by Brian Dorsey
At one end of the oval stood Cataline, seconded by his aide. The aide held the general’s sword in his good hand, Stone having broken the other earlier. Astra sat at a chair midway between the two ends. As part of the property, she would go to the winner. She gave a quick glance and a smile to Cataline and cold glare to Stone, standing across the oval from the general.
Admiral Sequentius stepped to the center of the oval and spoke. “This proporia combata has been duly called for and accepted. General Cataline Tacitus has challenged Colonel Tyler Lucius for questions of honor. Additionally, the Lady Astra Varus has allowed the proporia to include herself.”
After the opening statement, Sequentius motioned for the combatants and their seconds to move to the center of the oval.
The men met. Stone stared blankly at Cataline, who, after looking across to Astra, gave a sly smile at Stone.
“Colonel Lucius, do you choose to amend your comments or ask for clemency for your actions?” continued Sequentius.
“I do not. I again state that this man is a coward, a fool, and a traitor to the Humani people.”
Cataline’s smile disappeared, replaced with an angry scowl.
Sequentius sighed and again continued. “Do you, General Cataline Tacitus, openly and publicly in presence of your peers maintain your challenge to these statements and your request for proporia combata?”
“I do.”
“Let it be known that both men—one of the Tacitus lineage, one of the Lucius—do openly agree to proporia combata. Furthermore, let it be understood that no mercy shall be given except at the wishes of the victor.”
Both men bowed to Sequentius in acknowledgment. Cataline took his sword from his aide and began swinging it about, testing its balance and feel. He returned it to his aide and began removing his shirt.
Stone did not need to “get a feel” for his sword. It was part of him. Stone removed his shirt, his eyes locked on the general. Once removed, he handed his shirt to Vatarus in exchange for his sword. “Thank you for agreeing to be my second,” said Stone to Vatarus, his gaze still locked on Cataline. “You are a good man and I am sorry you have been deceived just as I have, just as all of us have.”
“Do not thank me,” responded Vatarus. “I do not understand any of this. You have broken rules of military etiquette and challenged our social structure. You are a brave soldier, Colonel, but you are a fool. Cataline is an even bigger fool for challenging you. This is all very disturbing.”
“Our society is a lie,” Stone replied to Vatarus as he walked toward Cataline, already at the center mark of the oval.
Stone stopped a meter away from the general, looked toward Sequentius, and brought his sword out to his side at a 45-degree angle, acknowledging his readiness.
“To the death,” spoke Cataline.
“To the death,” replied Stone and it began.
Cataline made an instant rush toward Stone, his sword held clumsily over his head. In a giant downward sweeping motion, he brought his sword at Stone. Quickly sidestepping his way clear of the amateur move, Stone grabbed the general’s sword hand with his left and brought his other arm, still holding his sword in hand, around Cataline’s neck, immobilizing him.
As Cataline struggled to break free, Stone leaned into the general’s ear. “Now my turn to tell you a secret, General,” he whispered. “When my Terillian ‘whore’ saved me from my injuries, she used hiato leaves to dull my pain. It appears I have gained quite a tolerance.” Stone paused to let those words sink in, then continued. “It’s too bad your plate did not have a little, for you will soon be in great pain, but I will also end that for you quickly enough…well, not too quickly.”
After his revelation, he gave a quick jerk to Cataline’s arm and neck, throwing him to the ground.
Stone circled Cataline, looking toward the audience. They looked as if they were watching a sporting event or an opera. ‘This is the society I have fought for?’ he thought.
Cataline stumbled away from Stone, trying to regain his footing. The fear on his face was evident as he looked around the room for some magical reprieve. If only he could find it.
Stone continued to circle his prey. “Why do you not attack, coward?” taunted Stone. “These fine citizens and ladies have come to be entertained. Why do you not attack?”
Cataline frantically looked around the hall. A few people began to point and whisper to one another. He looked at Astra. Eagerness and impatience filled her face as she looked toward him and then motioned toward Stone with her head. With nowhere to hide, Cataline finally charged.
Thrashing wildly toward Stone’s torso, the general lost his balance. Stone parried the attack, again knocking Cataline to the ground. Stone grasped his opponent’s extended arm and brought his elbow against the general’s temple. There was no time for Cataline to react to the jarring blow before Stone spun the other direction, bringing his foot against Cataline’s jaw. Stone continued forward with the motion of his foot, walking away from his opponent as Cataline crashed to the floor.
Cataline slowly rolled over to his hands and knees. Blood drooled from his mouth as he reached for his sword and regained his feet.
Stone turned back toward his foe and motioned for Cataline to advance again. “Come on, General. Come win your prize.” Stone taunted as he looked directly at Astra. He could see in her eyes she was surprised but was trying to develop contingencies for herself regardless of the winner.
Cataline thrust his sword forward at Stone’s waist. Stone again moved out of the way, allowing the general to move past him. As he did, Stone brought his foot against the side of Cataline’s knee. The sound of snapping ligaments and tendons was followed by a screech of agony and mumbling of the crowd.
As the general grabbed for his knee, Stone again circled. “Come, General, we must give a better show…Alpha Humana’s finest families are here to be entertained.” He looked over to Astra. Things were not going as planned and Stone could see her mind racing, trying to decide how to profit from either the outcome. “Is the magnificent Lady Astra not worthy of a better match?”
While Stone was taunting the crowd, Cataline had crawled toward his aide. Out of the corner of his eye, Stone saw the aide reach for his pistol.
The aide’s pistol was barely out of his holster when before Stone was upon him. His body launched forward as Stone’s sword plunged into his abdomen. Letting out a grunt, his pistol dropped to the ground. Stone turned away from the aide, and with a twist withdrew his sword.
Cataline, who was only a few feet away and still on his hands and knees, turned and retreated from Stone.
“Is this how you demonstrate your bravery, General?” asked Stone.
“How awful,” said a lady to her husband sitting just outside the oval. “Shouldn’t someone stop him?”
Stone overheard the lady and turned toward her. “Stop me?” he asked. “Why, Lady Vena, is this not what you came to see? The pride of our people locked in honorable single combat?”
Lady Vena buried her head in her husband’s shoulder.
“Colonel Lucius, please,” begged her husband, a senior major. “This has gone on long enough and you have proven yourself.”
“I agree,” spat Stone. “It has gone on long enough.”
Stone then turned back toward his advisory. “Where are you going?” taunted Stone again.
Cataline had retreated to the wall at the edge of the oval and pulled himself to his feet. Stone moved over toward the general’s sword, still lying in the center of the oval. A flip of his foot sent the sword skidding across the room to its owner’s feet.
“I submit!” shouted Cataline, refusing to pick up the sword.
“To the death, General. Do you remember? Mercy is at my discretion. Perhaps if the Lady Astra asks for pity.”
He looked toward Astra. Stone knew what her response would be; he only wanted validation. The political wheels turning, she pondered the outcomes. “Do as you prefer, my affianced,”
was he
r reply.
“So be it, darling,” replied Stone, ensuring she saw his disgust before he turned away from her. “At least die with some honor,” he said as he returned his attention to Cataline, still refusing to wield his sword. “Maybe you will find your courage if I am unarmed,” offered Stone as he tossed his sword at Vatarus’ feet.
“Let him live,” pleaded Vatarus. “He is ruined and you are vindicated. Nothing further is to be gained.”
“A family member of yours died because of this bastard, or have you forgotten?” replied Stone.
Vatarus stepped toward Stone. “I have not forgotten, nor will I ever. His shame will be revenge enough.”
“Not for me.”
Vatarus’s attention was drawn to movement behind Stone. “Look out,” he warned, as Cataline had found the courage to attack an unarmed man from behind.
Stone pivoted toward the oval and quickly angled his back toward the floor as the general’s sword passed by his chest, leaving a small gash.
The slight wound did not distract Stone. Cataline, again off balance and staggering to regain control on one good leg, turned back toward Stone.
As he did, Stone took his opponent’s arm and wrenched it upward. In a powerful downward motion, Stone brought his other elbow down against the general’s extended arm. Cataline’s arm snapped, and Stone snatched the sword from the broken limb. Taking control of the sword, he pivoted his waist and thrust. Cataline let out an ear-piercing shriek as his own sword entered his back and protruded through his chest just below the sternum. Stone drove the sword into him until the hilt pressed against the general’s spine.
Stone leaned down toward Cataline. “You had better hope the Terillians are wrong and there is no afterlife, for if there is I will someday follow you there.”
His promise was punctuated by a rapid outward thrust of the sword. The general’s scream echoed through the hall as the sword exited his side, laying open his right torso.
A “Lady” from the crowed cried out in horror as the general fell to his knees, his bowels spilling onto the floor.
As the sword cut its way free of the body, Stone brought the blade over his shoulder. With a yell of anguish and frustration, he swept the sword back across the general’s body, making contact just above his jaw. The blade was strong and Stone’s rage provided enough force to pass through the skull in one rapid, violent swath. The audience gasped as Cataline’s mangled body fell to the floor.
“Is this not what you came to see?” challenged Stone as he pointed to the decapitated corpse still spilling blood onto the dining hall floor. “Is this not what makes us superior?”
Stone threw the sword to the ground and walked over to Vatarus, who was visibly shaken by the ferocity and brutality he had witnessed.
“Congratulations, uh, General,” said the horror-struck colonel.
Stone took his sword from Vatarus’s hand. “Our civilization is not structured and ordered,” he said quietly to Vatarus as he pointed toward Cataline’s corpse. “We, not the Terillians, are the savages.”
Once again turning toward the mangled body lying on the floor, he addressed the shocked crowd. “We are not structured and ordered,” he shouted. “This is what we are…violent, malicious, and unforgiving.”
Stone turned and walked away from the horror he had created.
“Well done, Tyler,” said Astra as she stepped in front of Stone, blocking his escape. “You have defended your name and regained my favor. Not only have you gained a generalship through proporia combata, but you now own all of General Tacitus’s holdings—his estate, his slaves. Father will be pleased with the new acquisition of—”
Stone’s gaze stopped Astra mid-sentence.
“I wanted nothing from General Tacitus other than his life,” he snapped. “To all in this room, I renounce any rights of property!” He looked into Astra’s eyes. “I want nothing.” He stepped in close to her, grabbing her arm. “Nothing.”
***
Stone hurriedly ransacked his quarters. The general’s death, even though it was moments ago, had already faded from his thoughts. He tossed his sword on his bed and ran to the locker in the corner of the room. “Damn it!” he cursed out loud as he removed the holster and quickly reached into his closet to pull out an undershirt.
Astra burst into the room.
“What are you doing, Tyler? You have lost your mind!” she stormed.
“No, Astra. For the first time in my life I actually see things the way they are,” he answered, continuing to button his shirt. “And I have you and Cataline to thank for that.”
Astra looked around the cluttered room. “You are going to get her, aren’t you? Your little Terillian whore.”
Stone paused, casting a glance full of disgust and hate toward her before returning to buttoning his shirt.
“You bastard!” she yelled. “I will see that she is dead before you get there and you will be arrested as soon as you land,” she threatened as she reached for the communicator on the wall.
Stone had enough. He brought his fist across her jaw, knocking her unconscious.
“That was a long time coming,” he said out loud, realizing how good it felt to finally shut her up.
Stone picked up the unconscious Astra and put her on the bed. He no longer saw any beauty in her. Instead he saw the ugliness of his society; he hated her and himself. His only hope of redemption lay with Mori. He had to get to her.
Returning to his locker, he pulled out some rope from his storage of tactical gear and bound her feet and hands. Taking a tie from his closet, he placed it over Astra’s mouth. Once she was secured, he picked her up and carried her to his closet. “Fit for a queen,” Stone said as he shut the door.
Having temporarily disposed of Astra, he tucked in his shirt and latched his belt. Reaching back onto the bed, he picked up his holster and locked it into place. Next he grasped his sword and lifted it to his face. Looking at his reflection, he wondered who the man looking back at him was. He exhaled heavily and sprinted from his room.
He ran into Vatarus just outside.
“Sir…I…I just wanted to check on you. After Tacitus I was…”
“I’m fine. I just need a little time to…to gather my thoughts.”
“That’s understandable after everything you’ve—”
Stone interrupted again. “Lady Astra is resting in my room. See to it she is not disturbed for the rest of the night. I will be requisitioning a falcon long-range transport. I need to…I need to get away for a few days.”
“Yes, Sir. As you wish,” said Vatarus as he pulled a small metal container from his pocket. “I have brought your Brigadier insignia. Regardless of your comments in the hall, you have won them rightfully.”
Stone took the leaf cluster surrounding three stars from Vatarus’s hand. He needed to play along long enough to get to Mori. “Yes, of course. Thank you, Colonel. I will return in a few days. Until my return, I place you in command of the brigade. Again, make sure Astra is left alone for the evening. It has been a long day for all of us.”
“It has, Sir. I’m glad to see you are more like yourself again.”
“More than you know, Colonel, more than you know,” said Stone has he placed his hand on Vatarus’s shoulder. “Good luck Vatarus, you are a good man. One of the few,” he said as he turned down the passageway toward the hangar leaving a confused Vatarus to ponder his last statement.
***
“We’re clear of Pantelus Varuk’s airspace, Sir,” reported the falcon pilot.
“Shall I plot a jump to Alpha Humana, Sir?” asked the navigator.
“No, Lieutenant,” replied Stone. “Set a course for Capro.”
The pilot and navigator looked at each other, perplexed by the order.
“Do you have a question, Lieutenant?” asked Stone in a stern tone, seeing their confusion.
“No, Sir, Capro it is,” replied the pilot. “Navigator, set jump coordinates to Capro. Full power set to magnetic coils, accelerati
on sequence standby.”
“Coordinates set,” reported the navigator.
“Jump in 3, 2, 1…”
Stone could hear the electromagnetic hum of the coils increase and began to see the blue electron flashes as the heavy metals in the space around them began to magnetize, turning the space in front of the craft into an almost infinite linear accelerator. He was on his way to save Mori and leave everything else he knew behind.
Chapter 13
The bright flashes of blue light alerted Stone that the ship was coming out of the jump. As the ship decelerated, Capro came into view. Even from high orbit, it looked like a hell-hole. It was a perfect place for one of the worst prisons in the Xen Empire.
“General,” reported the pilot over the intercom, “making final approach to Capro prison.”
As the falcon passed over the sea of acid, Stone could see the prison on the horizon. Billowing plumes of acidic mist rose around the bluff as waste products from the Romulus poured into the deadly ocean below. Somewhere inside that hell was Mori.
The five minutes it took to recycle the air in the hangar bay seemed like an eternity.
“Can we exit yet, Lieutenant?” asked Stone anxiously over the intercom.
“Almost finished, Sir. Purge complete in three-zero seconds.”
Finally, the bay door opened and Stone stepped out. He was surprised by the starkness of the hangar bay. Stripped bare since its days as a capital ship, Stone’s footsteps echoed through the vacuous space as he quickly walked across the empty hangar. As Stone peered across the emptiness of the hangar, he saw two men standing by the exit at the far end of the docking area.
Both men looked rough. As he neared them he could make out uniforms. One was wearing the rank of colonel and the other seemed to be a master sergeant.
“Good day, General,” reported the pudgy colonel.
The colonel’s uniform was wrinkled and soiled and his beard scraggly and ragged. Stone, no slave to uniform regulations, was surprised by his unkempt look.