by Akhdar to give the Azurians hope and keep them in use.”
“Truth can be hidden within a rumor, Sinbad,” said the elder, sitting up straight against the wall. “Azrak, believed in you. As do I.”
Sinbad shook his head, trying to assemble his scattered wits. Now the weight of this world rested on Sinbad’s shoulders. He could not picture himself as the savior of this alien planet. How could he save an entire civilization if he couldn’t save the ones he cared about the most?
At least he knew Azrak is now with his family in the next life. Before Sinbad went to sleep, he made a vow to Allah to see that Akhdar and all his minions will pay dearly. Not just for the injustice that was done to him, but for the downtrodden to both Azurians and Thulians alike.
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CHAPTER SIX
DISCORD BETWEEN THE POWERFUL
IS A FORTUNE FOR THE POOR
Sinbad watched as another ill-fated prisoner had been killed in the arena. The gladiator cried out at first, but his feeble protests were quickly replaced by the sounds of crunching bones and the thud of heavy fists and boots against tender flesh. Sinbad couldn’t even see the man beneath the pack of homicidal maniacs satisfying their never-ending thirst for bloodlust.
They piled onto the doomed Azurian man. The poor soul was fighting back sobs and screams. The audience either stared at the grisly scene with horror, or else buried their heads in their hands, trying unsuccessfully to hide from the awful sights and sounds.
The beating lasted less than five minutes, but seemed to go on forever. Just when Sinbad thought he couldn’t possibly stand another moment, however, the gang of murderers stepped back from their victim. The prisoner’s pulped body lay face down in a puddle of dark, venous blood. His limbs were twisted at unnatural angles that made Sinbad’s joints hurt just looking at them.
The guards took hold of the man’s limp arms and dragged his lifeless body into the catacombs as it left a trail of blood across the arena. The remaining guards left their posts and began to purify the ring before the next match could commence.
Sinbad looked at the Azurian elder, “I am set to fight the centaur.”
“Kar-Tyr of the Kurwani,” the old man corrected him. “He is Akhdar’s recent favored fighter, since you lost face to the insufferable whelp.”
“What is the hearsay within the prison walls?”
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The elder hesitated to reply. “They all are placing wagers with odds against you.”
“Perhaps I could reason with Kar-Tyr.”
“I think you will be wasting your time, Sinbad. You have seen him fight. He would not lay down his weapon to have a friendly conversation with you.”
“Akhdar had all his people slaughtered,” Sinbad clarified. “We all share a common enemy and goals.”
“Indeed. You, me, him, and the rest of the inmates here,” retorted the elder. “If you are planning a prison revolt, do you think you are the only person here whoever thought of it? Akhdar’s followers would crumble that plot before you could even execute the first stage.”
“It is at least better than fighting in the arena until we are all dead.”
The old Azurian wiped his oily brow and gave Sinbad a smile. “We all wear the stripes of Akhdar’s whip on our backs, and we are likely to continue to wear them. But your lashes are carved in your heart.” Then the elder gave out a heaving sigh. “Despite of everything that has happened, you still retained your optimism. Maybe if I had your sanguinity I would have gotten out of here years ago.”
The Azurian man had been watching Sinbad, his face inscrutable. Perhaps he had been waiting for the Earthman to come out of the depression that had paralyzed him all on his own, but it didn’t appear to be happening.
“Hoping to hold out, are you, Sinbad?”
Sinbad’s gaze flickered toward the old man, a mildly questioning look in his eyes.
“You’re figuring that if you simply shut down, refuse to cooperate they won’t kill you because they need you, and perhaps it will provide enough time for your friends to come rescue you.”
The old man could not have been more wrong. Sinbad wasn’t thinking of anybody like that. He was, first, convinced that they wouldn’t find him, and further influenced his
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captors would indeed kill him if they decided that he wasn’t going to cooperate. There was no grand stalling tactic involved here. Sinbad was simply positive that there was no way out.
Unaware of that, the old man continued, “I’m sure they’re looking for you, Sinbad, but they will never find you here.” He approached Sinbad and crowded so that they were on eye level. His voice became soft, even understanding. “You don’t like fighting.”
Sinbad shook his head, despondent.
“I didn’t like it either when I was leading Akhdar’s army.”
Sinbad’s eyes widened and stared at the old man.
“You were a soldier?”
“I was sergeant-at-arms, until I was ordered to lay waste to an entire village.”
“Did you carry out the order?”
The Azurian shook his head, “No, I couldn’t go through with it. It was occupied with innocent civilians. I’ve killed several members of my battalion in order to save as many people as I could.” He buried his face in his hands.
“Then what happened?” Sinbad carefully asked.
“On the planet you are from, Sinbad, do they have the saying, ‘no good deed goes unpunished’?”
“What did Akhdar do to you?”
“He took everything from me,” the old man replied. “Not only he stripped me of my rank, he seized my home, my land, and had my entire family slaughtered before my own eyes. He even made me choose in which order they would die in…all my sons are dead. My lineage ends with me when I go into the next world. I begged him to kill me as well, but he said I wasn’t worthy of death. So he casted me here in the dungeon to be with all the scum I brought to justice. Worst of all, Akhdar even took my name away from me.”
“He took your name?”
“He replaced it with ‘traitor.’ So everybody I would meet will know the crime I committed against the crown.”
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