“Yes, but I don’t know what forms those reforms would take,” I point out.“And how great the benefits would be.I have no way of knowing whether the risk is worth it, Marcus.”
He nods.
"I understand that.I hope I'll be able to persuade you, and that you'll be able to help me to do this the right way.I want you to play a full part in helping to shape my approach before I put a final proposal to the Senate.Perhaps I could call upon you to discuss it?We could have dinner again."
He says it warmly and with sincerity.I can’t help but like Marcus, and if I can help him to find a form of the games that won’t cost the lives of ordinary people, I’m happy to try.I nod.
“I’d like that.”
CHAPTER TWELVE: LYRA
I don't wear my senator’s toga when I go to the slums.That would make me stand out too much, and after days of sitting in the chamber, listening to arguments, I don’t want to feel like a senator right now, in any case.
Instead, I wear a simple dress and wrap a cloak around myself, wanting to see with my own eyes what the problems are for the people I represent now.
Because it's not just about the games.So much of the discussion in the senate chamber seems to be about the colosseum.But bringing back the contests can't be the only thing we can do for the city, for the Republic.Rowan has spoken about problems within Aetheria, and Marcus has hinted at them as well.Everyone on the Senate has, in their way.They've talked about supply problems and unrest, but they haven't given me enough specifics.
I need to see things for myself.
“We should go with you,” one of the guards at the gates of the old palace says.
I shake my head.“That would defeat the object of going out like this.It would make it too obvious who I am, and I wouldn't get to see the real city.”
The guards look worried about that but they can't force me to accept their protection.I hope I won't need it, in any case.I'm not going out to fight anyone, just to see what's going on in the city.
I start to make my way through it, and because I want to get a whole picture of Aetheria, I start with some of the districts closer to the palace: the noble quarter and the merchant district.Everything seems peaceful there, although I can see the guards on the streets, watching for any danger.Not just city guards, either; it seems the noble houses have employed their own protectors and the merchants have paid for security in the form of tough looking men who stand around their businesses and houses.
That makes me wonder what these men are there to protect against.There isn't the same atmosphere of fear that there was in the last days of the empire but there is still a kind of tension in the air.
As I walk through the market, I hear a shout and see a man running between the stalls, holding a bolt of cloth in his arms.A couple more men are chasing after him, clubs in their hands.I have a split second in which to choose whether to intervene and instinctively I take control of the mind of a stray dog hunting for scraps in the market, making it run across the path of the fleeing man.
He trips and falls.Almost instantly the two men chasing him are upon him, clubs rising to deliver a beating.
“We'll teach you not to steal from the merchant Antonius!”one says.It's obvious he plans to beat the thief senseless.
I step in, raising my hands.“Stop this.You've caught him.If you want to see him punished, take him to a magistrate.”
“Who are you to tell us what to do?”one of the two men with clubs says.“Step back and let us get on with this or you'll be getting some too.”
I pull down my hood now.I had hoped to hide but if it will let me save someone from being beaten, I will take the risk.
“I'm Lyra, former champion of the arena and current senator of Aetheria.Who areyou?”
The men stare at me as if it might be a joke, but some hint of recognition crosses their faces, quickly followed by worry.
“We’re no one important,” one of them says.
“You said you worked for a merchant, Antonius, wasn't it?”
“Forget we said anything,” the other one says.“We didn't know it was you.”
I shake my head.“That doesn't make it better.It just means that if I were someone else you'd be attacking me by now.Now, why aren't you taking this man to the magistrates?”
“There aren’t enough of them anymore,” the first man says.“Half of them left in the wake of the revolution.And there are whole areas the guards don't go into.People have to get whatever protection they can.”
Which in turn means that there are more armed men on the streets, willing to dish out beatings or worse.I grab the bolt of cloth, shoving it at the men.
“If you're not going to take him to a magistrate then this is done.You've got what he stole, now leave him.”
