Of Masters and Slaves

''The colosseum was packed with many people, cheering loudly and drunkenly disheveled. They filled all of the seats and watched down below at the specticle. ''

''Four men came out from the closed gates and the crowd's noise grew louder. The men down below were all wearing some ragged tunics, dirty and sooty. They all were bounded by chains, dangling as they walked towards the center of the ring. A group of guards came up to the group with keys, uncuffing them from the restraints. They then marched away back into the gates as the iron door shut. ''

''The men were all looking at one another in a sternful manner. The eyes possessed malice and concern, uncertain of whether they would have the strength to kill the other people. ''

''Then, a barrage of trumpets sounded up and the audience rose up and stood silently as the leader of the nation came to his seating. He stood tall and proud, with a red velvet crown adorned with a ruby in the middle of it. He held up both of his hands and proclaimed:''

''"Children of the great nation! Here in our midst is your most gracious ruler and leader, Tsar Muscovy Vladislav III. His majestic lord is here to witness a great challenge. Four men stand in the ring before you. They are all respective rulers of the land that we inhabit. They represent as the Duke of Timisora, Doge of Venezophia, Despot of Formosa, and the Grand Marquis of Kieva. These leaders are engaged in a territorial conflict, of which our people have greatly increased. This type of conflict must be resolved with a sheer victor. The champion will be the one to conquer and enlarge their repsective country into our nation. Prepare yourselves, great rulers. One must conquer." ''

''The four rulers looked at one another, methodically eying the other and stepping back to their separate areas. At this juncture, they did not have any weapons in handy. It might be that they would beat each other into a pulp with their fists. ''

''“I don’t give a damn about your lives,” said the Grand Marquis. “I’ll beat you all up with my mere arms.” ''

''He charged at the Duke and bulldozed him aside. The Duke tumbled down to the ground and quickly got back up. He ran toward the Grand Marquis and delivered a flying sidekick to the groin. The Grand Marquis groaned at the impact, only becoming redder and angrier and viciously wrestled the Duke to the ground. ''

''The Doge kept the Despot at a distance and evaded him. The Despot was carefully stalking the Doge, unlike the savagery that the Grand Marquis displayed. ''

''“Listen, Ysvaneiya. Why wast each other away like that? Why succumb to the illness and destructive nature to that of the Grand Marquis?” ''said the Doge.

''"Shut up!" he hissed. "I would not at all hesitate to kill you, on a personal level! If it weren't for your callous demeanor, maybe this would've not occurred at all!"''

''The Doge sighed deeply. "Even if I am considered to be 'the man with no equal,' perhaps you have to realize that you are actually my equal. No one realizes this, since alliances are forbiddon, but you are the closest to me as a friend." You must believe me! Of the many times, especially during the conspiracy of Bellomont, I protected you because you have a great depth of knowledge, you are creative, and very avant-garde to others."''

''The Despot's eyes paused and fixed upon the Doge, then to the Grand Marquis, who was battering down the struggling but defiant Duke. He thought about the many times that whenever he was facing stronger men, and was considered the lesser weakling, the Doge assured of his safety and confidence. He felt the warm, ethereal glow of the beauty behind the Doge. He held his hand against his own heart, and stared at the Doge. "I trust you greatly and humbly," he said with emminence. ''

''The Doge gave a small smile, but a face of conviction and boldness shown as he turned towards the fighting people. He turned back to the Duke and said, "Then let's take down the brute together!" The Duke smirked, and the two of them ran towards the Grand Marquis. ''

''The Duke was being brutally punched by the Grand Marquis, hitting with one strong swing after another. The Duke was covered and dripping with blood, with little to no chance surviving this ordeal. With one final punch, the Grand Marquis pummeled the Duke towards the men running at him. The Doge and Despot slide down and ducked from the body of the Duke. The Duke crashed into the Colloseum walls where a lion cage was located. The lion gave a mighty booming roar and devoured the body of the Duke. ''

''The Doge and the Duke turned around and laughed, with the Grand Marquis joining in a few moments later. The crowd of the Colloseum thundered in applause and cheering over the spectacle that took place. The Tsar surveyed the Colloseum and gave a little smirk. ''

''The three men finished up laughing at what took place. "So much for his 'sentimental peace policy,'" the Doge quipped. The other two men laughed and almost fell to the ground. ''

''"His stupid 'nonviolent self-defense schools,'" the Grand Marquis agreed. ''

''"The art of 'solemnity and tranquility,' the true governing way of life," the Despot said. ''

''The three men finished their commentary on the feebleness of the Duke. They faced each other at one of them and then the other.''

''"What's it gonna be then, eh? Free for all, or double ups?" said the Grand Marquis.''

"Tragically for you, you'll be the first one to die. And we're the ones to do it."

''The Grand Marquis hollered in laughter. "You two pathetic wimps against me? You ignorant fools!"''

''The two men gauged the distance between themselves and the Grand Marquis. He is said to have been a half breed of a human and a bull or other type of beast. Though no one is for certain. But whenever the "bull" would charge at the two men, they evade the enemy and reposition themselves. The Doge figured out how to kill the "beast." He ran to the side of the arena and grabbed a long, spiked pole. He then charged back towards the Grand Marquis. The Doge ​​​​​​​lashed at the beast, managing to land a scratch on his cheek. The beastial man roared loudly and carefully eyed the two people. ''

''The moment was intense for the situation as the cheers of the audience was very boisterous and loud. The Doge tossed the pike to his ally, and he looked at a long chain that hanged on one of the pillars in the ring. He motioned to the beast to give chase and the beast did so. He ran as fast as he could, but the Grand Marquis was catching up to him. The Doge jumped up and grabbed the chain. The beast, however, lurched high and clawed at his back, producing a visible claw on the body. The Doge gave a small cry, but it didn't deter him from what was happening. The beast then turned to the Duke and charged at him. ''

''The Duke anticipated the raging monster coming at him and held the pike out and swinged it around, keeping the distance from closing. He was eyeing on what the Doge was doing. It seemed that he was trying to get the beast toward him again, and he waved his hand to the Duke. That was when he had to make a run for it towards the Doge. The beast gave a mighty roar and chased down the potential prey. ''

''The Duke luckily had a headstart on the Grand Marquis, but he wasn't as athletic as the Doge was. The Doge took note of how much tired the Duke was and shouted, "Don't give in!! Use your inner power to get here!" The Duke used every ounce of strength he had. The Doge set the chain and tied it tightly around the pillar and was on the top of it. He awaited the Duke to come in closer. As soon as he got to the right spot, the Doge shouted, "Stop where you are and impale him on his underside!"''

''The Duke did exactly that, and ducked enough so that he wouldn't get hit by the Grand Marquis. The pike hit him, badly injuring him and lost his footing and tumbled the rest of the way to the pillar, sliding near its base, barely able to stand. He turned onto his back and held the wound firmly. The Doge then leaped outward from the top of the pillar and pulled the chain as hard as he could. The base of the pillar cracked and the pillar started its descent. The Grand Marquis opened his eyes and saw the pillar crumbling down. The wound that punctured him did no good favor for him to be able to move anymore, and with a mighty scream, the pillar crashed down onto his body. ''

''As the dust settled in the area, a portion of the pillar was covered in raw flesh and blood. The body was limp and motionless. The audience then blasted in a loud, thundering cheer. It was such an epic moment right there for everyone. The Duke laughed tirelessly, but he gleamed at the Doge proudly. The Doge kneeled down, panting heavily. He was covered in dust and felt his back where the wound was made. He didn't bother much with it at the moment. He sat all the way down, relieved that he killed that brute himself. ''

''"Sevanta, are you alright?" the Duke asked. ''

''The Doge chuckled a little bit. "Yes, I'm fine. Just catching my breathe. That thing could really take my breathe away anyway." The two men laughed. "It seems that you have a bit of a fighting spirit within yourself, don't you?"''

''"I do, but I'd never thought that I could be able to take out someone of that caliber." ''

''The two of them stared at the other, intently and calmly. Their eyes connected gleamly and heavenly, sparkling in the sunlight. If only such more emotions would be carried from this point. But the major decision had to be made between these opposing forces. "You do realize that this battle is far from over, right?" said the Doge, noting the dimmer silence from the crowd. ''

''The Duke eyed all over the arena, then back at the Doge. "Sevanta, I'm certain that there can be a way that both of us can live. You know that." The Doge gave a small smile, shaking his head as he looked back at the Duke. "Giulio, if only that were an easy way to do it. But it seems that all of these people asks for is one person to win. Let's imagine, for instance, that if were given a choice of who would want to die. Which one of us would be the one to do it and how would one do it?"''

Giulio responded, "I'd do it. I know that you've done so much for my life, protecting my honor and power within this daftly, gaustly society we live in. I know that you'd be better to survive in this type of world than I. But all of this is hypothetical, right?"

''The Doge was looking to the ground, then looked up. "Of course, Giulio. I wouldn't want anything to happen to you. We'll have to figure out how to give the audience something impressionable and then the Tsar would understand." He slowly approached the Duke, holding his hand outwards. The Duke felt a bit awkward and started to turn red at this gesture, afraid of what the audience would react. The Doge saw his face and smiled. "Don't be shy. Take my hand." ''

''The Duke reached for his hand and grabbed it. The Duke felt a swell of emotions surge through him. The audience wasn't as suspicious to this as this was a gesture of respect between people. So they were unnerved by the show of this symbol. The Duke looked at his hand and rubbed it gently and subtely. He looked back at the face of a wonderous, ethereal being. It was an entangling moment that he couldn't escape from. Nor did he want to leave this moment. He smiled warmly at him. Seventa smiled in kind... ''

''At that instance, he heard the audience roared suddenly, looking around at the fanatic people cheering, thinking that they'd accept the feelings and moments of this show of cameraderie. But, he felt a throbbing pain in his chest. He stared downward and saw the tip of the pike lodged in his body. He looked back up with a gasping of air. The Doge smirked triumphantly. The Duke was swirling with chaotic panic, not understanding what just happened. He then collected his thoughts at the moment, attempting to gain control of his senses. "What did you do?"''

''"I think both you and I know why, Giulio." He moved the tip an inch deeper into his body. The Duke writhed in pain, but was still barely alive from the intense pain. Sevanta pulled him down to the ground, as he tried to gather in air. He was oozing out blood, covering his ragged torso. Sevanta kneeled beside him. "What you thought was my means to protect and keep you alive was for the sake that you could die in a more pleasing fashion than secretive execution. By placing you before the crowd, it only reveals what you are. What's more is that because I'm such a powerful, influential member of the Council, I was able to prevent you from being killed anyways, thanks to the cooperative efforts of the Tsar."''

''The Duke groaned badly. "Ugh... you broke our promise. I thought that I could trust you."''

"Trust me? Have you forgotten the belief of 'to not maintain deep confidence in your enemies', especially if they manipulate emotions and ambition?"

"I did more than trust you! I loved you!"

''Sevanta looked deeply at the Duke. He then spoke, "Love you? Did you truly believe that I loved you? After all those encounters and instances, you thought that I did that for love? You are gravely mistaken. Those were means to understand you and to gain intelligence on you. You and I realize that such 'love' as this, which you most certainly manufactured at some point, is strictly forbidden and is regarded as a 'weakness of willpower' and a means to descend to that of a slave." ''

''The Duke was disheveled and feeling weaker and weaker. "I must've done something completely wrong, then. Perhaps I wasn't strong enough to hold my own in this country. Had I not relied on someone else for their trust and protection, I wouldnt've die like this. I get it now. Why I was killed like this. Those years ago, for being at the wrong place at the wrong time. It was my inability to be strong, to be an aristocrat, and to rely on my own power. Had I possessed those traits, than scoff them off like a joke, I would never be killed by a filth like you."''

''The Doge glared at him intently. "Is that all, or can I finish you?" ''

''"I'm barely finished with you," Giulio said. He panted deeper and deeper, breathing in enough air. "To think about the people who were involved, the specialty about their family, and the trouble it has brought to the country, it has made me realized why you've survived as long as you have." Sevanta was slightly unsettled, but unmoved by this point. Giulio continued, "It had grealty intrigued me but nevertheless did not matter too much, due to my total devotion to you that has made me truly see you. The type of ambition you possess, the cold-voided emotions you dsiplay. It has truly amazes me and beffudled me to know that your family heritage is none other than–"''

''Sevanta removed the tip of the pike and stabbed him again and again. Giulio screamed in agony as the Doge brutally stabbed him all over his body. The audience screamed loudly, amused by the spectacle. Surges of rage and anger overtook him. Red fury consumed his mind to the ability to stab the then lifeless corpse of the Duke. ''

''​​​​​​​The Doge stopped completely. He looked at his hand, stained in intense red blood. He threw the spear tip away and slowly stood up. The audience cheered and cheered. He looked all over the colloseum and was feeling more and more happier. He viciously laughed at the audience and the bodies of everyone else. The Tsar chuckled softly and found this very amusing too. ''