Leonides sat down heavily at his courtyard table and began working his way through papers on his various enterprises. The sun was already high in the sky and beating down upon the City. It was hot enough that you could see the heat ripples in the air. The large tree kept him well shaded, however, as there was nary a breeze coming from the sea. Imperial guards were at attention in all four corners of the courtyard. They shared space with his own guards and neither side was all that interested in speaking to the other.
A slight crunch of the seashell gravel precluded the arrival of a shadow appearing over the young man. He looked up to see a disheveled Herakles standing before him. His grimace of concentration changed to one of surprise.
“Where have you been?” He inquired of his tutor,” I haven’t seen you since the day of the attack.”
“I’ve been searching for Ceres,” Herakles sighed.
“No luck, I take it?” Leonides frowned.
“None,” the other man admitted.
“You know,” Leonides set down his quill,” You said that he is your brother. Yet he is an assassin and you are not.”
“It is a long story,” Herakles snagged a chair with his foot and dragged it over before sitting down.
“Keep it short, then,” Leonides suggested.
“He’s my younger brother and he went bad,” Herakles shrugged.
“That was a bit too short,” Leonides sniffed,” Try again.”
“How about a drink?” Herakles inquired.
Leonides nodded and motioned for one of his staff to get some drinks,” There. Now start talking.”
Herakles sniffed and waited until the servant returned with cooled wine. He picked up a goblet and took a long swallow, emptying the vessel. He poured more and took another long draught. Leonides smiled very slightly and leaned back to wait.
Herakles sat the cup down and sighed,” It all started when I was a young lad. Well, I was older than Ceres, but still a young lad.”
“Got it,” Leonides nodded sagely,” Young lad. Do continue.”
Herakles mock glared at him,” I’m getting there. Don’t push me. I’ve never told anyone this before.”
Leonides picked up his own goblet,” Fine, fine. I’ll be quiet.”
“Then it would be the first time,” Herakles chuckled,” Where was I? Oh, yes. I was a young lad. Probably no more than 10, I think. I caught my brother, Ceres, torturing a cat in an alley near our home. I’d found other animals that had been mutilated for nearly four years, but I couldn’t prove he had done it until then.”
“How old was he then?” Leonides inquired.
“Who is telling this story?” Herakles barked,” Oh, very well. He was about 9, I think. I went to tell my mother what he had been doing. She didn’t believe me. Ceres was more careful after that. I didn’t catch him again for a couple more years. I was specifically looking for him when I found him in an abandoned building two blocks away from home.”
“What did you do?” Leonides sipped his wine slowly.
“What did I say?” Herakles sighed,” I’m telling this story. My way.”
Leonides shrugged,” I’m sorry.”
“You just can’t help yourself, can you?” Herakles shook his head,” Never mind. Oh, well this time I went and fetched my mother. I think he had seen me when I first discovered him, though. Because when he got back he was cradling the dog he had butchered and crying.
He was covered in the dog’s blood and the knife he used missing. I told mother that he had mutilated that dog. She wouldn’t believe me. Her precious baby couldn’t be capable of such things. Even though the place was chock full of mutilated animal bodies. Some of them years old.
He ran to her and blubbered that he had seen someone inside here and out of curiosity followed. Imagine his surprise when he found it was his older brother! I was stunned. He was trying to pin the whole episode on me! I grew angry and grabbed him. I started shaking him and demanding he tell the truth.
I felt a blow to the side of the head. I spun about to find my mother’s hand raised to hit me again. She started screaming at me to let go of her precious baby! She believed Ceres over me!”
“How could she believe him over you?” Leonides interrupted.
“Because,” Herakles growled,” I hadn’t helped my cause. I was about a year old when Ceres was born. I didn’t want a younger brother, or so my mother told me. I kept trying to hurt him. Sibling rivalry, no doubt. But I kept doing it for about five years. Because she kept doting on him and ignoring me. I finally realized that my issues with my brother were making my own life difficult.
She never forgot that, though. My father died when I was eight. She had become more and more protective of Ceres and more neglectful of me. She believed him instead of me. So what does she do? She sends me away to gladiator school. She felt that an animal like me deserved nothing better.”
“That’s awful!” Leonides exclaimed.
Herakles nodded,” I was out of touch with Ceres and my mother for years. By the time I won my freedom and a job as a gladiator trainer she had died. Someone attacked her in the middle of the night and cut her up really bad. I was sure Ceres had done it. I’ve tried to find him off and on over the past 20 years.”
“I’m so sorry,” Leonides murmured,” I had no idea.”
“Well remember the furor over the mutilated corpse found in that alley?” Herakles inquired.
“Yeess,” Leonides paused,” You aren’t saying….?”
“Oh, yes,” Herakles growled,” That was Ceres’ handiwork. I am sure it was Captain Demopolous.”
“Which would explain his disappearance,” Leonides rubbed his chin,” Nasty and brutal. Which apparently is something Ceres specializes in, doesn’t he?”
“I still haven’t found him,” Herakles snapped,” He has to be stopped!”
“Have you checked some of the halls where unemployed blades hang out?” Leonides inquired.
“Not yet,” Herakles admitted,” That was my next plan.”
“I might have started there first,” Leonides pointed out.
“I got nothing the last time I tried that after the first attack,” Herakles shrugged,” I didn’t think I would get much better results.”
“Can’t hurt to try,” Leonides reminded him,” What have you got to lose?”
“You,” Herakles said flatly,” I am leery of leaving you alone too long.”
“You have got to be joking,” Leonides laughed,” I have my guards, and Imperial Guards all around me!”
“I just don’t trust anyone other than me with your safety,” Herakles cracked his neck.
“Which is why we haven’t done any training in so long?” Leonides reminded him.
“I thought you might enjoy a brief break from our training regimen,” Herakles shrugged.
“Oh, I’ve been training,” Leonides informed him.
“With whom?” Herakles’ eyebrows rose in surprise.
“My guards,” Leonides told him,” Some of the Imperial Guards. Anyone willing to take the time to spar with me.”
”How did you do?” Herakles interest had been piqued.
“Better than I thought I would,” Leonides admitted,” I won more than I lost.”
“Which means what exactly?” Herakles inquired mildly.
“Precisely that, Herakles,” Leonides stared at the other man coldly.
Herakles withstood the icy gaze for a long moment and then dropped his eyes,” I am sorry, Leonides. I felt I had to try and find my brother and stop him before he did any more damage.”
“Without telling me, your employer?” Leonides snapped,” You work for me, Herakles! I pay you an exorbitant amount of money to train me and then you hare off looking for your psychopathic brother without saying a damned word to me!”
Herakles stared at Leonides in shock. Leonides expression was rigid with anger. He stared at the trainer for a few seconds and then his face relaxed into something resembling a calmness.
“Herakles,” Leonides said slowly,” I understand you feel somewhat responsible for Ceres. This does not mean that you can shirk your responsibility to me.”
Herakles managed to maintain a rein on his own temper, fully aware that the guards he had chosen, as well as the Imperial Guard had slowly unsheathed their own swords and were poised to intervene. He knew he was very good, but even he wasn’t sure he could survive an intervention by the Imperial Guards. He noted a few hand signals that announced the arrival of many more Imperial Guardsmen, every one of them with bare swords in their fists.
“Leonides,” Herakles carefully modulated the tone of his voice,” I know I have upset you. However you do not own me. If you wish me to leave your service, I will do so.”
Leonides blinked and shoved his chin into his left fist and stared at Herakles in an appraising manner.
“That won’t be necessary,” he finally replied,” But I would in the future want you to inform me when you take an absence like this.”
Herakles nodded stiffly,” I will get cleaned up, then. I shall return to give you another lesson.”
“Not for today,” Leonides growled,” I trained with a quartet of Imperial Guards this morning. I have to deal with this paperwork for the rest of the day. It’s piled up while I have been training the last few days in your absence.”
Herakles winced as the shot went home,” Very well. I’ll speak to some of the guards then.”
“You do that,” Leonides dismissed him.
Herakles walked away, his shoulders slightly slumped in tiredness. Leonides immediately went back to his papers. One of the Imperial Guards stepped up to stand next to him.
“What?”
“Weren’t you a little hard on him?” the man inquired,” That is Herakles!”
“I’ve been harder on others,” Leonides snapped,” Who are you to inquire as to what I am doing?”
“Nobody, my lord,” The man stepped back.
Leonides rubbed his temples and took another long swallow of now warm wine. The struggle to turn about an entire empire was beginning to wear on him and his nerves were a bit frayed. He made a mental note to try and relax a bit more before his nerves completely snapped under the pressure.
