Chp.13: First attempt at persuasion

The next day, life in the gladiator dormitory continued as usual: once awake, everyone went back to their usual activities. The slaves cleaned and washed the clothes and sheets, while the gladiators whiled away the time by playing, joking or eating. Darbi had rejoined the gang he'd befriended the day before and the ferocious card game had resumed. This time he was finding bread for his teeth: Brenno hadn't lied, he had really started to get serious and he was really good. Even counting cards and predicting which ones would come out, Darbi was still tied with him. Very soon the game, from the collective that it was, turned into a match only between the two of them, while all the others became spectators, and Lucian even appointed himself referee and Gord began to mark the number of games won and lost by each on a sheet used as a board.

"Seven to five for Darbi! Wow, this game is getting better and better!" the lizardman exclaimed after Darbi managed to win again. "It's a pity we can't bet money here!"

"I agree! But maybe we could bet on something else. The rations tonight are chicken and potatoes, right?" Lucian said. "Gord, if Brenno wins the next game, I'll get your potatoes!"

"And if Darbi wins, I'll get your chicken!" Gord exclaimed, amused, then he yelled: "Come on, Darbi! Let's show them what happens when they pit against the lizardmen!"

Very soon all the other spectators also began to bet on the most disparate things. Some began to stake their meals, their sleeping places, their clothing, or even the slaves who served them. Some, on the other hand, not having much to bet, promised themselves to do embarrassing things if they lost.

Brenno laughed amused by that situation. "Darbi, I have to admit it: you are a formidable player"

"I like to consider it one of my many talents" Darbi replied, and then he sincerely said: "Anyway, you're not bad either. I didn't expect to meet someone so good"

"Tsk! I told you, I'm the king of this game! Don't sing victory because you're ahead, the game is still long!" Brenno announced starting to shuffle the cards. "You know what? I bet too. If you win, I'll leave you my slave tonight. She's a beautiful girl with white skin and big breasts, and she's good at satisfying a man. You don't have a slave yet, right?"

"No, they wanted to give me one but I refused. I already have my brother's one that washes my clothes" Darbi replied. He had actually refused because it wasn't safe to plot an escape with a complete stranger. Haku knew Misune and trusted her, at least partially, but the rest didn't apply to everyone else.

Brenno burst out laughing. "It's obvious that you've only been here a few days. Stay in this place for another month, and then you'll beg for a woman to warm your bed at night, you'll see" he said. "Good, then here's the bet. If you win, I'll leave you my slave for tonight, so at least you can have some fun. If you lose, however... mmm... if you lose, you'll take off your pants and put on to dance on the table"

That was probably a humiliating thing for the newcomers, since they always went around dressed, but for Darbi it was certainly not a problem. "I accept with great pleasure" he said already anticipating the challenge. Brenno narrowed his eyes and smiled back, starting to deal the cards.

But unfortunately, the next game had to wait before starting. A thud resounded throughout the dormitory, making the gladiators jump. Everyone looked in the direction from which the sound had come and turned pale in discovering that it was caused by Haku's tail, who had risen from his bed and had a very menacing look.

The dragon began to move forward, making a rhythmic metallic sound every time his claws touched the floor. The gladiators looked down and pretended nothing was happening; if Haku got too close to them, they ducked and let him pass. Everyone was keeping an eye on him, sweating at the thought of what he would do, but trying not to get noticed.

Finally Haku stopped. He did it in front of a lizardman. He stood motionless, looking at him with eyes so deep that he seemed to want to see his soul. Realizing he was his target, the lizardman raised his head and looked into the dragon's eyes. At that point Haku spoke: "Zamor Adelia?"

The lizardman gulped, but managed to hide his word well… or rather, he did it from the limited eyes of the newcomers. From Haku's extremely sensitive eyes, combined with his hearing and smell, it was clear that he was very afraid. "It's me" he replied.

Haku let out a puff from his nostrils, so loud that Zamor could feel the movement of air from almost half a meter away. "Come with me, we need to talk. In private. Now"

Zamor was visibly sweating, but nevertheless he got up and followed Haku with a (quite) confident step. The other gladiators watched him go worried. Suddenly Darbi stood up and said: "Guys, sorry, but we have to postpone the game. I'm going to make sure my brother doesn't hurt him too much... or at least that he doesn't kill him"

"Yes, I think it would be better" Brenno whispered, who was sweating like he was in a sauna. He didn't know what Zamor had done, or if he had, but he knew for a fact that if the dragon decided he was guilty, then he would be dead soon. Darbi was the only one who seemed to be able to control Haku's animal fury, so it was best to send him to calm things down.

Haku and Zamor headed to the bathrooms. Inside there were several slaves who were cleaning the clothes, and who covered their mouths to avoid screaming as soon as they saw the dragon. Haku ordered them to leave, and immediately everyone came out terrified. Even the few gladiators who were doing their business didn't hesitate to leave the bathroom, even if they hadn't even cleaned up. Haku sniffed the air to make sure that no one was there anymore, then he stood in front of Zamor to be able to look into his eyes. After a few moments, Darbi joined them too. "Did you bring me here because it will be easier to clean up the blood?" Zamor asked, even though he knew that wasn't the case since Haku had never had such qualms.

"Be calm, neither of us wants to kill you" Darbi said leaning against a wall. "We just wanted to talk to you away from prying ears... and we didn't want anyone to suspect anything, so taking you away with a threat was the easiest way"

Zamor glared at Darbi. "So you planned this… the excuse to come here to keep your brother from hurting me too much was quite good, I have to admit it. You already knew what was going to happen before even playing cards, I suppose" he grumbled. "So, what do you want from me?"

Haku was silent for a moment, then he said: "Zamor Adelia, lizardman of the Baudonia City Alliance. Married to Thora Elins. Fisherman... at least until a year ago, after Carrion deprived the people of the lizardmen of all rights and forced you to work as if you were slaves. You were a great friend of Sergeant Utom, and after he was killed you escaped with the help of some guards still loyal to him, along with your wife and a group of others. You came here to the capital and tried to get an audience with the king, but they prevented you, so you tried to organize a public protest to force him to listen to you... but unfortunately someone fabricated false evidence against you. you were arrested and charged with attempted murder, and you were sentenced to life in this arena, while your wife and companions are instead detained at the temple of the goddess Heloisa. Have I forgotten something?"

Zamor narrowed his eyes as Haku spoke. He had never revealed many of those things to anyone here in the arena. "How do you know so much about me?"

"We have an outside communication channel" Darbi answered with a mocking smile. "Many channels, in truth"

"Yeah. We have friends outside these walls" Haku said. "You know, I have to admit that your story has somewhat fascinated me... I guess after you've lost everything you must feel very dejected. Your freedom, your land, your people, your wife, even your own son..."

Zamor's fists clenched. "How do you know I have a son?" he said as a drop of sweat ran down his forehead.

"We told you, we have a communication channel to the outside. And our friends out there have been able to ask many people… you know, the beautiful thing about the temple of the goddess Heloisa is that they are not afraid of thieves, and therefore it's easy to get in" Haku answered with an evil smile and a cruel gleam in his eyes.

Zamor's pupils narrowed and he gritted his teeth. "Did you do something... to Thora?"

Haku shook his head. "We would never allow ourselves to hurt a poor defenseless woman. She's already suffered so much, after all... who do you take us for, monsters?" he asked rhetorically, while his smile was growing wider and wider.

"Haku, stop it" Darbi said suddenly, and then he look at Zamor and say in a reassuring tone: "Your wife is fine. No one has hurt her a single scale and they haven't forced her to say anything. My brother has no scruples about certain things, but our friends out there aren't that extreme. You don't have to worry about her"

Haku gave him a glare, as if to reproach him, but in reality inside he was complimenting his brother. That was a strategy he and Darbi planned to use with Zamor: they called it 'the good guy and the bad guy'. Haku played the 'bad guy' since his fame and body didn't allow him to do anything else, so he acted like a heartless bastard who just wanted to break his opponent. On the contrary, Darbi played the 'good guy', and thus reassured the victim and tried to calm the situation down and resolve it peacefully. This is so that Zamor would feel more comfortable with Darbi, and therefore even if he didn't trust Haku, maybe he would have trusted him.

Zamor actually seemed more relaxed as he listened to Darbi's words: though it didn't disappear, the grip of his fists loosened. "That… is a relief. Thank you" he said to Darbi, who returned a reassuring smile. Then he looked back at the dragon. "It's fine, Haku. What do you want from me? I doubt you've had so much information collected for nothing"

Haku drummed his claws on the floor. "Well... let's say we have a common goal" he said. "You want out of here, don't you? If you're in here, you can't help your people. All those children, who get closer to death every single day we lose… terrible. You have to be out of here if you want to help them. You want to go out, and we want to go out too. And we have an escape plan"

Zamor looked very surprised, and he looked at Darbi as if seeking confirmation from him; only after he nodded he seemed to be convinced it was true. "An escape plan? How are you going to do it? No one has ever escaped the arena"

"It will mean that we will be the first" Haku replied, and then he got even closer to the lizardman. "I guess you know how much a dragon's promise is worth, right? Even if I wanted to, I can't break it once it's made. It's as binding for us dragons as breathe is for you newcomers. So here's my offer: help us and do what we say, and in return I promise I'll get you out of here. What you will do next, I don't care. We'll go our way, and you'll go yours, and we'll never see each other again. So, what do you say?"

Zamor inspired thoroughly. It was clear that the prospect of escaping appealed to him, but he wasn't sure what to do. "Hypothetically speaking... what do you want me to do?"

"We know you have great influence over the other gladiators" Darbi said, stepping forward, playing the 'good guy' again. "We want you to lead them to freedom. In this escape, we will leave no one behind. We already have a plan for you to get all the weapons you need, and my brother will take care of most of the guards. As for how to leave the city, or the rest of the military out there…you don't have to worry, that's our friends. And trust me, they're reliable"

Zamor clicked his tongue. "Lead the gladiators to freedom? Why me?"

"Because you're respected in here. Maybe you didn't realize it, but your charisma is pretty good" Darbi answered, then put a hand on his shoulder and looked at him with determined eyes. "If you lead them, all of them will follow you, and finally we can leave this place. No more chains, no more cage. We will be free"

Zamor remained silent, and seemed somewhat conflicted. For a moment, Darbi and Haku thought they'd made it. But then, the lizardman shook his head. "No. I'm sorry, but if this is what you want, I can't do it. If I were just me, I'd risk it, but I won't lead others to ruin"

"Ruin? We want everyone to escape!" Darbi said.

"I know. But I don't trust him" Zamor replied looking at Haku. "I know you can't break your promise, but I also know that dragons are deceivers, and above all I know that you think only of yourself. You won't hesitate to use any loophole to your advantage. I'm sure you've already thought of a way to abandon us here despite your oath. Therefore, I won't lead the gladiators to their deaths. Maybe you really intend to get everyone out of here, or maybe not… but I don't trust you"

Haku narrowed his eyes, and for an instant Zamor thought he was going to tear him to pieces, but then the dragon shook his head. "Do as you wish. We can always find someone else" he said. "Go away now. And if you try to say anything to anyone, don't complain if I tear your tongue out"

Zamor wasn't very convinced: it seemed strange to him that Haku let him go like this, but after all he couldn't complain, so he hurried to leave the bathroom. Haku and Darbi watched him leave, and then the latter asked: "So, what's now?"

"Well, you played the 'good guy', didn't you? Go and try to convince him with your good manners" Haku replied. "And if this is not enough... then we will remind our dear friend Zamor that he is only a lizard, and above all that we know where to find his wife"