Only on RR: https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/51152/tales-of-teleios

“Seneca of Rome send us a messenger. But she have some behaviour problem…”

She? Is he trying to hint about me having a behaviour issue?

“But she can fight… pretty well, bitting off the nose of my man who tried to heal her. That’s why I locked her up.” While Apollodorus made a hand gesture, his soldiers brought a chained prisoner to the training ground.

Messy dark hair, dirty tunic and body full of scars, gagged and both of her hands were cuffed together by metal with heavy chains link to her feet.

Looking at her scars, Arete was surprised. Torture was never a practice in Syracuse. With some small fresh wounds, the deep large burnt scars on her chest were old and already healed. The thick cloth that gagged her mouth, that irritated Arete. Lord Amiran was highly respected for his humane leadership. The key were he able to convince his defeated enemies to join his cause.

Arete waved the spear towards her, the sharp blade cuts away the cloth that gagged her.

“Who did this to you?” Asked Arete.

The prisoner did not reply. Staring at Arete, without any expression.

“What’s your name?” She asked, again, without an answer.

She’s a Barbarian? I’ve seen some Persians with similar dark hair and amber eyes. If language is the barrier, is going to be hard for me to communicate.

Using the blade of her spear, Arete picked the lock on one of her foot. A soldier reached but Apollodorus raised his hand to stop them from intruding.

The prisoner locks weren’t some sophisticated locks. Those were heavy and cumbersome, but they can be easily picked with sharp objects. When Arete unchained her hand, her reflex urged her to jump, dodging a sudden attack of swinging metal chains. The prisoner attacked her.

“Fucking liars!” she screamed.

Ah, she speaks our language!

Landing clean on the ground, Arete immediately duck to avoid another attack from above. All guided by her muscle instinct that danger was ahead of her.

Those attacks were not intelligent!

Arete focused on her attacker, her moves were all random, without a strategy or any form of style. But the swings are powerful, with those metal chains, caught a hit it might crush her bones.

Dodging again and again, Arete started to get a little panicked. She could not predict her next attack. The only advantage she had is that those heavy chains slowed down the attacks.

Arete focused on the next attack, using the sharp tip of her spear to caught the loop of chains, turning her spear, she rolled close to the prisoner, the next move she’s going to execute is to knock her down with the other end of the spear.

Turn away!

Again, Arete turned her head away by instinct as the attacker threw a bunch of dry sand towards her.

Sand. Those abundant element on the training field. She had been mastering it since the very first time on the gladiator arena. When she was a young noxii. No strategy can be more intelligent than a strategy of blinding the opponents.

She is not a random attacker.

Arete soon found herself deep in danger when the prisoner captured her by the neck using the chains. But this did not troubled her as she’s the master of escape. Using her elbow, Arete knocked her chest hard. Those wounds might be healed, but the keloid scars can be very sensitive and multiplying the pain.

When she scream in pain, Arete escaped. Holding her spear tight, Arete ran towards her, attempt to knock her down with the staff before she regain herself. She sensed another attack, but her reflex did not react.

The noxii dragged the metal chains and swung them on the sand ground. Bursting of sand dust covering the surrounding. The hazy dust obstructed the visual. She used to do that to piss off the spectators in the gladiator fight. Arete was in disadvantage, not only she did not have a clear view, she never learn about those tactics from any scrolls or trainings.

Command of body, weapon and environment!

Noticing she still have the advantage of speed, Arete charged towards her, holding her spear with her elbow, she choked the prisoner’s neck between. Although successfully captured her, Arete was knocked by her elbow, the same way she had knocked her previously. She was protected by the golden chest plate though. But it is still a painful strike. When she regained her balance, the spear staff landed on her head, knocking her down.

She took my spear! And she mimicked my moves!

No one taught her anything. A noxii did not deserved to be trained. The only way to survive is to copy. That was how she learn to speak and fight.

Arete fell on the ground, before she able to stab her, Arctus jumped in, with his spear, he hit away the spear on her hands. Petraeus gave a hand gesture with four other men ambushed the noxii.

That was… not an intelligent move!

Petraeus and the four men ambushed the noxii with their shields surrounding her, squeezing her within their shield, Arctus jump from the top, giving her a hard knock on her head. They executed the same method as they attempted on Arete in the beginning of the training.

She… could have easily duck down and escape…

The gladiators on the arena were mostly selfish, never had she encounter a group of men working together in an ambush.

Apollodorus approached to Arete who was laying on ground, he offered his hand but a deprecating smirk etched on his face.

Arete let out a deep sigh, disappointed by herself. She was defeated by her own ego. That was the lesson Apollodorus wanted to taught her.

https://asvoria.github.io/Author/