Four Horses For Tishtry

by Chelsea Quinn Yarbro

  * * *

  Calpurnius was beaming as he came up to Tishtry that evening. “You surpassed everything,” he said grandly, and Tishtry could tell that he was slightly drunk. “I won over twelve thousand denarii on bets alone, and your performance fee has gone up by two hundred denarii. Here.” He held out a small pouch in which coins clinked. “For all you did. Add it to your account to buy your family’s freedom. There will be more soon if you continue as you have performed today.” His smile became silly. “They were all agog over that Greek, and no one thought you’d have anything new to offer, but you showed them, didn’t you? Valericus has already offered quite a lot of money for you, but I’ve refused him. In six months, I’ll be able to name the amount and anyone who is able will think himself lucky to get you.”

  “So soon?” Tishtry asked in spite of herself.

  “Maybe a year,” Calpurnius allowed. “But you’re improving so much, and your style has become so polished that everyone is mad for you.” He noticed that one end of his toga had come loose and he held it out, puzzling what to do with it. “You will race again in ten days. Not an hour before. We can’t go spoiling your effectiveness with too many performances, can we? You are rare, girl, and I intend that you should stay that way. Valericus has his Greek in the arena four times in the next ten days, and by then some of the crowd will be used to him, and they will not think anything of watching him make his horses dance. But you, they will be waiting for you so eagerly.” He rubbed his hands together and more of his toga trailed on the ground. “Valericus will be furious, of course, but by then it will be too late.”

  Tishtry, who was feeling more exhausted than she cared to admit, looked at her master with curiosity. “Is it your intention to create a rivalry between me and Dionysos?”

  “I don’t need to,” he answered with glee. “It already exists. There are men betting that the Greek will not be able to do more than drive his chariot, and will not be able to stand on his team’s backs, let alone do somersaults and handstands and all the rest of it. How do you keep from getting trampled when you go under the necks that way?” he asked suddenly.

  “It takes a great deal of practice,” she answered, not adding that if she were much larger, she would not be able to do it at all. “You are very near the legs when you swing under the neck, you know.”

  “Um,” he responded owlishly. “I wouldn’t like to try it, myself.”

  “It requires training, both for you and the horses,” she said, hoping that Calpurnius would not decide to attempt it.

  “Well, I know my horses wouldn’t put up with it, even standing still.” He gathered up the end of his toga and knotted it—very incorrectly—around his waist. “Terrible garment. You’d think they’d let us wear something sensible to a banquet, like a tunica or a dalmatica, but no, men of rank must have on the toga, or they will be thought boors. It shows you what fools we are.” He leaned back against the stable wall and stared off into the twilight for some little time, saying nothing to Tishtry.

  When she had waited for some more response and none came, she took one step back, assuming he would dismiss her. “Master?”

  “No, no. I’m not through yet. I’m thinking.” He cleared his throat. “You truly dislike that Greek, don’t you?”

  She hesitated, then answered directly. “I dislike his manners, and it appears that he dislikes mine. Beyond that, I don’t know. He has not spoken much to me, nor I to him.” It would be improper of her to say more unless Calpurnius ordered her to elaborate.

  “Would you like to meet him in some kind of challenge demonstration?” There was a greediness in his eyes that startled Tishtry.

  “It would depend on the circumstances and conditions. Clearly his team can outperform mine by most standards, but just as clearly, I can outperform him by most standards. You would have to take that into consideration if there were to be such a demonstration.” She watched him, trying to think of some way to caution him. “I doubt any conditions could be made that both of us would think fair.”

  “That doesn’t matter,” Calpurnius said, dismissing her reservations. “Valericus is itching to take advantage of the situation, and so am I.” He stared off into nothing for a bit. “Well,” he went on as if there had been no lapse, “I will consider this all very carefully, you may be sure of that. I’ll talk to Himic, too, and find out what he thinks. We could all realize great profits from a contest between the two of you, should you win. And I expect you to win if we make such an arrangement.”

  “Valericus will expect Dionysos to win, as well,” Tishtry reminded her master. “They will not be willing to have such a match otherwise.”

  “Naturally,” Calpurnius chortled. “That is what makes it so delicious. You said yourself that you can outride him, and I know that you can get through tighter spots than his team can, and if it comes down to hard cases, the bestiarii is more important than the beasts.”

  “Not according to the ones who work with lions and tigers,” Tishtry said, beginning to feel seriously alarmed.

  “I’ve already talked to a chariot maker. There’s a radical new design being tried out, one in which the tongue has a certain amount of swivel, so that the chariots can make tighter turns. I hear the traders on the Silk Road use wagons with hinged tongues like this, so that they can manage all the twists and turns of the mountain roads. Think of the advantage that could be for someone like you.” He regarded Tishtry expectantly. “What do you say? Does it intrigue you?”

  “I will have to see the chariot first,” she said gently. “Once I know what the chariot maker has in mind, then I will be able to say more. I might be overjoyed, but it is possible that the modification will not be satisfactory.” She wanted so much to talk to Himic and find out what he thought of all this. “And I don’t know that my team will adapt well to it. We will have to wait and see.”

  “All right.” He looked a bit sulky. “You’re right, I suppose. But we can make a lot, you and Himic and I, if we can pull this off. A win in a demonstration against Dionysos and you will be the most sought—after bestiarii this side of Roma. You can buy the freedom of a dozen families, if you wish, and you can take yourself back to Armenia a freedwoman, if that would please you.”

  Tishtry hardly believed what he told her. “I want to perform a while,” she stammered, realizing that it was true.

  “Well, you think about it. I’ll want to see you in the morning, and you can come with me to the chariot maker.” He waggled his fingers at her and ambled off, humming the melody of “Jupiter, the Biggest and Best” as he went.

  When Calpurnius was gone, Tishtry went back to her quarters, trying to gather her thoughts. Suppose she did accept the challenge and suppose she did win the contest, and suppose there were winnings of the sort that Calpurnius suggested there might be, what then? She had known from her youth that she would one day buy her family’s freedom, and had worked toward that goal with diligence. But her own freedom was another matter. Would she buy it now, if she could? And what would she have if she did? Two chariots, five horses, three sets of clothing, and a handful of coins. With that, she could return to her family, but what then? Would she be content to raise and train a few horses for a provincial charioteer to drive? She had to admit that was no longer enough for her. She wanted to drive in Roma, to perform for Nero, perhaps, and hear the cheers of the thousands in the stands of the Circus Maximus. When she retired, she would buy her freedom, and it would be on her own terms, to be the most sought—after trainer of young stunt drivers in the entire Empire. She would not have to live at the back of the world and scrape by like a peasant, but would be able to afford a villa and good breeding stock. Perhaps she would bring her family to be with her then. That made her laugh, and for the first time in months she slept with a smile on her face.

  HIMIC pulled Tishtry aside and asked in an undervoice, “What do you think of the chariot? Balancing in
it will be very difficult—much harder than it is in your racing quadriga. Those leaps and flips of yours might overturn it when you land in the chariot.”

  “It’s possible,” Tishtry agreed. “But think of how maneuverable it is. I could run the whole team on neck harnesses and traces instead of yoking the outer three horses, and that would mean more flexibility. I have to find some advantage to offset the abilities of the Greek’s horses.” It was a good, sensible argument, and they both knew it.

  “You’re willing to accept the risks, then? Because the risks are genuine and you would be unwise to deny them.” He frowned at her. “I can dissuade our master if that would be the best course. He knows that my experience outweighs his enthusiasms.” With a sigh, he added, “I know I wouldn’t want to perform in one of those things.”

  “But you’re not a stunt charioteer, you were a racing charioteer,” Tishtry reminded him. “There’s a world of difference in that.” She cocked her head. “You know, if I could put those light saddles on my team—the little ones I showed you, with the fenders on them for handstands and other stunts—and the neck harnesses, I would be able to do even more stunts while taking the team through tighter maneuvers. What do you think?”

  “I think it’s very dangerous,” Himic said.

  “Well, most stunts are. But if I don’t find that kind of advantage, I’ll clearly not be able to come out with a victory the way our master intends I should. I need to have at least one stunt that is beyond anything the Greek has ever done and ever will do.”

  “Possibly,” Himic grumbled. “It’s also possible that you’ll be hurt or your horses injured with a vehicle like that, and what then?”

  “That could happen at any time,” Tishtry said as nonchalantly as she could. “You know what the arena is like. Those of us who perform there get hurt every day.”

  “Yes; I limp,” Himic agreed. “You’ll have to think about this carefully, girl, before you let our master go through with it. You have more to lose than he does.”

  “What could stop him now?” She looked at him. “Well? You say he’ll listen to you, but he’s more excited than I’ve known him to be in the past. Perhaps he’s been this way with you, but I warrant it wasn’t often, was it?” She could tell from his expression that Calpurnius was rarely so set upon a contest as he was now. “Himic, you know our master. If I disappoint him now, he won’t take it kindly. Both of us could suffer more for refusing than accepting. If I have an accident, then it is the will of the gods and no one can be blamed. But if I say I will not race against Dionysos, it will be thought that the Greek truly is superior, or that I was bribed to refuse, and either way, my advancement stops here.”

  “You’re ambitious, girl.” Himic said, and made it a warning.

  “Yes, and anyone in my position would be.” She looked back at the chariot. “If I have six weeks to practice, I think I can develop a means to handle the thing, for that one contest, at least. And I will want to find a way to keep the team on neck harnesses, which that chariot will permit. That way, if I have to, I can release each horse individually. The way Dionysos has his team trained, I had better find the means to give my horses a bit more liberty, or he will be able to force my horses to break pace, and that could be disastrous for me.”

  “All right,” Himic said with a shake of his head. “But I do not want you to make rash promises to Calpurnius. Let me be the one to negotiate the terms of the contest, not you. You’re rash enough to give away advantages that you very much need.” He saw Calpurnius gesture to him. “I have to talk with him now. You wait here. I’ll inform him you will abide by my decision, since I have the greater arena experience. And you will not dispute that, will you?”

  “No,” Tishtry said, and did as he told her, relieved that she would not have to argue directly with Calpurnius. She rubbed her hands together and noticed that they were wet. It troubled her to see that she had become so worried about the upcoming contest.

  * * *

  “Well, it is all arranged,” Calpurnius informed her a week later. “I have just had confirmation from Valericus, and the Master of the Bestiarii has agreed to permit your contest to be the first in the day, so that there will be no blood on the sands to distract your horses. You will meet in two months, at the beginning of the three days of Games. Valericus and I will be joint editoris of the Games, with the approval of the Senate. You will be the first event, and the last will be a great venation, with ten kinds of animals and three kinds of hunters, including pygmies from Africa. We are already placing orders for animals. We have arranged also for a second chariot competition for bestiarii, in this case, five chariots, each drawn by different sorts of beasts. I have been told that Nero himself delights in these competitions. There will be leopards and bears and ostriches and wild pigs and wolves, the whole to be refereed by two men riding rhinoceroses. Nothing like it has been done here before, and everyone will talk of it. My reputation will increase and yours will be made throughout the Empire.” He looked up from his writing table. “Does that please you, girl?”

  “I hope it will, when it is over,” she answered.

  “I am presenting you with the new chariot we discussed. It will be delivered the day after tomorrow, and I will expect you to work with it hourly. Himic has been given his instructions.” He stopped and looked at her with uncharacteristic directness. “You must win for me, girl. I am on the brink of ruin, and if this does not prosper, there will be nothing left.”

  This stark admission amazed Tishtry. “I ... I don’t understand,” she said when it became apparent that she had to say something.

  “I have almost nothing left. This contest of yours, these Games, are my last chance to succeed. Between what I will realize from your winning and the price I will be able to ask for you afterward, my House will be saved. You think you are the only one in the world trying to buy your family’s freedom? I admit that mine do not wear collars, but if you fail, we are all as good as slaves.” He put down the paper he had been reading. “I do not want to threaten you, girl, but make no doubt about it: you must win.”

  Tishtry nodded. “I always do the best I am able to do,” she said stiffly, still trying to sort out what Calpurnius had told her.

  “It has to be better than that,” he said. “You must give the performance of your life. There must be no question that you triumph entirely over that too—pretty Greek of Valericus’. Do you understand me?”

  “I believe I do,” she said unhappily. “And I still tell you that I always do the best that I can.” She coughed to try to ease the tension in her throat. “I ... I was not aware that these Games were so crucial.”

  “Now you are. That is why I have told you all this.” He stared at the paper. “This is the outlining of terms from Valericus. I have affixed my signature and my seal to it, and we have been informed that the Senate will not withhold its approval. Tonight I am going to write to my father and inform him of what I have done. It is my intention to promise him success. Can you tell me any reason that I should not do this? Can you?”

  “No,” she said softly.

  “Remember everything I’ve said, when you are offered bribes, and when you see Himic inspecting your chariot and tack. You must be very careful now, for I am not the only man whose fortune rides with you. The courts would not call it slave abuse if I beat you for losing such an encounter. Keep that in mind.”

  “I will.” She wondered if he could hear her heart battering at her ribs, and decided that he was not paying enough attention to notice. She could feel color mount in her face, which only made her embarrassment worse.

  “If you bring me honor and fortune, you will have all the money I have promised you, and I will see that you are sold to the greatest advantage possible. That will mean success for you. Your value is increasing—you are already worth twice what I paid for you—and if you win against the Greek, you will be the most valua
ble performer I have ever owned. I will see that you bring every denarius you are worth when I sell you, you have my word on that, and I will say this to my father, so that he will know of it as well, and will testify to it if the Senate requires it of him. You may take your case to any court in the Empire if you doubt I have done well by you, and it will see that your wrongs are redressed. If you win. If you win.”

  “Yes; if I win,” she repeated.

  “Your fortunes are in your hands as well as my fortunes. Do not forget that.” He rolled the paper up and secured it with a ribbon. “My majordomo will take this back to Valericus tonight. The Games are set. The contest is accepted. All right?”

  “Yes,” she whispered, her mouth very dry.

  “And you understand what I have told you?” He tapped the table with his signet. “Do you?”

  “Yes.”

  “Then it is set,” he said, clapping his hands to summon his majordomo. “For Valericus, and for the sake of Mercury and Mars, be sure to mind the footman when you step across the threshold. You must enter the house on the right foot. Be sure you do. We need no ill omens attending this competition.”

  The majordomo, an angular old Greek, took the scroll from his master with great dignity. “It will be precisely as you wish,” he said in elegant Latin, then, with a look that completely ignored Tishtry, he left the room.

  “I am depending on you, girl,” Calpurnius said softly. “My House is depending on you, just as your family is. Never forget that.”

  “I won’t,” Tishtry promised, and fled the place as soon as Calpurnius made the gesture that dismissed her.

  * * *

  For the two days she waited for the new chariot, she worked her horses with light practice bigae, substituting little stunt saddles and neck harnesses for the more usual three—horse yokes with the inside horse on neck harness. Having just two horses to handle instead of four made it easier to get them used to the new tack, and it gave Tishtry the opportunity to lose herself in exercise. Any moment that she was not busy, she fretted as piercingly clear memories of her interview with Calpurnius returned to her. The overwhelming responsibility her master had placed on her shoulders caused her so much anxiety that she could not sleep unless she was so exhausted that she could hardly move.