It Rained Red Upon the Arena (16 page)

The hall ended at a cell that was unlocked by the Refect who was leading the way. Keys rattled and followed a clunk as the cell door swung open. There were numerous men standing on the opposite side of the door near the desk where Nick once met the head Refect of the arena when he first arrived. The head was there this time as well. He was accompanied by the game commissioner George Belan, and three of the king’s men standing proudly with their gold plated armor.

George was the first to speak. “You sly dog. You imbecile. You thief.”

“Settle down there, George,” said Master Dekan. He looked at Nick and continued. “As head Refect of the Vincot Arena and a supporter of the crown, I hereby comply to my king, King Dedan Hudson. You are free.”

“What do you mean, I am free?” asked Nick.

“Our lovely king, the oh great and mighty king, has relinquished you from the grasp of the arena,” said George.

One man in the gold plated armor stepped up front and gave George a dirty look, “As a member of the king’s men I will speak for the crown and use the words of our king, gentlemen. Nick, I hereby pardon you of your sentence of the Vincot Arena and invite you to come to speak to King Dedan Hudson about pressing matters. I have already gotten the signature of the Head Refect and the game commissioner. All I need is yours right here, Nick Bint.”

Nick was perplexed. He didn’t know what to do in that moment, or what to think about. Never in his wildest imagination could he foresee himself getting out of the confines of the prison he was living in through the letter he had sent to the king. He wondered if he was over thinking things, if he ought to make the simplest decision of his life and sign the paper.

“I need to do something before I sign that. I need to go back into the arena to say goodbye to one man whom I owe my life to,” said Nick.

“Now or never, Nick,” said Master Dekan.

The three king’s men nodded in agreement. George Belan stared blankly at Nick, seeing the last fighting chance of seeing his golden ticket fight in the arena once more.

Nick pondered for a moment. He knew what the right thing to do was. If he did not take this opportunity now, chances are Phillip himself would beat Nick senseless into the ground for going back in to see him once more. The decision was simple, and it had to be made.

Nick walked over to the paper and read the message from King Dedan Hudson. His signature at the end of the letter, followed by five signatures of the men before him. Nick stared at the line where his signature was needed. He thought to himself; this is where it all ends. The arena ends here. No more death. No more worrying. No more cold ground at night. No more terrible food. No more struggling. A new life has been breathed onto me, now is my time.

He signed the form with an ink and pen provided by Master Dekan. He looked up to the men after signing. He gave them a nod and the one man who spoke up in the gold platted armor said, “Come, Nick, we have much to do. King Dedan Hudson has many questions and awaits your arrival eagerly.”

“You lead the way,” said Nick.

“What would you like to do as a free man, Nick,” said the outspoken king’s man.

“Take a bath, eat a huge meal of chicken and vegetables, and see my loved ones,” replied Nick.

The three men escorted Nick out of the arena. His handcuffs came off at the entrance door and he was gifted with normal clothing by the king’s men. Nick wanted to bathe himself before stepping into the new clothing, but he had no choice. He would rather stink in new clothes than go another day wearing the green Vincot Arena cloth.

Nick had a wild smile perched upon his face as he walked away from the front room of the arena cells. They walked him through the large steel door, then further up to the gate out front of the arena cells. His smile widened more when he finally took his first step outside as a free man. He went up the hill from the arena to the city. As he walked up the hill he saw flowers, the sun shining brightly upon the beautiful citizens of Vincot. Children laughed and played in the distance. The river flowed and glistened in the sun. A short breeze swooshed through the air and brought the scent of lavender and oranges by Nick’s nose. As he stood on the hill and looked out, Nick’s knees buckled and he kneeled onto the grass. He was overcome with joy. Tears flew down his face as he knelt in the sun and embraced being a free man.

The outspoken king’s man came over to give Nick a hand to hoist him up off the ground.

“I suppose now is a good a time as ever to introduce ourselves. My name is Reed.”

He was a Paplon with long flowing blonde hair and a curved mustache. He was the only one who had spoken a word out of the three.

The other two were Reza. One finally spoke up in a raspy voice. He had a small mouth and a pair of brown bushy eyebrows. “My name is Ron. It is a pleasure to meet you, sir.”

The last man finally introduced himself. The Reza held out his hand to shake Nick’s. He had a bald head and was the shortest of the three men. “My name is Jeffery. It is good to meet you.”

Nick shook his hand and said, “It is truly a pleasure to meet all of you. I had no idea I would be out of the arena today. Forgive me for my tears. This is truly overwhelming.”

“Not a problem, Nick,” said Jeffery. “It looks like we will not be able to beat the sun today, it’s already beginning to set. We will set course for Genold City first thing tomorrow morning. Have you ever been to the capitol, Nick?”

“No, I’ve only been in Vincot my whole life,” replied Nick. “I’ve never really traveled, except for a few trails around here on the outskirts of the city.”

“The ride will be two days’ time,” said Reed. “For tonight we will see you to a nice bed and dinner at the local inn. You can bathe and invite a few guests over of your choosing. One of us will go out to retrieve your chosen people.”

“Do you plan on keeping me captive?”

“No, not exactly,” replied Reed. “We have specific instructions from the king himself to keep you out of the public’s view. We don’t know the reason, but our speculation is that a few of your fans will not be too fond of your freedom. Also, for the time being you are not to talk about sensitive subjects to any person so one of us will be in the room with you while you have visitors.”

“Sounds a lot like the arena,” said Nick. “But I understand the concern. I have two people I wish to see tonight before I leave: Thomas Bell, and Penny Goldstem.”

“Where can we locate them?” asked Ron in his raspy voice.

“Penny will either be with her aunt who lives at 23 Baker Street, or with her mother at 5 East River,” said Nick. “Thomas will be living at one of the five Refect barracks located in the city. I’m not sure which one, though.”

“I’m on it,” said Ron. “Jeffrey, which inn are we staying at?”

“The closest one. Right there at the Lively Pony. Sounds right up our ally, boys,” Jeffrey said with a chuckle.

Ron began walking in one direction looking for Penny and Thomas while Nick was given a hooded cloak to put on until he reached the room. Nick agreed to wear the attire and walked with Reed and Jeffrey to the Lively Pony. The smell of wood inside the tavern gave Nick memories of his childhood. Being a child free of worries, not a care in the world.

He snapped back to reality when Jeffrey returned to Nick with the room key.

“Room 204. I got the suite. Bet you can’t wait to sleep on a real bed, Nick.”

Nick perched his head up from staring at the floor and into the eyes of Jeffrey. He looked at the people in the tavern. Humans, Reza, Paplon all sitting together and mingling without a care in the world. Nick noticed a few familiar faces and wanted to get up to have a conversation with them. He was craving the idea of talking normally with another being. The idea had seemed so unfathomable for nearly half a year. However, the craving would have to be put to the side per the request of the king.

Nick stood up and walked with the king’s men to their room. Nick immediately bathed in the tub. It felt amazing to use real soap and have the privacy of a door when bathing. He spent a good while in the bath. When he got out he looked at himself in a mirror. Another thing he had neglected was his self image. His eyes were sunken in, facial hair growing in unorganized thick patches, cheeks bony from malnutrition, and teeth yellow from bad hygiene. He took off his shirt and looked at himself in the mirror. He noticed how much skinnier he was than a half a year ago before his stay at the arena. His ribs were showing and his collarbone popped above his skin. It was all quite a shock for Nick.

Nick walked out of the room to be greeted with a baked chicken and steamed vegetable dish. He ate it in what seemed like ten giant bites. By the time he was done with his plate the door opened and Penny Goldstem stood there with a smile on her face.

Nick remembered her beauty, but was once again blown away by it. Her presence alone would always light up the room, and Nick’s heart.

Ron stepped in behind her and said, “Your buddy Thomas couldn’t make it. Work duties kept him. But I found the girl. Pretty one, she is.”

“Thank you for trying,” said Nick. “I’m sure I’ll be back soon to see him.”

Ron gave Nick a suspicious look after he finished his sentence. “I will be back soon, right?”

“We will get into the specifics later, but you will be staying at Genold City for quite a bit of time,” said Jeffrey. “For now, enjoy your time with the lady. Ron and Reed will wait outside.” Jeffrey raised his hand to show the men to the door, and the room went quiet.

“Penny, it’s amazing to see you,” said Nick. “I’m so sorry that everything happened the way it did the past six months. I hope you can forgive me somehow.”

Penny rushed over into Nick’s arms and they shared a long warm hug. Jeffrey sat down in a chair in the background and rolled his eyes.

“I heard the details and I know what you did wasn’t the wrong thing to do,” said Penny. “They punished you wrongly. I haven’t stopped thinking about you, Nick. Every day, I prayed that you would be safe, that I wouldn’t hear you had died in the arena. I wanted to see you out there. I just couldn’t get myself to go. I couldn’t...”

“I’ve missed you dearly,” said Nick. “I thought about you constantly. I hoped that you didn’t forget about me.”

“I hoped you wouldn’t forget about me,” said Penny with a chuckle. “What happened? Why did they shorten your sentence?”

“I have a meeting with the king regarding personal and threatening matters. I’m sure you’ve heard the rumors and talk about me.”

“You’re a Hetha.”

“That’s right,” said Nick. “I leave in the morning for Genold City.”

Penny looked over at Jeffrey and asked, “When will he be back?”

“It could be days,” said Jeffrey. “It could be months, years, or never. It all depends on the choices the king makes and the choices Nick makes. Other than that I am sorry. There are no certainties in a situation such as this.”

Penny looked back at Nick and said, “I am coming with you.”

“What? No, Penny, you are to stay here in Vincot,” replied Nick. “There are dangers you don’t know about that will surely follow me to Genold City. I will not put you at risk, Penny. You will not come with me tomorrow. I promise I will be back for you.”

“Nick, the way I feel about you is something I’ve never felt before,” said Penny. “You just got back after six months and now you are leaving once again. You’re going to be in danger again. All I want are nights like the one I had with you before you got thrown into that hell. I only want to be by your side.”

“It’s crazy, but it’s true,” said Nick. “The way I feel about you is incomprehensible. You changed and touched me the day that I looked into your eyes. That’s the day I fell for you.”

“I wish you didn’t have to leave, but I understand,” replied Penny.

“You and I we were meant to be together,” said Nick.

Nick and Penny kissed. When Nick kissed her, all of his worries just faded away. Everything was okay in that moment. Nothing else mattered; he was lost in her kisses and she was lost in his. They were lost together, and the love burned deep within them. A night with Penny was a night Nick felt he fought six months in the arena for. On that night he became closer with the girl of his dreams.

***

Nick helped Jeffrey load the carriage with supplies for the upcoming trip. The sun was still rising in Vincot. The sky was a hazy orange and red. Nick couldn’t remember the last sunrise he had witnessed. Jeffrey fed the two horses attached to the carriage a big meal before they would take the men on the road for the day. Ron and Reed were on the wall of the Lively Pony taking turns urinating. Nick said his farewell to Penny and promised once again he would be back for her. He kissed her once more, and she waved goodbye as all four men got into the carriage to begin the journey to Genold City.

Nick was excited, anxious, and terrified of what would happen in the coming days. Nick shared the back of the carriage with Ron and Jeffrey. He looked out back to see Penny still standing there looking out at Nick. She became more and more distant and disappeared as the road curved. They passed through the Vincot entrance. Grand wooden poles made from the tallest trees in the area made the gate tower in the sky. Every city has a wall surrounding it. Vincot’s was the only made of tetron trees. Using tetron wood made the walls the tallest in Hentrio. Just as the carriage passed through the gate Nick could not help but wonder more and more what he had signed up for.

He looked over towards Jeffrey. Jeffrey noticed that Nick was staring at him and said, “She’s a fine girl. Don’t worry. You’ll see her again, young man. Don’t think too much about it.”

“It’s not just that,” said Nick. “I need to know more about what’s going to happen to me when I get to Genold City. What’s going to happen when I meet with King Dedan Hudson?”

“You will find out soon,” said Jeffrey. “It’s about a two day ride over. Two days and your answers will be fulfilled.”

“I know that you have some answers, too, Jeffrey,” replied Nick. “There is no way you were sent here without any information. You can tell me what you know, there is no way I’d back out of meeting with the king.”