Taken: The Life of Uktesh Book 3 (23 page)

Uktesh felt his blood go cold and thought,
Six!  I can’t beat six!  I don’t think I could beat two if they fought me together.
  Uktesh laughed out loud, smiled brightly, and said, “That’s all?  I, Uktesh the Unarmed, will fight all six and come out on top, of that you can be assured.”

Neftalix glared at him and Astiau said, “Well, not to worry brother, during those two months we’ll be able to ensure he’s at his worst condition for the fight, so that he has no chance of success.”  Uktesh felt Heathyr try to move behind him, as Astiau continued, “We’ll start with a fun night together with his mommy.  She’s had so many fun nights with me on the long trip here that she must be bored with me by now.”

Uktesh felt Heathyr shudder behind him.  Uktesh felt his anger building.  He stood up and the dozen guards stepped in front of the two lords.  Neftalix laughed and said, “Yes!   Attack me!  Make this easy on me!  If you attack your Dominus the penalty is death!”

Uktesh felt Heathyr’s hand on his arm, and she said, “Don’t Uktesh.  Don’t let them win.”  She stood and said, “I’ll be fine.  I’ve been captured for about two months already, and other than dealing with his small prick I’m fine.  You just need to survive for you wife.”

Neftalix said, “Talia?  She’ll be dealt with once we find her.”

Astiau said, “I think she means her dead child.  Oh, you didn’t know?  I set a trap for her back at your little village.  If she was alive when we captured you, she won’t be now.”

Neftalix said, “Trap?”

Astiau said, “Don’t worry I only had to leave a few hundred soldiers, they’ll be easily replaced.”

Neftalix frowned, “I don’t like wasting soldiers, now that I’m the commander, do you have any idea how much it costs for each of their deaths?”

Astiau glanced at Uktesh and Heathyr and said, “Can we discuss this another time, brother?”

Neftalix nodded and said, “As you say, we have a more pressing matter.  My dear, if you’d come with us?”

Heathyr’s shoulders slumped and she took a step before Uktesh pulled her back. 
Is this how I die? 
In his mind he flashed back to the days after Talia’s, “night of fun,” and the damage they’d done to her, and he couldn’t let that happen to Heathyr. 
I won’t just let it happen!
  “No.”

Neftalix smiled in triumph, “You’re refusing an order slave?”

Uktesh said, “No.”

Neftalix frown and said, “Then hand her over boy.”

Uktesh said, “No.”

Astiau said, “I tire already of this brother, let’s just try to take her, have him attack us, and kill him when it’s over.  We’ll still have plenty of time for the mother.”

Uktesh shouted, “No!”  He then did the one thing he’s swore he’d never do.  Something so vile and,
evil,
he thought, that he knew it would change him forever.  He called out to the soldiers,
Kill them both!

He didn’t know if they were weak-minded, or if desperation made him more powerful, but as one the twelve turned and stabbed into both of the lords.  Astiau had a moment to show his surprise in his one eye, before that too was stabbed through from one of the guards. 

Neftalix, faster and more skilled than his dead brother, had his armor wrap itself around him instantly and the magnificent metal deflected or outright broke the swords that attacked him.  He gestured and a sword materialized in his hand.  He used it to quickly kill all twelve of the guards.  As the last guard died, Uktesh felt his control of them snap back into his brain like a whip, and he fell back onto his bed with the thought,
at least I got one of them.

When he woke up the first thought he had was,
I’m alive?
  He then realized he was chained to a wall in what was clearly a dungeon.  There was a skeleton of a man in a heap under one of the set of chains,
not a good sign,
and a moan to his left made him look to see Heathyr chained to the wall in a similar fashion.  “Heathyr, are you ok?”

She groaned again and raised her head, “Uktesh?”

He said, “Yeah, are you ok?”

She rolled her head, and Uktesh didn’t know if that was an affirmative or negative answer, but fortunately she said, “I’m okay.  Sore, but I’ll live.  What did you do?”

Uktesh hesitated to tell her the truth so he said, “I don’t know. I guess they didn’t like Neftalix or Astiau and decided that was a good moment to try to take them out.”

Heathyr clearly didn’t believe him and said, “That moment?  When they were standing in front of the two lords, not when they were standing behind them?  That moment, when you were angry and desperate?”

Uktesh said, “Yes?” 
Way to sound confident in your own story you idiot.

Heathyr said, “Well, I guess that’s as good an explanation as any.”

Uktesh and Heathyr hung on the wall for a full day and night until Neftalix finally showed himself.  He came in with just one other man this time, and he came fully armed and armored.  The other man, however, dominated the room.  He wore a simple black robe and needed a staff to assist himself as they walked in.  He looked to be nearly eighty, but of the two Uktesh knew that he was the more deadly, and from the way Neftalix held himself around the man, he knew it too. 

The man walked up to Uktesh and raised both his head and his hand to Uktesh and Uktesh saw that the man was blind.  His eyes didn’t have the typical gray cloudy appearance, but instead actually looked like white puffy clouds obscured his vision.  The man felt along Uktesh’s head and throat for a few moments and said, “No, release him, he isn’t.”  The man moved to Heathyr and repeated the process and for a second time said, “No, release her, she isn’t either.”

Neftalix didn’t move though, instead he shouted, “My Elite wouldn’t betray me!  He did it!  It was him!”

The man turned to Neftalix and Uktesh couldn’t see what he did, if anything, but Neftalix paled suddenly, and Uktesh fell to the ground, suddenly released.  Pain flooded his hands and feet as blood suddenly rushed back into them.  He grunted in pain, and heard Heathyr scream as the same pain hit her.  Uktesh quickly started flowing earth and water to his wrists and ankles.  While they writhed on the ground the man said, “I am the High Priest of the Dead, boy.  I am not wrong. To question me is to question Osiris himself.  It is the will of the god of death that he be allowed to compete in the blood sacrifice one more time.  Osiris will be greatly displeased if it isn’t a fight for the ages. This one would make a truly spectacular sacrifice.”

Uktesh heard Neftalix say, “Of course High Priest, and I thank you for your consideration in coming down here personally.  I only wish my father and brother were still here to bear witness this honor.”

The High Priest nodded and said, “The Emperor himself asked me.  He, it seems, has also gained some interest in a slave who chose not to free himself.”  The man looked back at Uktesh with his cloudy eyes, and Uktesh swore he saw something dark looking at him through a gap in the clouds.  The High Priest turned away before Uktesh could be certain.  “He will fight in two weeks, by the Emperor’s order.  The six you wish will fight him.  It is the will of Osiris.  It will be made so.  The Emperor will be in attendance, and it will be held in the arena of Osiris.”

Uktesh didn’t know what most of that meant, but from the glee, then horror on Neftalix’s face Uktesh knew he wouldn’t enjoy the knowledge.  Neftalix bowed low and said, “The Storm ludis thanks you, High Priest, for this honor.”

The High Priest glanced back and smiled a truly fear-inspiring smile, as the clouds in his eyes parted and a pair of deep black pools looked back at Uktesh.  The High Priest said, “Osiris is also interested in this one.  Storm lord, you and he now share a linked fate.  He will rise or fall in this fight as will you and your declining House.  If I were you, I would ensure he is in his best condition for this next and possibly last fight.”

Without further comment the High Priest shuffled out and Neftalix followed him.

Uktesh slowly crawled to Heathyr and made sure she was okay.  He started to massage her ankles, even though his own wrists and ankles hurt, but he knew he would be able to withstand it better than she would.  Thanks to his elemental skills he was already over the worst of the pain.  He worked slowly and after fifteen minutes she was able to stand and they walked out of the cell to find that Cavavos was waiting for them.

He stood at the sight of them and said, “I told you one thing, don’t do the Rumble, and now look at you, you’ve got a death god interested in you.  If that weren’t enough you’ve also got the wrath of the Storm lord.  And now you’ve also got the interest of the Emperor.  If all three of those things weren’t enough you’ve somehow also landed yourself in a fight in the arena of Osiris.”

Uktesh said, “What’s the big deal about where we fight?”

Cavavos shook his head and said, “I forget that you’re so new here. Usually it takes years, if not decades for gladiators to get to their hundredth ‘kill’ fight.  The arena of Osiris is inside the Halls of the Dead and it’s attendance is mandatory for the whole of the empire.  As we speak fliers are speeding to all the cities of the Empire for the citizens to hurry here.”

Uktesh said, “That doesn’t seems so bad, more people watching is all.” 
Them and that thing in the High Priest’s eyes,
Uktesh shuddered as the remembered image.

Cavavos said, “You don’t understand.  The rules are vastly different in the arena of Osiris.  For one thing it’s to the death, for both you and your Dominus, and rumor has it that the souls of those who die go straight into the embrace of Osiris himself.”

Uktesh said, “I don’t plan on dying.”

Cavavos said, “You fought one in the last part of the tournament and nearly lost your leg. I was there I saw it. Your skill with the sword truly won’t be enough.  If you have some other trick up your sleeve you need to practice and perfect that.”

Uktesh frowned and knew Cavavos was correct, but he had another thought on his mind, “What about Heathyr?”

Cavavos looked at Heathyr and said, “What about her?”

Uktesh said, “What’s going to happen to her while I’m training?”

Cavavos had a confused expression on his face, “She’s a slave, and she’ll do what slaves do.  Enough talk. You need to start training you soul depends on victory.”

Uktesh grabbed Heathyr’s hand and said, “We’ll be training in my cell.”

Uktesh led her toward the light, and when he oriented himself, led her to his cell.  “Okay, here’s the deal. I need you to be a look out for me. Make sure no one sees me training.  It’s unlikely anyone would betray it to one of the other ludisii, but if the Dominus’s life is hanging in the balance with no heirs, some may try to curry favor with one of the other six ludisii who will be fighting in this fight.”

Heathyr asked, “What are you going to be doing?”

Uktesh said, “I was granted elemental powers by the dragon and I’m going to be training those.  I’ve been training them, but I’m going to focus on them intensely.”

Heathyr frowned but said, “I’ll do it.”

Uktesh fell into his meditative trance easily and started to pull forth all of his powers when someone punched his face!  He fell to the bed, and realized he’d been levitating, only to see Heathyr shaking her fist.  Uktesh asked, “What’s going on?  Why’d you hit me?”

She said, “People are coming and you didn’t snap out of it until I hit you.  Well, I hit you twice, but the one that worked was when I hit you hard.  It was like hitting stone.”

Neftalix staggered in and shouted, “Why aren’t you training!  I,” he stumbled and caught himself on the bars of the cell, “I can’t have you slacking off, just cause our deaths are assured!”

Uktesh said, “I am training.”

Neftalix said, “Fine you train, I’m going to have fun with your ludisious,” he paused, “luvasious,” he blinked several times, “lovely mother here.”

Uktesh asked, “Are you drunk?”

Neftalix laughed and said, “Yup, and I’m going to do my best to stay that way until we die in two weeks!”

Uktesh said, “I need her for my training!”

Neftalix said, “I’ll get you a different whore for your needs, but this one is mine for the next two weeks.”

Uktesh said, “I need her!  I can’t train properly if I can’t concentrate!  If I think you’re,” Uktesh felt his anger rising, “if I think you’re harming her, I won’t be able to concentrate!”

Neftalix said, “We’re both dead, nothing you can do will change that.  No one will help us, my ludis is soon to be gone, and it’s all your fault!  We should’ve just killed you like my brother wanted!”

Uktesh pleaded, “I can win!  I just need to train!”

Neftalix shook his head, “You don’t understand, I couldn’t win this fight!  I made it impossible for any one person to win!”  He mumbled something that sounded like, “though now that we fight in the arena of Osiris,” and then spoke up, “but they wouldn’t!  Because of you!  Because my father isn’t here!  Because my brother isn’t here!”

He grabbed Heathyr’s hand and Uktesh Walked to him and grabbed his wrist, “I.  Need.  Her.”

Neftalix let go, backed away, and blinked drunkenly at them before he said, “Fine!  Have her!  I have dozens more luvacious than her!  At least I’ll get to see my father and brother avenged before I die!  The emperor without an heir!  We were the second House in all the Empire!  How could one slave take us from a step away from being the emperor to a step from demise?”