A Gladius, A Crown and A Broken Empire (Reichpol) [Hiatus]

Stress

Poland's POV

He dried the sweat on his forehead with the back of his hand, panting as he walked away of the practice fight. Catching the sight of his former cellmate waving at him from a secluded part of the ludus, he decided to walk there, falling by his side and huffing when his tired muscles began to scream at him.

"You did good there!" The other congratulated him, laughing as he only responded with a grunt. "Hey, I'm giving a compliment here, don't be rude."

"Thanks, but I feel like I just want to sleep right now. I'm getting too old for this." He mumbled.

"As if, you're barely what. Twenty nine?" The tricolour young male asked, an eyebrow raised.

"Excuse me? Twenty five. Do I look that old?" Poland said in a whisper, sitting straight.

"Not at all. You look like you've gone through a lot, though" the other said with a shrug. "But anyways, you're not too old for this. I've heard about some legati being like fifty and still good."

Poland sighed. "Guess you're right."

They stood in silence and Poland touched his scarred chest for a moment.

"You look stressed" the younger male said in a whisper. "Is something bothering you?"

The white and red country tried to shrug it off but the other kept insisting.

"Is this about your rich lover?" The other finally asked, lowering his voice in a secretive manner and smiling wide. Poland jumped from his spot, trying to cover the mouth of the other, stress and embarrassment filling his expression as the other just laughed.

"Oh, come on! It's not that weird. Gladiators are really popular, I've heard about a lot being requested by patricians to spend the night." The white, blue and red country said with a grin. "You must be really good!"

Poland gave the younger a rough punch on the shoulder. "It's not that idiot!" He mumbled a string of curses on his native tongue, looking around to see if anyone had heard them, but the rest seemed too distracted. "I'm like a lustrum older than you, so have some respect". He knew the other wasn't even listening when the smile on his face just widened.

"Oh? You love him?" The other said, rubbing his shoulder but seemingly most interested on the story. When Poland flinched the guy just smiled. "You know? It's also not unheard of. Albania told me about a gladiator a few years ago that escaped with a patrician, she just decided to leave everything behind for him, her husband, her house and her wealth. It sounds kinda cute, actually"

The older male blinked in surprise. "Is that true?"

"Of course it is. If that's the reason you're nervous, you just have to escape with him when you win the rudus." The tricolored country said with a smile. "And then everything will be fine"

Poland sighed, wishing for a moment that life could be that easy with him but, in a way, if it was he would have never known Reich in the first place. What a dilemma.

"What's wrong?" Asked the younger. "We shared cell for months when you were a runaway slave and we're going to go on an impossible mission to kill someone unnameable. I think I know how to keep a secret of yours."

The murmillo thought about it for a few seconds before finally talking. "It's just... He has a dangerous job, I don't want to loose him, and we're going on that suicidal mission, but I can't tell him cause it's confidential and stuff, but... Maybe I won't be able to see him ever again. Maybe he won't come back, or I won't come back"

Silence filled the air and the sound of wooden swords clashing against each other echoed through the walls of the busy ludus. The words hung in the air, dark and heavy like black smoke. The oher seemed to ponder about telling him something.