Caidoz

Chapter 21

Procyon frowned. Colosseum. There was something about the word. Homam must have told me and if he saw me forgetting our lessons, he would have a bit of a rambling. Colosseum. Procyon slowly shook his hair. "I don't believe I ever have heard of thus event." Boötes gained a grin and it increased in measure upon his countence.
   "Allow me to explain my predicament in thus case. The Colosseum event is a interesting sport that takes place every few days. Brave, everyday Questors test their skills against some of the oddest beasts we ever managed to capture. The fight will continue until the one side can no longer fight and, then, if the Questors win, they win ten slithvers in prize money. The best thing is you have nothing to lose." Boötes finished with a twinkling gleam in his eyes. Procyon was silent in thought. Colosseum... Wait! COLLOSSEUM!!!! It can't be so!! I finally remembered in alarm. In Caidoz, these kinds of events were held at the beginning of all we ever knew. Grand events occurred in a giant building with millions of pillars, designed to please our Wanders. Each event could be participated to gain the blessing of the particular Wander. A designed pillaring building was made for the moon, and those who won deciated their victories to that particular Wander, brandishing a banner with the image of the Wander. It is said the first Cancer helped in these events, though information is lost on who created them orginally. It was true the moon smiled down on the winners, but the fights were deadly and trillions of trillions of lives were lost there.
   "That doesn't sound too bad. What does that have to do with us?" The boy asked. I felt a slight twinge of fear to what came next. Boötes looked at us in an inspecting manner.
  "You could enter the competition event. All you have to do is beat one monster. Simple, really. I haven't been able to find anyone to enter tonight or the day before. If I don't find any competitors, I will have to to cancel the entire event. The crowd will not be happy, and I may have to compromise my identification as a Constellarmation to get out of that brawl. I like this town and their drinks." The strong man took a large swig from the giant mug and smacked his lips in relish. "I am to be a chronicler, a reporter so to speak, at this event. I was hired last minute to find people to sign up, but I'm not exactly used to this kind of thing. If I can get one good fight in, that should stop the crowd. If you sign up, I just may remember more about the Great Bears and their mess." He said. Absolutely not!
   "I don't see why not." Procyon said. I turned to him with a horrified look on my face.
  "What?! This is deadly Procyon! We can find the information another way, most certainly in a safer manner!" I cried. Boötes frowned at me. The man reached under his wooden stool without removing his grip on the the wicked looking staff and emerged with ancient looking paper. He placed it on the table and slid it over to us. "All you have to do is sign on the parchment." Procyon tilted his head in thought.

   "You can't actually be thinking about doing this!" I exclaimed. "In Caidoz, there was an event just like this one and it was a gruesome way to die! This world already is scary to me in many ways, and adding a monster in... What kind of fight is this?" I asked Boötes kindly.
   "Pit." He growled.
   "Ahem, yes. You can't sign! Pit fighting?! Hello, talk to common sense!" I had to stop because my throat felt strange. Procyon had turned to me.
   "Thus doesn't seem to bad, and besides, in Simeh, we do things a bit differently." He regarded Boötes. "Do you have a pen?" The large man's grin increased if possible, and he pulled a metal thin rounded line with a sharpened tip out from under his chair. The waitress came back suddenly with two steaming platters of chickens' breasts balanced easily on her one arm and two smaller versions of Boötes's giant mug containing the ordered water. She placed it in front of us and gave us all personal looks of dislike. Procyon started on his meal immediately, begining to devour everything on his platter. I stared at my plate. I didn't understand at all. I was starving before and my stomach had just roared.
   "Please don't sign Procyon, I think this is the wrong thing to do." He stopping eating to glance at me. Boötes spoke first before he could even open his mouth.
   "If you feel so strongly about thus, you could sign up too. Two people can work together to fight in the area at the same time." The blond haired man gestured to the waiting paper. Procyon instantly shook his hair.
   "I can do this alone. You been through a lot already Ali. I do not believe it would be best to have pit fighting on your conscience as well." He said.
   "I could probably help. I do have a bit more Caidozain energy now." I said. He turned to me and growled, his strange blue eyes with the green rings flashing.
   "No. That's final. I will not allow it."
   "Who are you to make my choices for me?!" He continued to stare angrily at me, though his face grew crimson. "I can help, really I can. You haven't even seen most of my abilities."
   "Though it wouldn't change anything. No means never in a million years." He said. Something in his gaze said not in front of Boötes. I will tell you later. The large man had watched in amusement and the brown eyes twinkled. He opened his mouth to speak.
   "You could-"
   "Stay out of this!" We both hissed at him.
   "I want to help! Why can you not just allow me to help this!?" I asked.
   "Why can't you just trust me to do thus by myself!?"
   "It's not a matter of trust!" I cried in irritation. "You don't have to do it alone, because I can do many things you can't in a bind!"
   "So it's now a matter of what I can not do?! I can handle thus! You couldn't even handle a few carnivorous plants!" He exclaimed. The Crab roared with me as my outrage threatened to destroy the entire building.