Adam's starting to wish he didn't like history…and watch 'Gladiator.' It's gold, pink and green to the rescue…

7 Rescue

Adam

The place is silent, it's empty. Something tells me that this isn't just quiet it's dead. There's nothing here to make a noise.

I once visited Auschwitz, something like that makes a lasting impression on you. The silence isn't just an absence of noise, it's an absence of life; it was like the ground remembered and like the air had seen it all and they kept quiet out of respect. People walked around like the dead were still there and it felt like they were; and every where you walked you felt like a million tears could never wash away the pain, the memory…the silence.

This place had been forgotten but the place itself had not and probably never will. No birds would ever sing here and no one would laugh, no one would be happy here.

The entire land was flat, we could see for miles across the desert like terrain and heat rose with the shimmering suns and painted everything yellow, the sky was a reddish pink as though it wanted to be blue but could only reflect the absence of water. There were few buildings here but the sand, despite the constant breeze, still showed signs of activity and many footprints of different shapes and sizes.

In the centre of this small complex lay a great arena like something out of a Roman town, an amphitheatre of sorts. It was made of faded red planks and looked as though it could seat hundreds; it reminded me of the time Prince Gasket had kidnapped Tommy and he had nearly killed us all.

We were tense, alert even though we felt completely alone; we had scanned the area and so far had picked up no sign of life but we could never be too careful. Kat held a hand up to her eyes and surveyed the arena we had stepped into. "What is all this for?" She turned and looked at me and Jason.

Jason shook his head; he was clearly as clueless as her and probably just as intimidated as the rest of us. Unfortunately with remembering Prince Gasket's arena I had been reminded of the original design of such places; Tommy and I had enjoyed history together and we had done a class project on the Roman culture.

I took a deep breath. "It's a type of game ring." I said, my voice echoed hollowly in the quiet.

"What?" Jason looked at me with a frown.

"The Romans used them." I reply, I wish I hadn't said anything. "They held games in them, sports."

Kat looks at me, there's something in her face that suggests she knows what I'm talking about. "What kinds of sport?"

I don't want to say, I kick myself mentally, why did I have to say anything? The last thing they need to hear is…

"Adam," She steps closer. "What kind of games?" It's her 'don't argue with me' voice. Here goes…

"There were chariot races and…animal hunting."

Jason whips his head around to look at me. "Animal hunting?"

The problem is that now we're all thinking the same thing…hunting.

"There's more." Kat, why couldn't you just stop there? It's enough surely to think that they hunted him like an animal.

"What else?" Jason's tone is hard but something in it suggests that he wants to understand why I'm edging around the subject.

"There were gladiatorial fights." I don't want to have to explain but he wants an explanation, he wants to understand. "Gladiators were usually slaves or prisoners, their masters would pit there gladiators against each other; they had to fight to survive…whoever was alive at the end had won."

"And that was the end of it?" No Jason, no it wasn't.

I shake my head. "No, they were in rounds like football; you win you move up; in this case you fight another winner. You live for the day and then you fight again the next day and the next…" I trail off; not that saying 'until they die' would make it much worse.

Kat fights back the tears. "Do you think that's what they did here? Andros said the Kraxen was wounded, dying…" Her eyes come to rest on the dark stains that lie on some of the planks. Blood. Yep I think that's exactly what they did here.

I slip an arm around her waist. "Why don't we go and look in there?" I point to the low concrete buildings on our right that open into the arena in three arches.

Jason pulls out the scanner and frowns. "The concrete's so thick I couldn't get a reading even if there was someone in there."

"All the more reason to go and have a look then." But I'm not feeling so great about it, reluctant to be precise. The buildings look menacing; their entrances are wreathed in shadows, dim and cool.

Jason slips out his laser and I keep mine loosely holstered, one hand still in Kat's. We follow Jason in; the darkness is cooler than the air outside but there's something oppressive about it like the dull grey is closing in and the air is somehow thicker.

Kat lets go of my hand and steps over to look at the first cell we come to; dark bars shutter it like a prison and there are more over the tiny square high up in the back wall.

The building breaks further up leaving opens ends like they are square tunnels, the next section is only a couple of footsteps away and the right hand side is comprised of yet more cells, the left wall has large square openings like windows and they look out across the dust and into the horizon.

Jason halts beside me and looks out into the distance. "I don't like this silence."

"I don't like this place full stop." I murmur.

Kat's cry of alarm brings us back; she's up ahead. Jason reaches her first and looks into the cell she's stood next to, he instantly pulls her into an embrace and she buries her face into his shoulder.

I don't want to see what's in there but I feel drawn…what if it's Tommy or that other Ranger? What if it's our friend? Peering between the bars I can't really make out what I'm seeing but I know it's not human.

"What is it?"

I turn and shrug at Jason's question. "You mean what was it."

"I thought…it's awful!" Kat's choked sob echoes down the tunnels.

I open my mouth to tell her its okay; she thought it was Tommy and for that split second the fear was real, but it wasn't him it was…

An echoing cry makes us all jump and the freeze. It could almost have been Kat's cry as though it were bouncing back but there's something different about this one; it's more than a cry of fear it's like a wounded animal, it was full of pain and sadness. It sent a shiver down my spine, was that human?

"Tommy?" Kat's quiet whisper carried on the breeze. My head was protesting; it couldn't be him that didn't sound human, it didn't sound like Tommy…it couldn't be him…

Jason motioned for us to follow; we pulled out our small arsenal of weapons; just in case. Our pace was quick, we were furtive running from building to building as though we needed to stay out of the open even though whatever it was lay inside these cells.

It was the last tunnel building we came to, it was shorter than the others and held only four cells and no windows on the left hand wall. Sand had gusted in onto the floor and old blood stained the walls in intermittent streaks. It was a bad place to be.

A whimper carried to us as we stood as though afraid to cross from this building to the next, there was the soft clink of chains and another whimper. Whoever they were they lay in the first cell which surprisingly had a small barred window.

Jason edged forwards warily, his laser pointed towards the cell. Kat followed slowly but she holstered her weapon, she seemed so intent; cautious but intent on her approach.

Jason seemed to finally see what was in the cell; his face paled and his arms dropped a look of sorrow and almost despair crossed his face. I knew, I knew instantly that it was him; that look said it all, it wasn't one of pity that you reserve for those you don't know; it was the look that said you had seen this person so differently and that it hurt you to see them like this because you cared for them.

Kat choked back a cry, clapping a hand over her mouth.

"Jesus." Jason's voice was barely a whisper but even that small sound seemed to distress Tommy.

Kat slowly sank into a crouch trying not to frighten him, wrapping her hands around the bars with tears on her cheeks. "Oh Tommy." She whispered and closed her eyes, unable to believe it.

I stepped forwards then and my breath caught in my throat. He huddled in the corner as though he were trying to sink into the wall, dark chains hung at his wrists and ankles and he was so dirty I could barely believe it; blood seemed to cling to every inch of skin and was added to by the remainders of what looked like his Zeo uniform that hung from his lean frame.

The fear in those dark eyes made my chest clench, made me want to run away, made me want to hug him, made me want to cry.

"We have to get him out of there." Jason spoke; his tone suggested any one who got in his way was in trouble. His face had that determined set to it, the one he wore when he was doing something difficult or something dangerous but would go through with it no matter what. There were tears in his eyes, hastily blinked back.

"Tommy?" Kat called to the figure softly, another whimper sounded from him. "It's okay," she continued gently. I slipped forwards and began to pick the lock of the cell. "It's me Kat, its okay we won't hurt you."

The door gave a squeak as it swung open and Tommy flinched as though he'd been hit. I thought I heard Jason swear under his breath but instead I crouched by the bars as Kat got down almost to her hands and knees and closed the distance between her and Tommy. She put a hand out towards him and he froze instantly, he was trembling violently his eyes wide in fear but he wouldn't look at us.

"It's us bro, it's me Jason." He crouched down beside me and slowly pulled out the med kit, glancing at me I nodded as his fingers brushed the sedative.

Kat very carefully placed a hand on Tommy's arm; he gave a cry of pure terror but quieted under the stroke of her palm and shushing noises she made. She slowly moved closer until her body was pressed to his, it was a risky move but contact usually soothed distressed people. Tommy shuddered but didn't move away, Kat continued to murmur; his name and ours telling him that he would be okay, that he was safe. At last she slid her arms around him and he curled in close, inarticulate whimpers issuing forth from his mouth.

She turned tearful eyes to us and nodded, Jason slid forwards and took hold of Tommy's arm, and he froze in fear.

"It's okay." Kat soothed, stroking his forehead.

"You're okay, you're safe bro." At that last word Tommy looked up at Jason, perhaps there was recognition I don't know, his eyes clouded as the sedative took effect and he soon went limp.

We're taking him home, where he belongs. I wanted to kill something, hurt anything just so someone would pay for what has been done to him. He's just lying there unconscious as we sail through the stars; the rest of the universe blissfully unaware of what has happened.

I don't know why this happened to him and I don't know who did it and it kills me that I can't do anything, that I couldn't do anything to stop it. He's smaller than I remember, he's lost a lot of weight and he's so dirty it barely even looks like him…who is he now?

How was our leader brought so low?

A/N Sorry I haven't updated for ages guys, I'm at uni now and it's been really hectic but here's another chapter for you all! Tell me what you think xx