So I start to make my way through the Colosseum, checking everything once again.I make sure that the servants are in the right places, that the healers are ready and waiting to deal with any injuries.That the merchants and the bookmakers are sticking to their assigned spots and not bringing gang members with them for security.
I wish I could head down to the beast pits, but those are empty at the moment.There's no way to blunt the claws of a lion or the teeth of a giant snake.Even as a beast whisperer, I don't think I could guarantee the safety of a fight involving such creatures.So, for now, my favorite part of the arena is dead and still.
The first of the crowd are starting to come in, and I watch them, the excitement on their faces.Is that excitement because they are anticipating a spectacle of skill and excellence?Or is it because they want to see blood?I can't shake my misgivings about the event I've helped to put on.
I head up to the receiving rooms, seeing that many of the most important people in the city have already arrived.It's clear they want to see and be seen here, the way they did in the old games.They want the respect that comes from being seen at the favorite entertainment of the people.They want to be surrounded by servants who will obey their every whim.They want to be associated with the gladiators, or at least with the resurgence of the games.Several senators are there, even ones who voted against the proposal.
I don't see Rowan, though.It seems he wants to stay away from these games, not interested in any reflected glory from them.My guess is that the colosseum holds far too many bad memories for him.It means that Marcus will be in full control of these games, and maybe that’s a good thing.Marcus worked hard to bring the renewed fights back, while Rowan stood against them.It would be wrong in some ways for Rowan to stand in the old emperor’s box and get the glory.
Thoughts of the emperor's box make me head up there, wanting to see the space where Emperor Tiberius stood in cruel control of the games and his empire, a space where he commanded me to watch the deaths of others, and had me kneel so he could remind me that I was no more than his slave.
My heart beats faster as I return to it.There are a couple of city guards on the doors, but they step back to let me enter without a word.
Inside I'm surprised to see Domitian Blacksteel, dressed in his senator’s toga, looking out over the sands beyond with an expression of satisfaction.
“What are you doing up here?”I ask him.
“Why wouldn't I be here?”he counters.“We no longer have an emperor, so this box has been made available to any of the senate who wish to use it.It seems like the best spot from which to watch people coming in.Did you know I've arranged processions through the streets?Obviously we're not bringing gladiators down from Ironhold this time, but I thought we could still have an echo of that with tumblers and acrobats, dancers and actors.It will connect these games to the past.”
“We’re trying to get away from the past,” I say.
“Well, I'm sure you enjoyed the processions, Lyra.”
I can't deny that the processions from the fortress of Ironhold down to the city were sometimes the only joyous part of the games for me.They were a moment when we were surrounded by the people of the city, when they called out their love for us or booed the gladiators they disliked.Some gladiators, like Alaric, would play up to the crowds, blowing kisses and catching roses from the air.Others, like Rowan, would walk in stony silence.
“Is that all you've been arranging?”I ask Domitian.I know Marcus says I can't accuse him publicly without proof but it's just the two of us here.
“What do you mean by that?”Domitian replies.
“I mean that someone tried to tamper with my safety measures for these games,” I say.“Someone tried to introduce lethally sharpened weapons, rather than the blunt ones the gladiators were due to fight with.”
“And do you think I had something to do with that?”Domitian counters, spreading his hands in a gesture of innocence.
“I think you've been involved in plenty of things,” I say.“Do you know I was attacked?They were men hired by someone who knew the pit fights.”
“I'm sorry to hear that,” Domitian says.“Sadly, you have made many enemies.Senator Yarrow doesn't like that you represent some of the people of the slums.She sees it as interfering in her business interests.And I believe Senator Olivia is a little jealous of the attention you've been getting.”
“And what about you, Domitian?”I ask.“Wouldn't you have seen me as an obstacle to getting the games back?”
Domitian gestures to the arena.“From what I can see you'vegivenme those games, Lyra.”
“But not the way you want,” I insist.“Not the old games, not with fights to the death.Is that why you had the weapons switched?”
He laughs.“I think you think too much of me.You imagine that I'm this unseen hand behind everything.And you're accusing me of something you have no proof of.I hope you won't do that out in public, Senator Lyra.We senate members must be seen to support one another.”
I grit my teeth.As he says, I can’t prove anything, and it's obvious he doesn't plan to admit to it.
“I think you'd be surprised by how many people might want the games as they were,” Domitian says.
“That's not going to happen,” I say.
He smiles.“Isn't it?I find that in general the people get what they want, one way or another.They are the tide and we must flow with them.Now if you'll excuse me…”
He steps past me, pausing at the door.
“I really do thank you for helping to bring this back, Lyra.You were a great gladiator, but this is an achievement that matters.You should be proud of it.”
I'm not proud, though.Instead, as he walks away, I can't help feeling that I've made a terrible mistake.I’ve allowed myself to be manipulated into putting the games back on, and now Domitian is slowly changing them into exactly what he wants.
