One thousand years after humanity took its first steps on Martian soil, gladiators of the Thothen System fight in a carnival of death. For freedom, for glory, and for wealth. The gladiators of Thothen V are feared as the most brutal fighters in the system – these are the stories of those men.  

Previously on 'The Gladiators of Thothen V': Part 1, Part 2, Part 3

Killen swallowed a glass full of ale in one gulp, and poured himself another. The depletion of the contents of the bottle from full to only a quarter left didn't dawn on him. Dian's words had been weighing on him for a week, causing him to sift through all media reports of events on the border regions of Balt City and the Visaari Lands. They shifted from glowing praise of how the Imperium was handling several uprisings, to vague questions about the role the gladiator games had on the current crisis. Very few articles went into detail - except a few. All of which were written by the same man named Tavero Ardoni. 

It's likely a fake name, but it's worth a try. Killen thought. His mind worked through several scenarios. He knew before he approached Lord Aluxxian, he'd need something to hang his statement on. Screw this job. I'll work my way up through the gladiatorial ranks the normal way. 

While the chance to see the rest of Thothen V piqued his interest, he wanted to do it on his own terms. Becoming the weapon of a shadow war wasn't what he had in mind. Some of the reports he read spoke of illegal and unregulated gladiator games between fighters of unequal rank. Rumors spread of Visaari giants being matched against groups of Balt City criminals and dishonored gladiators who abandoned their duty. To the Visaari, there was no 'rebirth' after defeat as there was in the Balt City system. They were a race of proud warriors who only believed in life or death...no in-between. Killen also read unconfirmed reports of missing people and a major illegal cybernetics market. So, his mind devised any possible way it could to avoid losing everything he'd worked so hard for. Money meant nothing if you were dead and couldn't spend it.

Killen went to the window and saw his wife playing with their children in the backyard outside. The smiles on her face hid an anger than seemed primed to transform into rage. She didn't not take the information about Lord Aluxxian's offer very well. "She's probably right, it most likely is a set up." Killen spoke to himself while Steem sat on the floor in the corner of the room with a dozen cords attached to its ball-shaped body. Most of the drones systems were offline while upgrades that Dian had given them were being uploaded.

I have to find that reporter, but I don't know how. I know who does though. Killen figured with the last name of 'Ardoni' that the reporter might have been a local of the town of Ardon. At the same time, he wrote for a publication that had been deemed controversial by the Assembly and several members had turned up dead in the past under shady circumstances. The remaining writers had gone underground and had become nearly impossible to locate.

A message came in - it was from the man he trusted the most in all of Balt City. "Orian, how are you my friend?" Killen smiled more than he had since he'd first returned home a week ago.

"I'm well. Just returning planetside after my trip around the Imperium - man do I have some stories to tell you."

"I bet, did you receive my message?" Killen asked.

"I did. I just landed and I have my android picking up my luggage. It shouldn't be too much longer. We'll meet at the same place we always do."

"Great. I'll see you soon." Killen disconnected the call and looked out his window once more. Nothing mattered to him more than his family and the games. Deep down, he knew he'd do anything to protect them and elevate his standings, but he didn't know if he was ready to accept the emotional costs of what Lord Aluxxian wanted of him. Emotion. Who cares about emotion anymore? But if there's anyone who can find that reporter...it's Orian.

John's Tavern was one of the oldest buildings in Sector 2, and still the most popular. The old world architecture matched well with the sector's love of history and legacy. Out of all the sectors in Balt City, Sector 2 had the infrastructure that looked most like what Thothenites saw in their holobooks about Earth. 

Orian, an Elder born on the starship the carried humanity to this system, leaned back and relaxed. Given his age, Orian was more enhanced than Killen - yet still maintained the organic appeal of human beauty.

"I've been reborn ten times Killen. I've seen more than a man could ever wish to see in a lifetime. Part of me wishes I'd just let go of the world of the living a long time ago. Yet here I am, speaking to you, my pupil -" Orian smiled and sipped on his iced drink.

" - Ah, here we go." Killen laughed. "You're wrong though. If you had given up on life instead of being reborn into a new body, I'd be dead. Let's not forget you know my little secret." Killen's smile shifted to a dark frown.

"That was a long time ago, and we live in a dog-eat-dog world. You did what you had to do."

Killen listened and looked out of the window and over the horizon of towering brick buildings. "Is this how Earth looked?"

"According to my parents, before they passed on, this is the closest to Earth-buildings yes. Too bad I couldn't travel there." He waved the waiter over. "Something about a blockade and talk of war between different factions. Who knows, the Imperium is so far from the rest of humanity...it's no wonder people forget about what's going on here." Orian was old-school and a believer in the old system of pure democracy. He was not a fan of the Imperium's technocratic and kraterotic ways.

The waiter came and poured the two of them more ale and brought their food. Killen waited for the waiter to leave, and before Orian went on one of his many anti-Imperium political rants, he popped the question. "Have you ever heard of a man named Tavero Ardoni?"

"Tavero Ardoni...Tavero...Ardoni." He bit into his juicy steak. "Name sounds familiar. Who is he?"

"A reporter for a publication called the Balt City Challenger. Heard it was labeled anti-Imperium by the Assembly and a few of their writers turned up missing, others turned up dead...except him. He's still writing somehow."

"I knew I had heard that name from somewhere. Yes, I remember that story...didn't get much attention though. That's the way these types of things go. When you start stepping on toes, eventually someone comes along and cuts your feet out from under you."

"I think he has information I need that I can take to Lord Aluxxian. I want to back out of that agreement I made with him...without looking like a coward at the same time."

Orian sighed heavily and wiped his mouth with a napkin. "I wish I had been there with you when he approached you with that. Aluxxian knows me, we go back to the days of the Visaari War. Killen, the games aren't just for entertainment. I've told you that before. I was once a gladiator like you...only when I fought it was clear that it was for the defense of this nation. It was a form of training and proving your worth which was the difference between winning and losing the war. Now, it's nothing more than a blood sport and what's worse...they look for potentials like yourself who they can use for their own agenda."

"What do you think I should do then?" Killed asked.

Orian put his head back - deep in thought. "For now, play the game. Don't alert Aluxxian to your intentions. I'll find the reporter. I'm known as a troublemaker among the Elders, so he should trust me when I find him. You don't want to be seen as associated with a group of people who have been targeted by the Great Assembly. The reality is this Killen, you're a gladiator and a darn good one too. Everyone knows you were trained by me and I'm a former Champion, so it was only a matter of time before you were approached. You can't alter reality, but you can influence it to preserve your own life and the lives of the people in your family."

"What if the reporter doesn't give me what I want?"

"What do you want exactly?"

Killen paused. "I want the truth. I want to know what I'm getting myself into before I do anything."

Orian laughed. "You sound like the same Killen I met all those years ago. How many times have I told you that in the Thothenite Imperium, the truth will get you killed?"

"More times than I care to remember - old friend."

Words From The Author

"It's been some days since I wrote another entry into this series. I'm pushing ahead and this is still developing into something great. When I first started this story, I was writing free form - without an outline. Over the past few days, while writing other things, I've outlined about half of The Gladiator's of Thothen V. Parts 1-3 were written with no real endgame in mind...I was letting the story take me wherever my mind went. I have a clearer picture now of what will happen in the later Parts(chapters) so definitely make sure to follow this series. It will have many twists and turns to keep the readers on edge."

-Brian