Recall the Empire (6)
Orthros was the monster known from Empire legends — the two-headed beast with the body of a lion and the tail of a serpent.
The man standing before me, Orthros, also possessed that lethal serpent tail: the long spear resting across his shoulders.
I had once counted how many fallen gladiators lay impaled by that very spear.
He smiled, though the gesture did not reach his eyes. “How cruel. I must at least offer a greeting before I send you to hell.”
The words carried the weight of deep emotion, the same frozen blood that refused to melt. Undying hatred.
“Stop right there, Empire citizen,” Bia warned, stepping in front of me and using her entire centaur body to shield me. Unlike me, she covered her full form with nothing but her lower half. Orthros’s brows furrowed.
“Backing herself up with a woman now?”
“Why, does that make you want to get behind her too?”
Bia’s voice stayed calm and steady, yet the tension between the two men crackled like dry grass about to ignite. Her hooves scraped the ground in preparation, ready to charge.
“I’m fine,” I told her.
Bia took one step back at my request. I nodded my thanks and met Orthros’s gaze head-on.
“…A long time, isn’t it?”
The greeting between old comrades sounded far too brutal.
“We don’t need greetings between us. It would only make things awkward.”
“Why not? Want to fight right now?”
Not a wise idea. I still had Bia’s protection. Even if we clashed, she would step in if I ever became truly threatened.
“Don’t worry,” Orthros said, staring at me with an intensity that made my skin crawl. “I’m not here to kill you yet.”
He watched me the way a predator studies its prey.
“Not until the stage is properly set.”
Blood vessels pulsed in his eyes. That stare sent me straight back to the arena the day I took my brother’s head. The same burning intensity, the same cold promise. The rage inside him burned exactly as vivid and unforgiving as it had that day.
“The Emperor is gone,” I pointed out. “Aren’t you able to open the arena now? You know that.”
“...!”
[Those soon to die greet His Majesty the Emperor.]
Of course. The capital’s gladiators had traditionally come here to beg for death, and the Emperor had been their witness.
“That day will come,” Orthros replied. “Our duel isn’t over yet.”
“Empire citizen,” Bia cut in, her voice slicing through the air. “Why can’t you accept defeat?”
He looked like the very definition of an unstable madman. Bia pressed her point.
“Orthros is spewing unreasonable rage,” I thought. Yet when Bia spoke, he answered without hesitation.
“I haven’t lost yet.”
He sounded sincere. I had no reason to doubt him.
“According to the arena’s strict rules, unless it’s a deliberate surrender, the only conditions that decide victory or defeat are the death of one fighter or the total neutralization of the other.”
Her explanation was clear, though she seemed reluctant to say it aloud.
“I’d rather not point this out,” she continued, extending one long finger.
She indicated Orthros’s neck — more precisely, the stump where his brother’s head had been severed.
“I’ve never heard this story in detail, but I understand now. You are true twins. Vesta took away your brother’s head.”
Exactly as she said.
“The rules were followed. One fighter died, so the Emperor should have stopped the fight. Am I wrong?”
“Yes. That was the Emperor’s misjudgment.”
“Misjudgment?”
Orthros’s eyes widened.
“Centaur. To you, what constitutes the death of a human — what marks the end of life?”
“When the heart stops. When the head is severed.”
Orthros did not look convinced.
“Human life and soul are not contained in the head alone.”
“Do you mean to tell me your brother is still alive?”
“Yes. Because…”
He slammed his fist against the center of his chest — the side that held his remaining heart.
His ordinary twin would have had the heart slightly left of center. Not Orthros. His was perfectly positioned on the right.
Of course, if he had been a normal twin, that would have been the case.
“My brother’s heart is still beating.”
“Two hearts…”
“…Orthros. Are you serious?”
Did his head fly off, yet his soul and heart still beat? Was that even possible?
If so, Orthros must be carrying two hearts inside his own body, surviving alone.
“Yes. My brother never fell. His heart never stopped beating!”
Orthros roared and raised his spear. Bia drew her sword, already in a stance ready to strike.
“If you want my heart to stop, I can oblige,” she offered.
“…No need, Bia.”
“He won’t be an easy opponent.”
“People call me ‘the one who ended his brother’s life in the arena.’”
“Then today is not that day.”
As he said, the stage was not yet prepared.
“I’ll have to see for myself how much stronger he’s become. When the time comes, I’ll finish this.”
I had no intention of underestimating the man who once overwhelmed me. In that earlier duel I had been the one pushed back. I was younger and less experienced then. Orthros had always been a formidable gladiator.
If we fought a hundred times, ninety-nine of them would have ended in my death.
I had only won that last one by a single perfect strike.
So there was no room for arrogance.
“Stop being stubborn.”
“Thank you.”
“Insufferable little brat.”
Bia respected my resolve and seemed to guess the Khan’s hidden intent. She understood this was the trial awaiting me, and that the Khan believed I would overcome it.
I was, after all, a warrior of the steppe. Protecting my own life in battle was no virtue.
“If you face any real danger, I’ll step in immediately.”
I believed in Bia. She knew it too, from the steady look in her eyes. I met her gaze without flinching and gave a firm nod.
“Oho.”
“…It’s been a long time since I’ve drawn my weapon before you.”
I drew my sword and reversed its edge, pointing the flat of the blade at Orthros. He did the same, turning his spear to face me with the blunt end.
We each took one step forward.
Orthros’s strength was alien, almost unnatural.
I had to consider the special nature of his body first.
Most conjoined twins shared one heart and one pair of lungs between two upper bodies. That limitation usually prevented them from performing normally.
Orthros was different. He possessed two hearts and had an extra organ that drastically affected his movement ability.
‘He has truly transcended the human category.’
He thrust his spear forward with the force of a seasoned warrior’s strike. The tip might even have been faster than an arrow.
The attack had no visible form at first. I could only perceive its weight and direction.
Clang!
It was not an easy strike to deflect.
‘Fast, heavy, and impossible to ignore.’
And again.
One more time.
The attacks never stopped. They kept coming without end.
This was not normal. A human could not sustain that kind of power for long. He must have been exploiting a momentary gap in my defense.
Orthros’s style was different. He poured every ounce of his strength into every blow because he would never tire.
Two hearts made that possible.
‘His movements feel even more violent than before.’
Perhaps it was the price he paid for losing his brother and claiming all bodily functions for himself.
The relentless spear rain felt like a storm.
‘But with that power came narrowed vision.’
With two heads, Orthros had a far wider field of view than any human. His eyes had always protected him from blind swords or incoming projectiles.
‘That perfect sight has now been taken from me.’
I stepped closer.
I had walked straight into the heart of the storm. Orthros narrowed his eyes.
“So that little brat from back then… it’s really you.”
He roared with laughter and pulled his spear back. I adjusted my breathing, having braced myself for the impact.
“So it seems.”
He tried to close the distance. Bia moved in to intercept. Orthros shrugged and retreated.
“So… I confirmed it. I got the information I needed.”
Who gained more knowledge from this sparring match? The one who believed it was me.
If we ever fought to the death, that knowledge would decide the winner.
“I’ll prepare the stage for you.”
“I’m looking forward to it.”
Would that day truly come?
I had no idea what Orthros was planning. But I still considered myself a gladiator.
I would never have assumed he would be so afraid of me that he trembled.
“Why, are you gathering eight thousand men to come after me?”
The capital’s arena had once been packed with nearly eight thousand spectators.
“You’ll have to do at least that much to bring me back. I’ve been thinking about retirement lately anyway.”
I grinned. “The little brat who used to fear tomorrow’s arrival is nowhere to be found, Orthros.”
“I refuse to run from my fate.”
I declared it aloud.