he continued his vespers. Sinbad’s turban rested on the ground in front of him, as the sun’s rays poured in between the jail’s bars. A luxury only the most fortunate of prisoners would ever receive in this broken down palace.
Sinbad prostrated on the floor with his forehead, nose, palms of both hands, his knees, and toes all touching the floor. Then he sat up with his knees and palms placed on them and said, “O my Lord! Forgive me.” And he softly whispered “Allah, please grant me the strength and courage to face what is to come.”
His fellow inmates had long since given up their attempts for any chance of escape. They have accepted their fates as gladiators for Zhar Akhdar’s own personal amusement. The prisoners were native to Mars’ soil. Their appearance was humanoid but they were much taller than average human height. Also much thinner, but muscular given the current diet the guards provided for them. Their skin was blue as if they were suffering a severe case of hypothermia. And their yellow eyes pierced through the darkness like a cat on the prowl. They all sat defeated waiting for the chilling sound of the guards opening the door. That only meant one thing for them: death.
This was no place for Sinbad. He felt more comfortable at the helm of his ship, The Chimera, sailing the seven seas with the sun on his back and the sea salt in his beard. But he was depraved of his true love of freedom in exchange to be the star attraction for the grisly entertainment of corrupt and malicious aristocrats. Sinbad couldn’t remember the last time he ever enjoyed the majestic beauty of the ocean. He had been on land for so long he feared he had lost his sea legs. No matter what evil they
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had done to him, he will always carry his love for the sea and freedom in his heart.
He wore no ring or ornaments, except for the golden medallion that hung around his neck. Sinbad’s pendant glimmered in the sunlight when he slipped it off his neck. Sinbad wrapped the chain around his hand so it wouldn’t tangle, and placed it gently inside his turban for safekeeping. He didn’t want its shimmer to catch any of the thieving guards’ eyes. He knew the coming battle would be his most challenging yet. He couldn’t afford to be distracted by his medallion jostling around in rapid combat. If it became taut around an obstacle Sinbad wouldn’t have enough time or the flexibility to launch a counterstrike. He would need to consider every possible scenario on how this fight was going play out.
Ever since he was brought into the zhar’s gladiator games, Sinbad was fighting for his own life. But this time he would fight for the sake of another.
“Do not go, Sinbad,” said one of the blue men in the dark. “You will surely perish.”
“I have no choice, Azrak,” Sinbad replied, donning his turban. “Has the emperor not declared that if I refuse, he will have us all killed? As long as I fight, Akhdar has given his word that he will let you go, whether I am victorious or not.” The Earthman took a breath and adjusted his turban for his medallion to sit still on the top of his head. “I already have the blood of your family on my hands,” he continued, with sorrow in his voice. “I will not add yours to that, Azrak.”
Azrak stood up from his spot on the ground and proceeded to his friend. Hoping he could talk some sense into him.
“Sinbad, that was—”
“Quiet, friend,” interrupted another inmate. He was much older and the weakest prisoner in the whole cellblock. He placed his hand on Azrak’s shoulder and pulled him away from Sinbad. “He has made his decision.”
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Azrak brushed the elder away; not caring for the way Sinbad has been acting. Azrak thought to himself how his otherworldly comrade can remain so calm and display such bravado. In addition how gullible he could be.
“Akhdar will kill us no matter what you do,” Azrak sternly said to Sinbad. A worried look ran across his blue angular face. “His word is useless! Don’t be foolish!”
Deep inside Sinbad’s soul he knew his most trusted friend was right. There was no time to devise an alternative solution. Sinbad hoped this fight would buy his friend more time—time that was running out.
“The virtue of deeds lies in completing them, my friend,” he said to Azrak, as he got up to his two feet. “I will keep my word, atone for your family’s tragedy, and you shall live.”
Azrak and his family showed Sinbad kindness when the mighty sailor came to this strange world. And for that kindness, all but Azrak was viciously murdered in cold blood on Zhar Akhdar’s orders. On this day Sinbad still does not know why.
The loud click from the cell’s lock filled the dungeon. Sinbad wasn’t affected by the sound that filled the prisoners’ hearts with fear. He stood ready, knowing his time has come. The guards, two burly green men, entered the grimy dark cell. They wore heavy plated armor, which covered most of their battle scars. One of them leered at Sinbad hardheartedly.
“Come, outlander,” ordered the guard. “Your end is nigh. You must not keep the zhar and his guests waiting.”
Before Sinbad could submit to his captors’ demands Azrak held him back.
“Let me go with you. Two will fare better than one.”
“No,” Sinbad contested, “I must go this alone.”
The other guard gave Sinbad a scornful smirk followed by a taunting chuckle. “Are you ready to die, outlander?”
Sinbad didn’t dignify that with a response. His focus was completely set towards the arena. He clenched his fists and simply replied, “If Allah wills.”
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The trek to the coliseum was a long journey. The two heavily armed guards forced Sinbad to march ahead through the gulag’s stone doorway. The passage was clearly the way into the prison. The way out was very different indeed, as a number of ill-fated captives learned by watching their fellow inmates fall in combat and succumb to disease and malnutrition.
Sinbad was greeted by the venomous harangues of jeering and catcalls from a gallery of murderers, marauders, and disgraced soldiers. Even the other guards didn’t show the Earthman any respect at all. Sinbad didn’t pay any attention to their coercions. He knew they were all trying to scare him. But they weren’t trying hard enough. The sailor has seen almost everything in his world. From nature’s wonders to the supernatural, there was nothing else that could frighten him. However, he was on another planet and he was the only human in this world. This made him the minority and an outsider to every society on Mars.
The equipped guards nudged Sinbad further with the tips of their sharp spears.
“Advance, outlander!” threatened the one on the right. “You do not have time to lavish in the company of your friends.”
“What friends?” asked the other guard, as they both laughed cruelly.
When Sinbad proceeded down the passage he kept his eyes straight to the giant double doors that separated the prison and the arena. He blocked out the cruel hecklings, obscene gestures, and the rotted fruit and stones he was pelted with by the prisoners in neighboring cells. He would not give these vipers the satisfaction of retaliation or yield to their bullying. Even though more than half of the general
