Spartacus’ spectacular defeat of Rome’s Ninth Legion at Pompeii had energized his rapidly growing army. With another two Roman Legions marching toward them, Spartacus dispatched his strongest and most trusted gladiators, those that trained and fought with him in Pompeii, to the Roman camp.
The five gladiators, battle hardened from years in the arena and their recent triumph over the Ninth Legion, accepted the mission willingly. They would arrive at the Roman camp at night when most of the two legions were asleep. The gladiators would kill as many guards as possible and capture one or two centurions to be interrogated by Spartacus himself. The gladiators would approach the camp from the south to avoid detection by any scouting cohorts that the Romans often sent out. A southerly approach, however, meant descending a rather steep cliff wall to reach the valley camp, a strenuous feat for even the strongest among them.
The five gladiators readied themselves for the mission and they received some final words of encouragement from Spartacus. They wore only the short blue tunics that they had worn since the initial revolt at Capua and were naked to just below the waist, most of their muscular bodies were fully exposed; they wore no armor or helmets. This was not uncommon for these gladiators. as all preferred to fight with their torsos bare. The gladiators were confident enough in their skills with a sword that the benefit of full freedom of movement outweighed the risk of catching an errant blade on their bare skin. They wore no armor when they fought in the arena at Pompeii or when they defeated Rome’s Ninth, and this mission would be no different.
Most troubling for Spartacus was the decision by the gladiators to not carry any weapons with them. They did not want to risk a sword clanging against the rock wall as they descended the cliff and alerting the Roman guards of their presence. The gladiators would have to arm themselves with weapons taken from the guards as they killed them. Many in Spartacus’ camp feared this was a mistake and that this was a suicide mission but the brave gladiators shrugged it off as a minor inconvenience.
The five gladiators were an impressive site as they mounted their horses and confidently rode out of camp. All the gladiators were heavily muscled and all stood over six feet tall. Their meager diet of fruits and grains had sharpened the definition of each muscle in their lean bodies but had not diminished their strength, for each was still strong as a lion. All five gladiators had worn nothing more than their tunics since the revolt at Capua three months earlier and the warm Pompeian sun had baked their nearly naked bodies to a golden hue. Their smooth muscular torsos glistened in the late afternoon sun as they rode away.
Although there was no formal rank among the gladiators, it was Baro that the others often looked to for guidance and it was Baro that took the lead as they rode out of camp.
Baro was the oldest of the five gladiators although he was not old by any standard measure of the day. Baro’s wide shoulders and broad back angled sharply into a narrow waist. Two large pectorals sat high on his chest and his abdomen was thickly muscled with large but pleasingly shaped abdominals that were clearly visible under his taut bronzed skin. Despite his rugged training and experience in the arena, Baro was an even tempered fellow who preferred to settle disputes with his tongue rather than his sword. But when swords were drawn, Baro was a deadly opponent.
Attius, who rode behind Baro, was the youngest among them but was certainly not the smallest. Attius came to the barracks at Capua less than a year ago and was sturdily built before he began training as a gladiator. After a few months at the lanista, Attius’ body blossomed and it seemed his muscles hadn’t stopped growing since. The other gladiators often remarked that Attius’ young face looked a bit odd sitting atop his heavily muscled body. The young Macedonian took to the sword naturally and soon wielded it like it was an extension of his own arm. His opponents in the arena often mistook his youthful appearance for inexperience and always paid the ultimate price. Despite his imposing size and youthfulness, Attius was a quick wit and could always bring a smile to the lips of the others.
Valerius and Sextus rode next to each other behind Attius and were inseparable. The other gladiators often joked that one was never seen without the other nearby. Both gladiators were about the same height and both had extremely well developed muscular bodies. Individually, each was an impressive sight, but standing together, they were intimidating to all but those who knew them best. Every muscle in each of their bodies was in proper proportion to every other muscle, perfect symmetry. Valerius and Sextus trained together in Capua and the editor of the games, knowing their fondness for each other, would often team them together to fight in the arena, often pitting the two of them against six or more opponents at one time. Valerius and Sextus were both fierce opponents, but when paired together they were unbeatable. Their swords could hack through half a dozen gladiators in the blink of an eye. Their closeness to each other was the subject of many whispered asides but no one ever dared speak of it aloud for fear of incurring the wrath of one or both of the big muscular gladiators. But it mattered little to Valerius and Sextus what was said about them. They were both good natured and slow to anger and they knew they had earned the respect of the other gladiators where it mattered most, in the arena.
Dax rode behind Valerius and Sextus and was the biggest of the five gladiators. He was easily half a foot taller than the others and his curly black hair made him appear even taller. Dax’ body was without doubt the most muscular of all the gladiators in Spartacus’ camp. His huge arms hung from boulder-like shoulders; two large pectorals hung over his thick but chiseled abdominals. His thighs were like tree trunks as they hung from the side of his horse. Dax was the champion of the arena at Pompeii and had already garnered much favor with several senators in Rome where he may have eventually earned his freedom. But Dax, like the others, was taken with Spartacus’ words and had no regrets about joining him and fighting the Romans. After the defeat of the Ninth, word quickly spread amongst the other Roman Legions of the Herculean gladiator. Dax didn’t know it but he was already a legend among the Roman soldiers.
The gladiators arrived at the top of the cliff on foot at dusk; the horses were left grazing about a mile behind. There was still quite a bit of activity in the Roman camp in the valley below but after about an hour the camp was quiet as Rome’s fiercest two legions, The Fourth and The Tenth, settled in for the night. The gladiators carefully noted the position of each guard and devised a plan of attack. Because of the unlikelihood of an attack from the cliffs, there were only a few guards on the south side of the camp. Most of the guards were on the north side of the valley where the Romans were more vulnerable.
The gladiators pulled off their sandals and began the perilous nighttime descent down the face of the cliff, their full body weigh supported only by their powerful arms and legs. Their muscles strained as they slowly navigated the treacherous jagged rock; the gladiators were confident that their presence had so far gone undetected by the Roman legions below. And that would have been the case if not for one Roman soldier’s urgent need to relieve a swollen bladder near a tree at the foot of the cliff. The soldier’s casual glance over his shoulder while he was urinating and the pale light of the waxing moon revealed the five gladiators clinging to the face of the cliff. The soldier quickly but quietly alerted the guards on duty and, before the gladiators were half way down the rock wall, ten Roman soldiers in full battle armor were positioned at the base of the cliff with more troops on the way, ready to repeal the attack. The gladiators continued their descent down the cliff unaware of the soldiers waiting for them below.
Dax descended the wall the quickest which surprised the other gladiators because Dax was the biggest and bulkiest of the group. It may have been his fear of heights that motivated his rapid descent or just his brute strength, but Dax was the first gladiator to reach the bottom of the cliff. What the gladiator didn’t know was that there was a Roman soldier waiting for him with his sword already unsheathed.
As soon as Dax’ feet hit the ground the Roman grabbed his shoulder and spun him around. Dax was surprised by the soldier and was thrown off balance. The Roman jabbed his left hand into Dax’ abdomen and pushed him back violently, slamming the gladiator back against the rock wall. The jagged rock dug into Dax’ bare back and the gladiator instinctively pulled his shoulders back; his thickly muscled chest and abdomen were left completely exposed and vulnerable to the Roman standing in front of him with sword fully cocked. The overzealous young Roman then furiously rammed his blade into Dax’ bare belly with a powerful thrust of his sword. The soldier’s blade sliced through Dax’ muscular torso and the tip of the blade hit the rock wall behind him.
AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!! The crisp sound of the Roman’s blade cutting into Dax’ granite-like abdomen was quickly followed by the gladiator’s roar that echoed throughout the base of the cliff.
Dax’ yell was partly in reaction to the agonizing pain of the blade that was run through his gut and partly in anger at letting himself be stabbed so easily by the young Roman soldier who was more than half a foot shorter than him and about half his body weight. In the arena, Dax would have crushed this Roman soldier’s skull with his bare hands. But now the young soldier had Pompeii’s mightiest gladiator pinned against the rock wall with his sword run through the gladiator’s belly. The Roman put his left hand on Dax’ powerful chest and pushed hard against the gladiator’s beefy left pectoral as he ripped his sword out of Dax’ gut just as viciously as he had stabbed him.
UUUHHH!!! Dax yelled out again and took a few steps forward with the Roman’s sword as it was pulled out of his belly.
The soldier was sure his sword thrust through the massive gladiator’s gut was fatal and with his confidence buoyed by the kill the soldier turned away from Dax, eager to join the fight with the other gladiators that were coming down the cliff.
The Roman soldier didn’t get more than a few steps before Dax grabbed the Roman from behind and dragged him back.
Dax’ wound was indeed fatal but he had the stamina of a bull and it would be several minutes before he would bleed to death. He, like the other gladiators, was trained to fight to kill until the very last breath was drawn and the inexperienced Roman was now caught in Dax’ deadly grip.
With one arm wrapped around the Roman's chest and the other arm around his throat Dax pulled the Roman into him until the Roman’s cold metal armor was pressed tightly against the gladiator’s bare chest. Dax’ huge biceps strained as he slowly squeezed the life out of the Roman. The gladiator’s left arm crushed the Roman’s armor and snapped his ribs like twigs. Dax’ right arm closed off the Roman’s throat denying him air. The young Roman was soon limp in Dax’ powerful arms and the gladiator let the soldier fall to the ground.
Killing the soldier who stabbed him distracted Dax’ attention from the pain in his gut for a few moments but now he was keenly aware of the severe stab wound in his belly. Dax flexed every muscle in his body hard as he tried to endure the searing pain. He knew it was only a matter of time before he would join the dead Roman who was slumped at his feet. The gladiator struggled to stay on his feet.
A Roman soldier who had just emerged from his tent to join the fight spotted Dax about twenty yards away. The Roman was at first intimidated by the gladiator’s impressive size and the dead soldier at his feet and was hesitant to attack. But the soldier soon realized Dax was unarmed and wounded. The Roman would seize upon this opportunity to avenge the death of several of his friends from the Ninth Legion who were slaughtered by Spartacus’ army in Pompeii. It mattered little to the Roman whether Dax’ sword was responsible for the deaths of his friends. Running his sword through the belly of one of Spartacus’ rebel gladiators was his only thought at that moment. The Roman soldier would have his revenge with Dax, whose severe wound had now left him virtually defenseless.
The Roman ran at Dax with his sword fully cocked. Dax had turned his head to look behind him at the other gladiators descending the cliff and he never saw the soldier running at him.
“This is for my brothers in the Ninth!” the Roman yelled as he stopped a foot in front of Dax and rammed his blade into the gladiator’s tightly flexed abs with a brutal thrust of his sword.
AAAAAHHHHH!!! Dax yelled out and his upper body lurched forward as the Roman’s blade ripped into his belly.
Dax’ abdominals tightened around the blade that was stuck in his gut and he twisted his torso and gasped desperately for air.
The soldier had half his blade stuck in the gladiator’s gut but the Roman’s vengeance was still not yet fully satisfied. He grabbed Dax’ beefy shoulder with his left hand and abruptly pulled his sword out of the gladiator’s belly. The Roman cocked his sword arm all the back and ruthlessly stabbed Dax again, driving his blade into Dax’ abdomen to the hilt of the sword and running him through with a single thrust.
UUUUUUHHHHHH!!! Dax grunted loudly. His body stiffened and he rose to his toes as the sword sliced through his upper abs, just below his sternum.
The Roman ripped his sword out of Dax’ body and the gladiator fell to his knees, then fell forward face down on the ground with his big arms out to his sides. Blood flowed freely from the cuts on Dax’ back where the swords of the two Romans has sliced through his skin. Dax was dead.
The other gladiators heard Dax yell out when he was first stabbed and they then knew of the Romans waiting for them at the bottom of the cliff. They were too far down the wall to turn back so there was no choice but to keep going and fight when they reached the bottom.
Baro was the closest to the bottom and he watched as Dax was stabbed by the second Roman. Baro leapt the remaining twenty feet off the cliff and landed on top of the soldier just as the Roman spat on Dax’ dead body.
Both Baro and the Roman hit the ground hard. The soldier was knocked flat on his back and dazed. When he was fully conscious a few seconds latter Baro was kneeling over him holding the soldier’s own sword over his body, ready to strike.
AAAAHHHH!!! Anticipating his fate, the Roman started yelling even before the blade touched his body.
Baro rammed the sword down into the Roman’s gut and the blade cut into him just below the soldier’s armor and was driven deep into his abdomen.
AAAAAHHHH!!! The Roman shrieked again and his hips rose off the ground.
The soldier reached up with both hands to grab the sword that was stuck in his gut but Baro quickly pulled the blade out of the Roman’s body. Baro brought the sword up again and then quickly plunged the blade into the soldier’s chest, smashing the Roman’s metal breastplate and piercing his left pectoral. The Roman soldier gasped violently and was dead within seconds.
Baro pulled the blade out of the Roman’s chest and got to his feet. He looked at the red stained blade of the sword in his hand and was pleased that Dax’ blood had been replaced with the blood of the Roman who killed him.
“Baro, behind you!!!” Attius yelled from the face of the cliff as he looked down over his shoulder and saw two Roman soldiers with swords drawn running at Baro from behind him.
Baro spun around with his sword arm raised high above his head ready to strike but it was too late. As Baro turned one Roman soldier crouched down low and furiously drove his blade into Baro’ gut with a full thrust of his sword. The second Roman stabbed Baro a moment later, his blade plunging deep into the gladiator’s rock hard stomach.
“AAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!”
“AAAAAHHHHH!!!” Baro’s upper body lurched forward and his eyes opened wide as he felt both Roman blades cut into his belly.
One soldier pulled his blade out of Baro, and the other quickly followed
UUUHHH!!!
UUUHHH!!! Baro took a step forward and grunted as each sword was ripped out of his abdomen.
Before Baro could bring his sword up and try to defend himself, a third Roman soldier pushed past the other two soldiers and stabbed Baro in the gut with an savage thrust of his sword.
AAAAAHHHHH!!!! Baro’s muscular body jerked forward and he instinctively flexed him abdominals hard around the blade as it ripped into his belly.
The Roman pulled his blade out of Baro and the gladiator covered his stomach with both hands and fell the ground.
Baro had always believed his death would come honorably at the hands of another gladiator in the arena. He would nobly offer his neck to his victorious opponent who would mercifully slit his throat, killing him instantly. But Baro never imagined his death would come in this manner; left squirming on the ground to die a slow death, stabbed in the belly by the common swords of Roman infantrymen.
Death came soon enough for Baro and the three Romans were pleased with the kill.
Valerius and Sextus jumped together from about ten feet from the bottom of the rock wall. Valerius grabbed one of the Roman soldiers from behind and wrapped his beefy arms around the soldier’s chest. The gladiator tried to grab the Roman’s sword out of its scabbard but while they struggled for the sword another Roman came up from behind Valerius and slashed him across his lower back with a sword.
AAAHHH!!! Valerius growled as the Roman’s blade sliced open his bronzed skin leaving an eight inch gash on the gladiator’s muscular back
Valerius let go of the Roman he was holding and arched his back in reaction to the painful slash across his lower back. The soldier he was holding had his sword unsheathed as he spun around to face the gladiator. When Valerius arched his back and reached around with his ride hand to cover the wound on his back the Roman in front of him viciously thrust his sword forward, stabbing Valerius in the belly.
AAAAHHHH!!! Valerius wailed and he snapped forward at the waist when the blade ripped into his thick abs and sunk deep into his gut.
The Roman pulled his sword out of Valerius and the gladiator staggered back a few steps.
The soldier that had slashed Valerius’ back then grabbed the gladiator’s shoulder from behind him and spun him around and brutally stabbed Valerius in the gut again.
UUUUUUHHHHHH!!! Valerius cried out again and rose up on his toes when the Roman’s blade cut into his muscular belly.
With half his blade driven into Valerius’ gut, the soldier wrapped his left hand around the gladiator’s wide back, now moist with perspiration, and ruthlessly shoved the rest of the blade into Valerius’ belly. The blade was driven into his body to the hilt of the sword.
AAAAAHHHHH!!! Valerius howled as the Roman’s sword was run completely through his thick torso.
The Roman tore his sword out of Valerius’ belly with both hands on the grip, pulling Valerius forward a few steps. Valerius squeezed every muscle in his body hard for a few seconds then fell straight back to the ground and was still. Valerius was dead.
Sextus was fighting furiously without a sword and he managed to hold off several Roman soldiers at once with his bare hands. Sextus grabbed one Roman who attacked him and picked the soldier up over his head and threw him onto a group of three other soldiers sending them all crashing to the ground. As Sextus turned another Roman came at him unexpectedly and speared Sextus in the belly before the gladiator could deflect the attack.
AAAAAAHHHHHH!!! Sextus bellowed and doubled over at the waist as the finely sharpened spearhead was driven completely into his gut.
The Roman held the spear in the gladiator and pushed him back a few steps but Sextus grabbed the shaft of the spear with both hands and, with his biceps straining, he pulled the spear out of his gut and pushed the Roman soldier away. Sextus struggled to stand up straight but as soon as he did another soldier rushed forward and furiously stabbed Sextus in the belly with a hard thrust of his sword.
AAAAAHHHH!!!! Sextus yelled out again as the soldier’s blade tore through the flesh and muscle in his abdomen and was driven deep into his muscular torso.
Sextus grabbed his stomach with both hands and fell face down on the ground. The gladiator thrashed around violently on the ground as he tried to endure the pain of the two deep wounds in his gut.
The soldier who had speared Sextus put his foot under the gladiator’s shoulder and flipped him over onto his back. Sextus rolled onto his back still clutching his belly and he tried to lift his head off the ground. The Roman soldier raised his spear over Sextus and ruthlessly rammed it into the wounded gladiator’s bare chest, spearing Sextus’ left pectoral and piercing his heart. Sextus died instantly.
Attius was the last gladiator still alive and he was fighting wildly as most of the Roman soldiers were gathered around him. A Centurion was now present and barking orders to the soldiers. Attius, unarmed, was deflecting the attacks but his arms and legs, already weary from the descent of the cliff, were aching.
In an attack coordinated by the Centurion, two Roman soldiers charged at the same time and grabbed Attius beefy arms, one soldier on each arm. The soldiers pulled Attius back and slammed him against the rock wall and held him there. Attius struggled to free his arms but his strength was severely diminished; he was pinned against the wall and defenseless.
The Centurion stepped forward and his steely eyes slowly scanned the half-naked muscular gladiator from top to bottom.
“Ah...to have a thousand men as big and strong as you in the legion, gladiator...” The Centurion’s voice trailed off.
Attius’ struggled to free himself but the two soldiers had latched themselves to his massive arms and held the gladiator firmly against the wall. The gladiator’s bare back scraped against the jagged rock wall behind him as he struggled to get free.
Without saying another word and without any show of emotion, the Centurion suddenly pulled his sword out of its scabbard and callously stabbed Attius in the belly with the fierce thrust of a seasoned warrior; one for whom killing had no meaning.
AAAAAHHHHH!!!! Attius cried out as the Centurion’s blade cut into his hard muscled abdomen and was driven through his torso, striking the rock behind him.
The Roman pulled his sword out of Attius’ belly and stepped back.
UUUHHH!!! Attius groaned loudly and his muscular body shuddered when the Centurion’s sword was ripped out of him.
Attius flexed every muscle in his body and pulled his huge arms away from the wall dragging the two Roman soldiers who were still holding him. The gladiator’s burst of strength was short lived however, and the two soldiers slammed him back against the wall again.
The Centurion stepped forward as he cocked his sword all the back and coldly drove his blade into the gladiator’s gut again, turning his upper body to the left to give his thrust more power.
AAAAHHH!!! Attius yelled again and his upper body snapped forward. The Centurion’s blade once again sliced through the gladiator’s heavily muscled torso and hit the wall behind him.
The Centurion ripped his blade out of Attius’ body.
UUUHHH!!! Attius grunted and was dragged forward with the momentum of the blade as it was pulled out of his belly.
The Centurion wiped the blood from his blade and sheathed his sword. The two Roman soldiers let go of Attius’ arms and both stepped back from him. Attius’ deeply tanned skin was now covered with beads of perspiration as he struggled with the two cuts in his gut; both stab wounds were bleeding heavily.
Attius focused what strength he had left and managed to stand up straight and take a few steps forward. In a final act of defiance, Attius slowly raised his right fist high in the air and, in a raspy halting voice yelled, “Long...live...Spartacus, conqueror...of Rome!”
The Centurion who was emotionless before was now enraged by the gladiator's insolence. The Centurion pulled a dagger from his belt and ran at the huge gladiator who still had his fist high in the air, mocking the Centurion and all of Rome. The Roman stopped a foot in from of Attius and furiously stabbed him in the belly with the dagger, driving the full eight inch blade into Attius’ gut.
The Centurion’s earlier thrusts with the sword were cold and stoic, but his thrust with the dagger was fueled with rage at the gladiator's act of defiance.
The Centurion pulled the dagger out of the gladiator’s belly and brutally stabbed him in the gut two more times.
Attius’ body shuddered with each angry thrust of the Roman’s dagger but despite the excruciating pain, Attius denied the Centurion the satisfaction of hearing him cry out and so he muffled his yell in his throat and grinned disdainfully at the angry Roman.
Attius’ brawny body finally gave out and he fell to the ground on his side and slowly rolled onto his back. His massive chest heaved up one last time and Attius expelled his last breath and was dead.
General Marcus Claudius Marcellus, commander of the two legions, ordered the bodies of the five gladiators be crucified and the crosses be erected on the road to Spartacus’ camp before dawn. And so it was done.
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