned to see Kenshin standing in front of an obliterated hole in the thick wooden door.
"Follow me as fast as you can," the battousai said to them, keeping his determined gaze on the new opening he created. "Don't fall behind."
Lance grabbed Nick and Mark, and then pulled them along as he began sprinting toward the small warrior. That blast created by Kenshin's destruction of the door was loud enough to get any nearby soldiers' attention. He knew that the battousai must have figured this too. Lance's suspicion was confirmed when he saw Kenshin disappear through the broken door with blinding speed.
Together, the three men chased Kenshin as fast as they physically could. The stairway was dark and moldy, much like it was in modern times. Only this time, they weren't running up it for a phone call. They were running to save the lives of the women they loved.
Lance saw a distorted shape tumble down the stairs, a dark liquid spraying with every impact on the stone. The three men all stepped to the right, backing against the cold rock of the stairwell as a soldier's mutilated corpse rolled past them. A slashing sound came from somewhere above, and the three men had to dodge another tumbling body.
After fifty small steps, the stairway gave way to a small corridor that turned sharply to the left. It went upward at a slant, the marbled grade lit with an orange glow by flickering torches.
The corridor turned into another, longer hallway, that also stretched upward on a slight grade. But this hallway ran the circumference of the arena wall, heading up to a series of small rooms right before the entrance to the balcony corridor. Four, bloody bodies lined the floor before them, and two more twenty feet away.
The professor in the lead saw a glimpse of Kenshin sprinting around the curve of the hallway. The battousai would surely clear their path, and still keep far in front of them. Still, if all of them were to have a chance to get back to the future together, then the three men would have to keep up with Kenshin if at all possible.
Kenshin swung his sword in a nearly invisible arc, slicing three unaware soldiers before moving on to the next room. There were a series of junction rooms, holding supplies, food, and wine for the emperor and the senate members who were sitting nearby. But the rooms were heavily guarded. Too heavily guarded. Every room contained at least six soldiers, all boasting shields. Why were there so many guards in rooms containing only food and drink?
He had no time to speculate. Every room had too many soldiers to allow the battousai more than two swings before the guards would have enough time to scream for help. Into another room Kenshin ran, immediately slamming his blade through armor and shields. Three soldiers fell to the ground. But before the bodies hit the marble, the other soldiers in the room were dead. Blood splattered across the white walls, barely able to start the trek downward before Kenshin moved to the next room.
With each swipe of his sword, three soldiers dropped to the floor. Yet despite the killing, Kenshin kept his mind clear of emotions or guilt. He knew that they would torment him eventually, but for now he needed his whole concentration. The servants were too startled to say or mutter anything, so he didn't concern himself with them.
Lance kept his pace as best he could, always checking for Nick and Mark behind him. Together, the three men followed the gruesome trail of blood through each room. Mutilated bodies of Roman soldiers, some of them in pieces, lay on the ground. Lance saw the horror that marked each room, swallowing hard to push down the lump in his throat. Thankfully, there weren't many more rooms left to go before the balcony. His team in the their time had surveyed this part of the coliseum briefly before moving to the dungeon and gladiator room. As he ran, Lance used the images left in his mind to piece together the layout of their path to the balcony. It wouldn't be much farther now.
A sudden muffled groan shuttered over the transmitter in the ears of the three men.
"…rap…Lance, don't…leav…cony. The emp…moving…the balcony…"
Lance knew it was Conway, but he couldn't understand what he was saying. The three archeologists kept running through the rooms after Kenshin.
The battousai ran through the last room in a bloody rampage, painting the marble floor in crimson. Through the doorway, he can to a t-junction. The right of the corridor was lit with torches, illuminating the ornate carpeting and draperies in orange. The left headed toward the balcony. Kenshin could tell by the echoing roar of the crowd. Kenshin moved quickly to his left, coming to a sharp turn. Making the left, Kenshin ran up a short stairwell, where he could see daylight glaring off a wall twenty feet in front of him. That turn would be the corridor leading directly to the balcony. It was time to take care of the last opponents he needed to face before he and the others could escape.
Kenshin made the turn. The opening ahead was almost blinding. Bright sunlight was much stronger to his eyes than the dim torches in the interior. But as his eyes adjusted, his eyes widened in confusion.
The battousai stopped in his treks for the first time in the last five minutes. Before him was the balcony…and it was empty. There were no guards, nor was the emperor on his throne. Kenshin saw no women, and he couldn't see Conway over the side of the balcony. What was going on here?
Though the balcony was empty, the massive crowd of spectators was still cheering loudly. Kenshin moved slowly toward the throne. As he passed it and approached the railing, he saw the full view of the circular arena. He nearly dropped his sword.
Against the far wall, sitting on the sand, were the two women. Both were alive, but guarded by ten Roman soldiers with swords and shields. But they were not alone. Over a hundred armed soldiers stood in a semicircle, row upon row. Each man was toting swords and shields. In the center of the semi-circle was the general, smiling wickedly up at the small warrior on the balcony. At his feet was Conway, kneeling exhaustedly with his hands tied behind his back.
As Kenshin narrowed his eyes and gritted his teeth, he could hear footsteps behind him. They were from Lance, Nick, and Mark. The three men slid to a halt, only be overwhelmed with confusion. After scanning the balcony for a few seconds, they finally realized what the battousai was staring at.
Lance felt his knees weaken. The girls were on the arena floor, guarded by legion of soldiers. All his mind could process was getting to them. But how on earth could he or the others possibly get to them. And why are they all down in the arena? The crooked grin being glared back to him by the general answered him.
They knew. Somehow they knew about the plan…but how? How on earth did they know? What was going on?
Kenshin kept a firm grip on the neck of his sheath. He knew that the few moments ahead would require super god-like speed, something that he honestly didn't know if his body could handle it. But despite his hesitations, Kenshin was ready. There were a few guards standing in front of the armor and shielding rack, and two standing opposite them next to a small weapons rack.. Lance had walked right between them a few minutes earlier, but the soldiers didn't move. However, when the professor from the future would provide his distraction, the guards would most likely turn toward the other end of the room, leaving their backs to Kenshin. That would be when he would begin his assault.
It was Mark and Nick who were a little uneasy. They doubted things would ever work out as planned. It all seemed too simple. Still, they did manage to gather enough courage to run.
Lance stood near the rear tunnel entrance, which led up to the garrison. He walked slowly back and forth, keeping an eye on the soldier standing guard in front of the stairwell door. The soldier was about Lance's height, with the same build and weight. But the armor, sword, and spear were a bit intimidating. At least he didn't have to be the one to do the action though. All he had to do was get the guards attention, which he seemed to be doing pretty well.
"Hey," came a translated shout from the guard. "Get back with the others."
For a moment, the professor paused, almost shaking. But he quickly reclaimed his objective. Lance started walking slowly toward the tunnel, slow enough for Kenshin to clearly see when the guard would move.
Frustrated with the spy's apparent lack of respect for his authority, the soldier moved from the doorpost, walking firmly toward Lance. The other soldiers, who had been standing guard next to the equipment turned to see what the commotion was about.
Kenshin immediately launched forward, leaving a wake of wind behind him that ruffled the ragged shirts of Mark and Nick. Mark barely caught a split-second glimpse of blurred motion as the head of one of the two guards who were standing next to the weapons flipped high into the air. Just as soon as the blade had come through the neck, the battousai sliced back to his right, cutting right through the second soldier's armor, sending a gurgling spray of blood through the air. Still keeping his momentum, Kenshin then shoved his sword straight through the armored chest of one of the other three guards, managing to run the tip of the blade into the neck of a second soldier.
It was now that Nick and Mark felt the rush of air against their face, the wake of Kenshin's first movement. The two men never saw anything more than a blur of the small warrior. All they saw for certain were the gruesome deaths of five soldiers in the blink of an eye.
The third soldier now was pulling his short sword out of his leather sheath. But his thoughts drifted to blackness as the world around him dimmed to darkness.
Lance gulped down bile when he saw Kenshin shove his sword up the third soldier's neck and out of his armored helmet. Blood shot like a fountain out of the open wound, running in streams down the soldiers face. But Kenshin had disappeared again. Now Lance came back to reality. He looked left to see the guard he had distracted. The man was a statue, a look of horror and disbelief imprinted on his pale face. Blood suddenly began dripping from his slightly open mouth. The man's waist became a fountain of crimson waterfalls, soon spewing forth intestines and a portion of his liver. The torso toppled over the waist, and the hips fell backwards, splattering a gallon of blood into the moist dirt.
Still in the position his swing had left him, Kenshin gripped his sword tightly. He breathed deeply, but slowly. That series of attacks used more energy than he thought he actually had. His body was trying to catch up to him. Nevetheless, he had done it without any screams from the Romans. Now he stood, still holding his sword at his side as he turned for the door.
Lance was the first to follow. He dared not say anything to Kenshin, but he knew he had to inform Conway of their situation. He cupped his hand to his ear and whispered as he walked.
"Conway," Lance said, hearing his transmitted voice in his own earpiece. "We're about to go upstairs. It'll be about a minute for us to reach you once we get up the stairs, but as soon as you see Kenshin on the balcony, get up there."
"I got it," came Conway's voice over the transmitter.
With that taken care of, Lance joined Nick and Mark beside the separated waist of the fallen Roman soldier who had been the door's guardian. But to their disappointment, there was no key on the blood- covered belt. The three men kept scanning the corpse and the ground around him. Suddenly, a loud thud filled the air, followed by splinters and metal hinges. The three archeologists turned to see Kenshin standing in front of an obliterated hole in the thick wooden door.
"Follow me as fast as you can," the battousai said to them, keeping his determined gaze on the new opening he created. "Don't fall behind."
Lance grabbed Nick and Mark, and then pulled them along as he began sprinting toward the small warrior. That blast created by Kenshin's destruction of the door was loud enough to get any nearby soldiers' attention. He knew that the battousai must have figured this too. Lance's suspicion was confirmed when he saw Kenshin disappear through the broken door with blinding speed.
Together, the three men chased Kenshin as fast as they physically could. The stairway was dark and moldy, much like it was in modern times. Only this time, they weren't running up it for a phone call. They were running to save the lives of the women they loved.
Lance saw a distorted shape tumble down the stairs, a dark liquid spraying with every impact on the stone. The three men all stepped to the right, backing against the cold rock of the stairwell as a soldier's mutilated corpse rolled past them. A slashing sound came from somewhere above, and the three men had to dodge another tumbling body.
After fifty small steps, the stairway gave way to a small corridor that turned sharply to the left. It went upward at a slant, the marbled grade lit with an orange glow by flickering torches.
The corridor turned into another, longer hallway, that also stretched upward on a slight grade. But this hallway ran the circumference of the arena wall, heading up to a series of small rooms right before the entrance to the balcony corridor. Four, bloody bodies lined the floor before them, and two more twenty feet away.
The professor in the lead saw a glimpse of Kenshin sprinting around the curve of the hallway. The battousai would surely clear their path, and still keep far in front of them. Still, if all of them were to have a chance to get back to the future together, then the three men would have to keep up with Kenshin if at all possible.
Kenshin swung his sword in a nearly invisible arc, slicing three unaware soldiers before moving on to the next room. There were a series of junction rooms, holding supplies, food, and wine for the emperor and the senate members who were sitting nearby. But the rooms were heavily guarded. Too heavily guarded. Every room contained at least six soldiers, all boasting shields. Why were there so many guards in rooms containing only food and drink?
He had no time to speculate. Every room had too many soldiers to allow the battousai more than two swings before the guards would have enough time to scream for help. Into another room Kenshin ran, immediately slamming his blade through armor and shields. Three soldiers fell to the ground. But before the bodies hit the marble, the other soldiers in the room were dead. Blood splattered across the white walls, barely able to start the trek downward before Kenshin moved to the next room.
With each swipe of his sword, three soldiers dropped to the floor. Yet despite the killing, Kenshin kept his mind clear of emotions or guilt. He knew that they would torment him eventually, but for now he needed his whole concentration. The servants were too startled to say or mutter anything, so he didn't concern himself with them.
Lance kept his pace as best he could, always checking for Nick and Mark behind him. Together, the three men followed the gruesome trail of blood through each room. Mutilated bodies of Roman soldiers, some of them in pieces, lay on the ground. Lance saw the horror that marked each room, swallowing hard to push down the lump in his throat. Thankfully, there weren't many more rooms left to go before the balcony. His team in the their time had surveyed this part of the coliseum briefly before moving to the dungeon and gladiator room. As he ran, Lance used the images left in his mind to piece together the layout of their path to the balcony. It wouldn't be much farther now.
A sudden muffled groan shuttered over the transmitter in the ears of the three men.
"…rap…Lance, don't…leav…cony. The emp…moving…the balcony…"
Lance knew it was Conway, but he couldn't understand what he was saying. The three archeologists kept running through the rooms after Kenshin.
The battousai ran through the last room in a bloody rampage, painting the marble floor in crimson. Through the doorway, he can to a t-junction. The right of the corridor was lit with torches, illuminating the ornate carpeting and draperies in orange. The left headed toward the balcony. Kenshin could tell by the echoing roar of the crowd. Kenshin moved quickly to his left, coming to a sharp turn. Making the left, Kenshin ran up a short stairwell, where he could see daylight glaring off a wall twenty feet in front of him. That turn would be the corridor leading directly to the balcony. It was time to take care of the last opponents he needed to face before he and the others could escape.
Kenshin made the turn. The opening ahead was almost blinding. Bright sunlight was much stronger to his eyes than the dim torches in the interior. But as his eyes adjusted, his eyes widened in confusion.
The battousai stopped in his treks for the first time in the last five minutes. Before him was the balcony…and it was empty. There were no guards, nor was the emperor on his throne. Kenshin saw no women, and he couldn't see Conway over the side of the balcony. What was going on here?
Though the balcony was empty, the massive crowd of spectators was still cheering loudly. Kenshin moved slowly toward the throne. As he passed it and approached the railing, he saw the full view of the circular arena. He nearly dropped his sword.
Against the far wall, sitting on the sand, were the two women. Both were alive, but guarded by ten Roman soldiers with swords and shields. But they were not alone. Over a hundred armed soldiers stood in a semicircle, row upon row. Each man was toting swords and shields. In the center of the semi-circle was the general, smiling wickedly up at the small warrior on the balcony. At his feet was Conway, kneeling exhaustedly with his hands tied behind his back.
As Kenshin narrowed his eyes and gritted his teeth, he could hear footsteps behind him. They were from Lance, Nick, and Mark. The three men slid to a halt, only be overwhelmed with confusion. After scanning the balcony for a few seconds, they finally realized what the battousai was staring at.
Lance felt his knees weaken. The girls were on the arena floor, guarded by legion of soldiers. All his mind could process was getting to them. But how on earth could he or the others possibly get to them. And why are they all down in the arena? The crooked grin being glared back to him by the general answered him.
They knew. Somehow they knew about the plan…but how? How on earth did they know? What was going on?