LEANORE 
By Heck
CHAPTER FIVE


Comments to heck@beadyeye.net

THREE DAYS MARCH in the blazing sun.

Three days chained to the saddle tree of Fallus Maximus's horse, towed along
behind like a criminal, often having to run to keep up, sometimes falling over
and being dragged on her belly until the Commander deigned to notice. Once or
twice, she had dug in her heels and had managed to bring the big horse to a
halt by sheer muscle power, but a savage lash across the shoulders had
persuaded her that this was not an option.

At night, she was bound hand and foot, always with double shackles, and was
never left alone, even when she needed to attend to bodily functions.

If this was what they called being well treated, Leanore would hate to see
their version of cruelty.

She had been well fed as promised, though, and had eaten everything she had
been offered although she never felt less like eating in her whole life. She
knew she had to keep healthy and strong if she was to survive this.

The word 'arena' had been preying on her mind. The way Lexis had said it made
it sound ominous indeed, although she did not share her opinion that it was
some kind of torture device. There could be no benefit to be gained from
torture. She held no useful information and, in any case, that was not what
slaves were for. Whatever it was she was sure it was nothing good.

On the fourth day, they crested a rise that overlooked a wide valley where a
broad river meandered through the bottom.

The first thing that Leanore noticed was the lack of wildlife. In her
experience, such a valley should be teeming with animals but here, there were
none.

Then she saw the reason why.

All along the river's near bank, an encampment had been set up. Dozens of
tents, arranged in ranks, were home to hundreds of men, and the smoke of
scores of campfires darkened the air. Squads of armed soldiers practised
drills in a central square before the largest and most ornate tent, while
others milled around making the most of rare off-duty time.

The encampment was much bigger than Leanore's home village, and the woman had
never seen so many people at one time.

To one side, a wooden stockade was guarded by eight soldiers, and inside she
could make out the shapes of scores of people, all sitting or standing around
dejectedly. She had a feeling that she would become one of them.

A prod from a javelin's butt started her walking, and the phalanx marched down
into the valley. Lexis walked beside Fallus Maximus on his horse, and threw
satisfied looks at Leanore partly because, as she had told the captive, she
expected to be well paid for her betrayal, but mostly because she thought she
had achieved her revenge. She lost no opportunity to wave her wrapped and
useless right hand in Leanore's face, mouthing the word 'payback'.

Fallus Maximus led his troop into the encampment. At the entrance he
dismounted, handing his horse to an ostler who came out to meet them. Two
soldiers took Leanore's chain, and they marched up the broad central path
between two ranks of tents, across the central square, where the drilling
squads had halted to let them pass, and up to the large tent.

Leanore noticed many of the men they passed coming to attention and saluting
the Commander with the customary fist-to-chest manner. But she also noticed a
number of sniggers behind hands, as the phalanx passed with their single
captive. Maximus studiously ignored them.

In front of the big tent a table had been set up, covered with maps and the
paraphernalia of military organisation. Behind it, three men sat in
companionable silence, watching the approach of the troop. All three were in
uniform, even more ornate than that of Maximus, but the central figure was
resplendent in a burnished bronze plastron and pure white cape trimmed with
ermine. His bare head was balding, with a fringe of neatly trimmed white hair,
and his weatherbeaten face showed the lines and wrinkles of vast experience.
He held an ivory sceptre, topped by a gold eagle, which he idly slapped into
his palm.

The Commander brought the phalanx to a halt in front of the table and saluted.
His salute was returned perfunctorily as the central figure rose to his feet.

"Fallus! Welcome back". He seemed genuinely pleased to see the commander.

"General. It's good to be back, sir".

"Good trip? What have you brought us?"

"Just the two, I'm afraid, sir. But excellent quality". Beside Leanore,
Lexis's brows furrowed as she heard the number he reported. The conversation
meant nothing to Leanore, but she was interested to observe the other woman's
reactions.

The General frowned and shook his head in disappointment.

"Only two? All these weeks, and you have only two? I expect more of you".

"My apologies, sir. The woman we used as a scout seemed to have her own
agenda. But I think you will be pleased with the quality of the stock".

"Hmm. Well, let's see them, then".

Fallus Maximus led the General, by the age-old army method of directing him
from behind, up to Lexis.

"This one is damaged, I think. She keeps her hand covered all the time. But
she is a fine specimen".

"Why isn't she shackled?"

"This is the woman we used as a scout. She doesn't know she's a captive, yet".

This part of the conversation was muted and spoken rapidly, so Lexis had some
difficulty keeping up. She got the gist of it though, and sudden anger and
fear supplanted the arrogance in her face.

"What you say? Lexis is not slave! I show you, you take slaves. I not slave!
You pay me! You say you pay me! You not pay, I kill!"

"Quiet, woman!" Maximus snapped. "Men, restrain this woman!"

Two guards stepped forward and laid hold of Lexis's muscular arms. She
struggled, and managed to throw one of them off, but another immediately took
his place. Shackles were quickly attached to her wrists and ankles while she
desperately fought against them, but the Commander stepped forward and a hard
backhand blow from a studded gauntlet quieted her quite effectively. Half
stunned, she glared at him with open loathing.

"I think she'll be quiet, now", he told the General. "If you'd like to inspect
her?"

The General motioned to one of the men, who held a sword to Lexis's throat,
before coming any closer. He walked around her, looking her up and down,
poking and prodding to test her muscle tone and peeling back her lips to
examine her teeth.

"What's wrong with her hand?" he asked.

"I don't know, sir", Maximus admitted. He gestured to another of the men.
"You. Unwrap that hand".

The man grabbed Lexis's hand. She resisted strenuously, and her strength cost
him much effort. It took him several minutes, but finally he got the hand
unwrapped. It was crippled and twisted, claw-like, with limited movement in
the fingers. Lexis glared her hatred at Leanore as she suffered the indignity.

"This would significantly reduce her value", the General said. "Otherwise,
she's fine, a very good specimen. But that hand."

"I know", the Commander agreed. "But in the arena, she might be good. She's
strong, and full of fire. She might not last long, because of the hand, but I
think she'll make a good show"

"Arena?" Leanore recognised the word. She spoke in her own language knowing
only Lexis could understand. "Looks like the arena is going to happen to you,
too. How does it feel to be betrayed too?" For an answer, Lexis only growled.

"I agree", the General said to Maximus. "Take her to the stockade".

The guards wrestled Lexis away, spitting and cursing as she went.

"You bas'ar's" she yelled at the officers. "I kill you! Bas'ar's!"

Leanore was confused. She didn't fully understand what was going on, being
ignorant of the language of these strange men, although she resolved to put
that right. She also felt a strange sense of vindication as she watched Lexis
being taken away.

She was aware of the General and Commander talking, and of a shift in their
attention to her. Apprehension filled her mind.

"What about this one?" the General was saying.

"Ah, I think you'll be more pleased with this one. Very spirited, much
stronger than the other one, and better looking, too. She can be dangerous".
He signalled to his men, and two took her arms while another held a javelin to
her throat. "But where the other one is a bit mad, this one seems fully sane
and intelligent".

The senior officer approached her and Leanore tensed, pumping power into her
eady muscles, prepared for whatever action she might have the opportunity to
take. Her muscles, impressive enough when relaxed, sprang into relief and the
very act of tensing them almost threw the soldiers off her. They tightened
their grip as thet loked at her with a new-found respect that was close to
awe.

The General examined her just as he had Lexis. He felt her muscles, full
bellied and hard as teak in their ready state, and ran his hand over the flat
plane of her belly. He kneaded her shoulders and thighs and checked her eyes
and teeth, nodding his head in appreciation.

"Excellent" he complimented the Commander. "Excellent. The quality of this one
more than makes up for the lack of quantity, eh? Can she fight?"

"Don't know, sir. But she's got plenty of fighting spirit. She'll learn the
finer points soon enough".

"Yes. Has she got a name?"

"Leanore, I believe". The woman looked up at the sound of her name. She had
not realised he knew it. Lexis, she guessed. The General stood with his face
close to hers.

"Leanore", he addressed her. Then he spouted what to her was a lot of
gobbledegook, during which she recognised the words 'arena' and 'Fallus
Maximus', but nothing else. Her confusion must have shown in her face.

"I don't know what you're saying" she told him, speaking through clenched
teeth but keeping her voice level. "You're talking, but not in any language
that I know. So you're wasting your breath". The man stared at her
uncomprehendingly, before turning to the Commander.

"Doesn't speak proper language, eh?"

"No, sir. But that's not important".

"No, I suppose not". He clapped Maximus on the shoulder. "Well done. Send her
to the stockade, then come and have a drink with me".

Leanore was led at sword-point to the stockade and pushed inside. The stench
of stale sweat and urine hit her from yards away, and as she stumbled through
the gates the stink was almost overpowering.

All around, dejected people stood singly or in little knots, without much
space to move around. Men and women, and children of all ages, they were all
shackled, and shuffled about with heads bowed, most of them not even noticing
the new arrival. Leanore let her horrified gaze wander over the blank faces,
and all she could see was her own future. Hot wetness stung her eyes as she
fought back the tears.

At one side of the stockade a familiar figure paced up and down beside the
bars, looking like a big cat as she glared out at the guards with murder in
her eyes. Lexis had fought and struggled every inch of the way to the
stockade. Leanore snarled under her breath at the sight of her nemesis, and
stalked across the cage toward her. Lexis felt her coming and whirled to face
her, taking up a fighting stance with hands held forward, her crippled hand
looking like a twisted talon.

Leanore pushed people out of her way as she marched toward the other woman,
teeth bared in a fearsome grimace. This woman was responsible for the death of
Tanley, for her own captivity, and for all the woes that troubled her, and
Leanore held death in her heart.

In Lexis's paranoid mind, Leanore was the reason for her incarceration, her
humiliation by the very men she expected to help her gain her revenge. Killing
Leanore was now the entire focus of her existence.

Two strong and athletic women approached each other across the crowded
stockade. Closer and closer, until they were only a few feet apart.

Leanore was stopped in her tracks. The needle sharp point of a javelin
appeared in front of her, aimed directly at her throat. Two legionnaires
grabbed each arm, restraining her. She tried to twist out of their grasp but,
although she managed to jerk the four men around, she was unable to break
free. A glance told her that Lexis was similarly held, although in her case
only two men were necessary.

Lexis yelled her frustration, spitting at the men and trying to bite them.
Leanore was much more philosophical, and once she had realised escape was not
immediately possible, accepted her restraint.

One of the men said something to his comrades in their strange language. He
spoke in a voice of authority, gesturing at the two women with anger on his
face. The men did not reply, but Leanore felt herself being dragged backward
to the bars of the cage. With a deal of effort, fighting against her strength,
they unshackled her wrists and her arms were spread out. They fettered her to
the bars, taking the precaution to pass stout ropes around each of her arms in
three places; wrists, elbows, and biceps.

On the other side, the same was happening to Lexis. The two women paid little
attention to what the men were doing, glaring with fierce rage at each other,
concentrating all of their mutual hatred into their eyes.

Once they were secured, the legionnaires stepped back. Leanore could tell by
their eyes that they had all felt some kind of sexual buzz from what had
happened, taking part in tying up the two women like a couple of crucifixion
victims, but what they thought or felt was matterless to her.

Captivity and humiliation can have varying effects on different people. In
some, it results in loss of spirit, feelings of worthlessness, degradation,
and a deep, lasting depression from which they may never recover, even if
their ordeal comes to an end. Some descend into the depths of psychosis,
taking refuge in a self-delusional schizoid world in which the whispering
internal voices dictate their every thought and action.

Either of these can lead to self-destruction.

The effect on Leanore was to strengthen her will, forging an iron
determination to survive this, no matter what was thrown at her, no matter
what she was forced to do, with the sole aim of escaping, destroying Lexis and
Fallus Maximus, and returning home.

This can be self destructive, too.

"They couldn't let me kill you", Lexis shouted from her fettered position,
scorn and derision in her words. "The big one, he said we were too valuable,
and we weren't to be damaged or allowed to damage each other. It seems that,
whatever this arena is, we're to be kept intact for it".

Leanore did not deign to answer her, but let the fury in her eyes speak for
her. In fact, by accident or design, Lexis had translated the soldier's words
inaccurately. What he had actually said was that Lexis was not to be allowed
to damage Leanore, as it was the latter that was too valuable. From their
point of view, that fact that Lexis would also remain uninjured was merely a
by-product, a bonus.

Leanore let her head rest against the bars and closed her eyes, ramming a knot
of grief and frustration deep down into her psyche. By the gods, she would see
this through. She would learn the strange language, withstand whatever fate
had in store, and survive to the end.

And, she promised herself, there would be those that would wish she had not.