Travis Starnes
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The Sword of Jupiter (Imperium #1) - Chapter 16
🕑 Added 2019-12-18 15:09:00 +0000 UTC
Ky came out of his quarters the next morning to find two of the men from Carus’s detail flanking his door. He still found the concept of men guarding him around the clock to be strange. Leaders in his time had guards, of course, but everything was more hands-off. With the kinetic shielding enhanced clothing, satellite tracking, camera networks, and AIs monitoring signals traffic, facial recognition, and pattern recognition, assassinations tended to involve large scale suicide attacks. The last one that he had ever heard of, one of the early Emperors, had been killed by Lunar separatists using a small nuclear device.
They had wiped out a third of a major city to get one man.
“With the Emperor’s compliments, Consul. The procession for the tests will get underway in an hour. He would like you to accompany him into the Colosseum.”
“I’m ready now. Let’s go.”
The entire procession was similar to the first procession several days before, except for smaller crowds. Apparently, the first day was a public holiday, which explained the crowds. There were still a lot of people in the streets watching the Emperor and his party make the walk to the Colosseum, but it was not the overwhelming mass of people.
The other major difference was that there were fewer government officials with the Emperor, making his box feel smaller once they arrived and sat down. The emperor once again had Ky sit on his right-hand side, indicating that Ky should lean in to talk with him once they were seated.
“I think you will find today much more to your liking than the gladiatorial combat. The first exhibition will be feats of strength. Contestants will challenge each other to feats of strength, with anyone unable to complete the next challenge eliminated until there is one winner left. Winning the feats of strength is considered an accomplishment, with the winner receiving a bounty and often paid to attend parties and other events. After the feats of strength, there will be a series of boxing matches and then a series of wrestling matches. While those are contested fiercely, they do not hold the same place of pride as the matches that will take place on the final day of the celebrations. Finally, you will go on to perform.”
“I am still unclear; what type of performance are you expecting of me?”
“That is a good question. Normally the tests end with the wrestling contest. Your participation is unique. While this is intended to boost the spirits of the Roman people, your performance has an additional means. We need to reinforce your unique abilities, give the people a reason to have faith in you. The more you reinforce your exceptional abilities with the people, the more they will accept changes to their way of life.”
“Does this performance need to be just me, or should I do something that involves other people?”
“Whichever you think is most appropriate, as long as it’s impressive.”
Ky nodded and leaned back, thinking the situation over. He knew for sure he would not do anything that would bring harm to anyone else. The Emperor continued to make the point that he needed to keep the people on his side. He, so far at least, had not shown the same concern over what the upper classes of Roman society thought. They were the ones who would be most affected by Ky’s changes. Many of them had their wealth wrapped up in the landed estates worked by slaves. The very sections of the Roman economy that would feel the most seismic changes from what Ky was doing.
Ky assumed the Emperor knew what he was doing. Considering the amount the average Roman citizens outnumbered the elite, it made sense that the Emperor would be focused on them.
The feats of strength went about as the Emperor had described. Strong men performed in singles, in pairs, even one set of four. They lifted, pulled, pushed, and threw all manner of implements, usually items made of stone or steel. While some were performing true deeds of strength, others were faking it. One man who seemed to be lifting a giant stone boulder had hollowed it out. His performance was convincing and the patchwork to cover the entry point where it was hollowed out from was well concealed. Without the AI, Ky would have probably never noticed the discrepancy.
The boxing match was more brutal that Ky had assumed it would be. Boxing was not something from his time, but records the AI had on the sport had included images of men with padded gloves. The boxers here had only linen wrapping their fists. The actual fights were violent and bloody, with many broken noses and teeth. While Ky was not a fan but, since all the contestants managed to walk away, it was a step up from the previous combat he had seen in this arena.
Ky watched the wrestling with interest since it was something he would be expected to participate in. The AI had dredged up some information on wrestling and how the art was actually performed, but ancient sources were unclear on specifics. The sport was no longer practiced in Ky’s time. While the AI did find references in its databases to versions of wrestling stretching back for several thousand years after the Roman and Greek sources, any actual information was part of the many areas not covered in the AI’s hastily assembled databases.
He had instructed the AI to analyze all moves by the performers, cross-reference those moves against modern forms of physical combat in the AI’s system, and start to build a motion assist profile. Because of the games compressed nature, starting late as the city held its breath at the approaching Carthaginian army, the final day of the games was only three days away. The shortened timeline did not give him a lot of time to practice with the new settings.
For the first time since he had been forced to watch the various contests performed in the arena, Ky was disappointed when the event ended, and its winner was declared. He was not bothered by the end of the event because of the loss of entertainment, but because he still felt he had not gathered enough data on wrestling to perform to the level he knew he would need to in three days. If the Emperor thought it was important that today’s performance be spectacular to keep the populace on his side, it seemed almost certain that he would also be required to not lose during the wrestling competition.
While he made his point that he would not actively support the ludicrous notion that he was somehow divinely imbued, he had promised to not actively sabotage the Emperor’s propaganda either. While he could probably make the argument that these performances were a form of active support, it seemed best to follow the Emperor’s lead, no matter how distasteful it was. Ky thought it almost certain that he would destroy the notion entirely if he managed to lose the contest.
Once the victor of today’s match received his rewards and accolades and all the contestants marched out of the arena, the Emperor held up his hands, commanding silence from the crowd.
“The Tests of Jupiter are a special time for every Roman,” the Emperor said, his voice echoing across the stadium. “Each of you has the chance to step forward and prove yourself before the gods and your fellow countrymen. Today, however, is unique across the history of the games. We have been blessed by the presence of one of Jupiter’s own, sent to walk among us. As a special tribute to the games in Jupiter’s honor, the Sword has agreed to a display for your enjoyment.”
The crowd clapped, not in thunderous applause but in uncertainty. Ky looked at the Emperor who turned to him, one arm still raised towards the crowd. He could not help but think the Emperor had been right. The crowds’ response showed they were still unsure of Ky and what his presence meant. He was not crazy about the way the Emperor manipulated everyone around him, but he could not fault the old man’s feelings for his countrymen. Which also meant there was a good chance he was right about the way to win them over.
Ky gave the Emperor a slight head bow in acknowledgment, both that it was time for him to perform and of his overall mastery of the situation. The Emperor returned the gesture with a knowing smile. Ky turned to Sellic, who had accompanied him into the box while the rest of his detachment waited outside the door to the box.
“Sword,” he said, holding out his hand.
Sellic seemed surprised, his eyes darting to the Emperor. Ky knew that Sellic trusted him, but the idea of drawing a weapon in the Emperor’s presence was not something Romans did without very good cause.
“Go ahead,” the Emperor said, watching the byplay.
Ky took the extended weapon, turned towards the arena, and, planting one hand on the stone edge of the box, vaulted over, dropping nimbly to the sand floor twenty feet below.
“I am not one for tricks or meaningless displays,” Ky said, letting his voice carry. “My performance will be simple. The Emperor has offered to give fifty thousand sesterces to the man who can touch me with a weapon of their choice.”
He looked back at the Emperor, who grinned at him, his shoulders shaking slightly as he laughed. Ky had just offered what was half again the yearly wage of a middle-class Roman. While not outside of the Emperor’s ability to pay, it was not a paltry amount. The Emperor read the offer, correctly, as a dig by Ky to pay back all the little surprises the Emperor had put in Ky’s lap so far.
“Any are welcome to challenge me. Just notify one of the guards, and they will bring you to me and arm you as you request. I promise you will not be injured and I will not touch you with my own weapon.”
A low murmur traveled across the crowd as they looked around, trying to see who would be brave enough to take Ky up on his challenge. Ky set his feet shoulder-width apart and held his hands behind his back in a relaxed parade rest.
‘Deactivate the kinetic shield,’ he said internally to the AI.
“Deactivation of protective shielding is not recommended, Commander. Current scenario allows for no forward preparation for hostilities.”
‘I might get hurt, but I don’t think they will be able to kill me in one shot, and the nanobots should heal anything short of decapitation, even if they should get lucky.’
“Possibility of damage to protective flight suit also exists. Any damage beyond minor cuts and abrasions are un-repairable under current level of technology. The loss of your flight suit will remove the ability to generate kinetic shielding, increasing long term possibility of permanent injury or death.”
‘Recommendation noted. I still want to take my chances. Deactivate the shield.’
There was a long pause. Long enough that Ky thought he might have to re-issue the order, which would be a serious problem in its own right.
“Understood, Commander. Kinetic shielding has been disabled.”
Ky watched as the first contestant came forward. He was a younger man clad in the standard belted, a knee-length tunic that average Romans wore, in contrast to the elaborate togas worn by the upper echelons of Roman society. He had chosen a gladius as his weapon of choice.
The man stopped several feet away and glanced around him, unsure of what to do next.
“Proceed when you are ready,” Ky said, standing stock still, his sword at his side, pointing towards the ground.
The man was clearly not an experienced fighter. He did not so much attack as wildly charge first. Even if Ky had not been augmented, he would have been able to avoid contact. The man flew past Ky, his forward momentum carrying him past his own feet, sending him sprawling into the dirt. Luckily the sword had been held out in front of him, leaving him uninjured, at least physically.
Ky stepped towards the man and put a hand down to the man to help him up, only to have it batted away. His opponent’s face was flush with anger. Ky stepped back as, from his prone position, he swung up with his sword.
The attack was a better attempt than his last, but Ky was able to dodge it with ease as well. As the man’s sword arm sailed by, Ky reached out and grabbed him by the wrist, lifting the man one-armed and setting him on his feet.
The man’s eyes went wide as Ky lifted him with ease, much like an adult would pick up a small child.
“There’s nothing to be ashamed of. No one will touch me today, putting you in good company,” Ky said quietly to the man before looking out into the crowd. “Let’s have a hand for my determined friend. Do any others of you have the courage he displayed?”
Ky released his arm and gave him a firm pat on the back, pushing him back towards the gates that led up to the seating areas. The man gave one glimpse back before walking out of the arena, even managing a wave to the crowd as he left.
The next several were like the first. Unskilled Romans of the middle and lower classes without much in the way of military training. While most managed to stay on their feet, none performed any better than the first challenger.
The crowd, which had cheered Ky’s first opponent, had started to let their attention wander as the excitement waned. Ky was starting to think having people challenging him, rather than plan this out further ahead and picking his challengers, was a mistake. Admittedly, he had not settled on this performance until shortly before it actually started, leaving no time to line up potential challengers.
Ky was thinking about what his next course of action could be when something caught his attention, or rather the lack of something did. Up to this point, people were just being ushered onto the field, where they would take their shot. This time no one was ushered out. Instead, what Ky assumed was the normal announcer, since the man had announced the earlier competition and the previous gladiatorial games, began speaking to the audience.
“Now that the preliminaries are out of the way, the Emperor has arranged a special treat. Following his stunning twenty-seventh victory in the gladiatorial games, I give you Veremund.”
Ky turned from the announcer back towards the entrance ramp to see what could only be described as a giant. Ky was fairly average for his time, standing at an even six-feet. The beast of a man coming towards him was six inches taller and significantly wider.
More surprising than the man’s sheer size was the way he moved. While Ky would not call his movement graceful, it was both faster and more fluid than would be expected from someone his size. The giant strode confidently towards Ky until he was about seven feet away, and then broke into a run, the giant ax he carried in his right hand coming up diagonally over his left shoulder.
Ky began to move to his left, to put his momentum away from the swing he expected to come, and then paused. While the giant’s arms telegraphed the swing, something in the way he tensed his lower arms and ran with his weight to one side suggested the telegraphed swing was a faint. Had the AI not analyzed Veremund’s motion and highlighted the small tell, Ky would have missed the small indications.
Thankfully at this point, he and the AI functioned smoothly as one unit, allowing Ky to take the last-minute adjustment and redirect his own movement. Just as Ky cut back, turning in towards the swing, the giant’s arm dropped and the telegraphed overhand chop changed into a swing traveling from below back up to his right shoulder.
Had Ky missed the change and continued on his previous path, he would have been caught flat-footed by the blade. Instead, Ky pushed up with his legs, leaping over the swinging blade and falling into a roll that brought him back up on his feet.
To his credit, the giant did not roar or stumble or allow the miss to otherwise affect him. He just turned and gave Ky a smirk, a silent acknowledgment to Ky for recognizing the faint that it was. He then lunged at Ky again, the ax swinging in rapid moves that allowed it’s momentum to carry over in a series of repeating motions.
Ky took a step back with each of the giant’s steps, dodging the swings. On the fourth swing, Ky brought up his sword, catching the ax just under the blade against the wooden handle. While Veremund was remarkably strong, his strength was still natural, a combination of genetics and training. Ky’s strength, on the other hand, was the result of thousands of years of human knowledge.
He must have expected to sweep Ky’s block aside, because the giant’s face registered shock when Ky’s weapon stayed in place, not moving an inch. The combination of the giant’s force and Ky’s sword cut clean through the hardwood handle of the ax, sending the blade tumbling past Ky on his right, digging itself into the sand floor while the remains of the handle continued on its swing, passing in front of Ky.
Deciding he was ready to end this, Ky swept his sword arm back and brought up his foot. The giant’s chest was still exposed, his arms open as a result of the swing. Ky’s foot caught him square in the chest. The look of surprise on the giant’s face when Ky’s hand sliced through his ax was nothing compared to the expression he had when his body bent in half at the blow, and his feet left the ground.
The giant sailed across the arena floor, traveling just short of twenty feet before smashing back into the ground and skidding across the dirt for another several feet, where he lay motionless. Ky was almost certain the man was not permanently injured. With the AI’s assistance, Ky made sure to kick right in the center of the man’s breastplate and use just enough force to propel him, but not so much that it would crush the metal into the man’s chest.
The crowd, who had been yelling with excitement at the giant’s attacks, had gone quiet as Ky sent the man flying. Their silence lasted only a second, but the drop in volume made the cheering that followed thunderous. Ky ignored them and kept an eye on the fallen man until he started moving again. After a few moments, the man stirred and pushed himself up.
He still looked stunned at the unexpected turn the combat had taken. He pushed himself up and looked to be considering another run at Ky, weaponless this time, until one of the guards by the gate, which he was now fairly close to, called him to stop. Thankfully, he was more level headed than the citizen Ky had first fought and did not seem inclined to lose control. Instead, he gave a half bow to Ky, acknowledging him as the victor and left, head held high.
Ky could help but grimace inside as he considered how Rome was squandering someone like that as a slave, battling for their enjoyment. True, he had probably been an opponent and would not easily work with Rome, but even the attempt had to be better than wasting someone like him.
Ky thought that might have concluded the day’s activities, but apparently, the Emperor had one more surprise in him as the announcer again stood to talk.
“Now a true test of the Consul’s abilities, as he faces three of his lictores. Each highly skilled soldier has decades of experience in war.”
Ky looked as Sellic and two of the men on Sellic’s detail named Gallio and Archarius. Their swords were sheathed, and they carried their helmets under their arms as they approached, reminding Ky strongly of pilots walking towards their launch craft. Sellic was actually smiling as he walked towards Ky, although his two subordinates balanced between concentrated and concerned.
“You seem happy about this,” Ky said as he grasped Sellic’s forearm in greeting, stepping close enough for the men to have a quiet word before they began.
“Only because you’ve promised not to hurt us. We don’t usually get to go full out on someone when my life isn’t also on the line. This will be fun.”
“I guess you approve of the Emperor’s spicing up the show then?”
“This wasn’t the Emperor’s idea, it was Carus’s.”
“Really? Even the giant I just faced off with?”
“Yes.”
“I think I need to have a little talk with my lictor then.”
Sellic smiled again. Ky had gotten to know him a little on their journey to Devnum, but the situation had been serious at the time, leaving little room for idle conversation. Over the last day of having Sellic follow him around as one of his guards slash assistants, Ky had found the man to be quite jovial and upbeat.
“Until then, are you ready to see how good you really are? I told the boys to not hold back and that there’d be a price to pay if I thought they weren’t giving it their all.”
Ky stepped back, giving a nod. He did not pull up into a guard stance but stood still as the three soldiers donned their helmets and spread out to encircle him.
Ky let his senses extend out, the AI unleashing the real potential of his upgrades. The AI found and blocked out the sounds of the crowds while amplifying the closer sounds around him. His skin began registering changes in air pressure as the people around him moved. The scent of human odors filled his nostrils, taking into account degrees of strength as the men got closer or further away. While he was looking at Sellic, who remained in front of him, the intake from the unfocused areas of his vision were streamed into the AI’s processor core.
All the data was pulled together, updating continuously as the AI analyzed the data, building a picture of what was around him, even behind him. Ky could not actually see anything beyond what he focused on at the very moment. Still, the motion assist would work in necessary actions to counter unseen attacks based on the available data.
Assisted situational awareness was not foolproof, as Ky had learned repeatedly in training sessions. One of the tricks trainers used to integrate new implants with their AIs involved letting the trainee get used to the edge their implants gave them, become overconfident, and then show how fallible it really was. Training command had always made sure their charges understood what they could do with their newfound abilities, and what they could not do.
Had Ky faced people who knew how to deal with the various benefits he had been given, the odds of him winning would have been very low. In this time and place, however, his opponents not only did not know how to deal with his advantages, but they would also have had trouble understanding his implants very existence.
Sellic moved first, but only a fraction of an inch, feigning an attack to his left. Even before the motion assist began pulling him, Ky knew the attack would be coming from Gallio to his right. The feint was a well well-timed but obvious attempt to move Ky into the almost simultaneous lunge.
Ky’s arm swept back over his left shoulder to block a chop by Archarius as he moved forward towards a surprised Sellic. The Centurion’s feint had left his sword arm out of position and Ky moved too fast for him to react. Ky’s arm flashed down, the blade passing inches from Sellic’s face, the metal whistling as it cut through the air. Sellic’s hand was just coming up in a belated attempt to block the attack that would have already landed when Ky stopped his arm in place, denying the built-up momentum, and flicked his wrist to the side, banging the flat edge of his gladius against the man’s breastplate, as a message.
As soon as the metal clanged together, Ky pulled his elbow back and turned his wrist inward, half-clockwise, to bring the blade perpendicular to his forearm. He got his sword in place just in time to block Gallio’s blade, when he had turned his stab into a charge once Ky moved away from him.
Had someone else tried that move, or had Ky tried it against someone augmented like himself, he would have lost the weapon. His position did not allow for much leverage and his grip on the handle was lighter than it would otherwise be.
Against his current opponent, his block was enough. Gallio did manage to move Ky’s blade, pushing it out of line with his body and awkward enough he would have to reposition before continuing his attack. Putting Ky’s blade out of action, even momentarily, was somewhat of an achievement, but one that Ky had accepted as acceptable when he made his move. He had not planned on cutting at the legionary. Instead, he turned his body and hip towards Sellic and shot his foot out in a back kick. The combination of force Ky was able to put into the kick through his half turn and Gallio’s own charge sent him airborne when Ky’s foot connected on his chest.
The AI pinged a warning as soon as Ky’s foot came down, alerting him to a new danger. Ky followed the momentum of his kick into a roll, falling underneath Archarius’s second attack. The soldier’s stabbing blade whistled by overhead, where Ky had been a moment before.
Ky popped up and twisted around in time to see Sellic now coming for him again. Instead of blocking him, Ky twisted his body, letting the thrust sail just past his chest, putting him inside the legionaries’ arm. He grabbed the Centurions wrist and twisted around the outstretched arm, locking the elbow joint, forcing the man to follow Ky as he continued to twist around, or risk having his elbow break. Ky pushed his shoulder down hard as he twisted, flipping the man over, sending him crashing onto his back.
His grip loosened enough that with the impact Ky was able to slide up his wrist and pull the sword out of Sellic’s grasp. Turning around, he now took a ready combat stance, the blades separate but extended, looking at Gallio and Archarius.
“Hold,” Sellic said from his position on the ground. “Let’s stop this before he hurts one of us. He isn’t even breathing hard.”
Gallio and Archarius both skidded to a halt, their weapons dropping. While none of the men were particularly labored in their breathing, it was clear they were slightly winded by the exertion. Ky thought the centurion probably made a good call. The action had only lasted for a few moments, but it had been fast, and Ky had not pulled his contact very much. He knew they would be feeling the hits in the morning, especially Gallio.
Ky looked up to the Emperor’s box and saw the elder statesman was not paying attention. Instead, he was obviously arguing with his son, both men gesturing at the arena floor. After a moment of Ky and the three Legionaries watching the interchange between father and son, Caesius threw up his hands and stormed out of the box.
The Emperor controlled his features as he turned back to the crowd, but it seemed fairly obvious to Ky that he was agitated.
“Our new Consul has bested his challengers, the strongest gladiator in Rome, and three seasoned veteran legionaries. I believe now we all see the abilities Jupiter has gifted to him. To Ky, the Sword of Jupiter!”
The emperor lifted his arms up, sending the crowd into a frenzy of yells. The Emperor put his arms down and, after a few moments, the crowd settled down.
“Go now and enjoy the feasts.”
The Emperor turned to exit his box as Ky followed Sellic and the Legionaries out through the gates. Instead of taking the ramp down like the gladiators he had seen previously, they turned and took a side passage that led back up to the pathways around the outside of the Arena.
Ky could not help but wonder what life was like for those held below the floor of the Colosseum, waiting for their chance to fight to the death.
He was just considering that when he noticed Caesius making a straight line towards them. Seeing the murderous expression on the young man’s face, Sellic started to move to intercept him until Ky held out his arm, stopping the Centurion.
“I know you think you’re clever,” the younger man said, his finger stabbing into Ky’s chest. “The rubes out there may have fallen for your little show, but it doesn’t keep you from being a fraud. You should thank Father for forbidding me from going out and exposing your little charade.”
“I think he wanted to prevent his heir from being made to look like a fool in front of his future subjects. However, if you’d like for me to convince him to give you a public shot at me, I’d be happy to help you.”
Caesius’s face went beet red, and for a moment, Ky thought Caesius would attack him until the Emperor’s voice called from down the walkway, where he and his guards were starting to emerge from his viewing box.
“Caesius!”
While he only said the younger man’s name, the tone made it clear it was a reprimand. Ky did not, for an instant, believe Caesius would allow his father’s disapproval to slow his ambitions down in the least, but the warning did allow Caesius to pull himself back from the brink.
Instead of attacking Ky, he settled on one last, squinty glare before turning abruptly and walking away.
“You should be cautious, Consul. As you said, he will be Emperor someday, and when that happens, you will find yourself quickly out of favor.”
“Hopefully, he’ll outgrow his anger by then,” Ky said.
“I don’t think it’s possible to outgrow ambition.”
“Probably not, but I can hope.”
