The roar of the crowd was deafening, even through the sturdy pine doors. It made him nervous. Sed had never liked this part. Once he was in front of them, the crowd's energy became lightning in his veins, but in the moments before, alone with his thoughts in the relative darkness of torchlight, he grew restless. He could vaguely hear a crier, bellowing announcements about who he was to fight, the prize for the day, and the sponsor of today's event; some merchant house that had bought itself a noble title. None of it mattered.

Instead, he focused on the crowd as their impatience grew, and the buzz of a thousand shouted conversations died away as a chant began to take over. "RED! HEAD! SED! RED! HEAD! SED!" Louder and louder, until each word was like a blow on the pine doors leading into the arena, until after an eternity, the doors split apart and sunlight flooded over him. Sed felt warmth rush over him, not just from the sunlight, but from the adoration of the crowd. He knew he was, for this moment, for these people, the absolute focus of attention, and with that knowledge came power.

He pulled the tip of his spear from the floor of the tunnel and jogged out onto the red sand, raising weapon and shield both in a greeting to the crowd. The chant dissolved into roars of excitement, and he smiled, bright and wide, and slowly spun a circle so that every person in the stands could feel as if he was smiling at them. Then he brandished his spear in a high circle before reversing it and driving the point into the sand, silencing the crowd. "TODAY," he bellowed, "I FIGHT FOR YOU!"

He paused and waited for the whispers that swept through the crowd to pass, then continued; "I FIGHT FOR YOUR ENTERTAINMENT, YES. BUT I ALSO FIGHT FOR YOUR RIGHTS!" This was nonsense, but the peasant masses would eat it up, and the sponsor had agreed to the script beforehand. "MY OPPONENT IS A CHAMPION FOR THE SAVAGE TRIBES OF THE EAST, WHO WOULD STRIP YOU OF THE FRUITS OF YOUR LABOR, DRAG YOUR CHILDREN AWAY TO TOIL IN THEIR FIELDS, AND GRIND THE PROUD CITY OF GARATHA INTO DUST, LETTING THE DESERT RECLAIM WHAT YOUR ANCESTORS STROVE TO TAME!" Again, all an act. His opponent today was an old friend. He was of the Tribes' stock, but he was raised in another of the deserts city states. "TODAY, I GIVE YOU A SHOW, JUST AS I SHOW THE SAVAGES THAT THEY CANNOT TAKE WHAT IS OURS!"

He thrust his spear straight upwards, and the crowd erupted into wild cheers. He focused on the figure across the sand and allowed himself a sigh and a mumbled "same job, different speech," before he and his opponent began sprinting toward one another. His 'enemy' for today was an orgeri. He'd never asked if the man's mother or father had been an orc of the tribes, but he supposed it really didn't matter all that much. Chai'uz was nearly 7 feet tall and close to half that width at the shoulder. He wore no armor, opting instead for the dark linen garb of the desert tribes, with a fierce looking bone headdress and a curved, single edged sword as tall as Sed.

As they entered one another's reach, Sed slid underneath a predictable overhand swing from the half-orc man and sliced across his hip with the tip of his spear. In a real fight, an opening like that one might have ended it, but this was about as far from a real fight as it got; just a spectacle. The crowd wanted to see them fight for a few minutes, than watch as Sed stood victorious over his bloody, defeated opponent. A bit of sleight of hand would see him 'executed' by the will of the sponsor, then he'd be carted off into the tunnel and a healer would patch him up. The adoration of the crowd was glorious, but the fights themselves always felt hollow now.

****

The fight had gone more or less to plan. Sed had taken a couple of good hits to his armor, 'lost' his shield at some point, then taken Chai'uz down with a stab to the thigh followed by a strike with his spear haft to the orgeri's temple. That strike had been a bit too hard, and while he'd hauled his opponent to his knees before the sponsor's dais, he'd subtly let trickles of healing magic seap from his fingertips and into the other man, soothing the concussion that he'd likely inflicted. The sponsor had been thrilled by the showmanship, and given them a nice bonus: a king's ransom worth of wine from some far off place, Xhunkai or some such. A waste honestly. Both of them would rather have had it in coin.

Sed and Chai'uz were wanderers. They were both gladiators of high skill, but only Sed had really made a name for himself. They'd gotten into it when they were both a little younger, both a little foolish, and both seeking glory. These days, Chai'uz was just in it for the coin, and Sed was losing faith in the gilded glory of the arena. "Chai," he said softly, "should we retire from the arenas?"

A short, huffing snort was the forthcoming answer, and for a moment Sed thought that was his friend had to say. Then Chai spoke with his soft, deep rumble; "What are we going to do if we retire Sed? The coin is good, and you've spent ten years chasing this dream of glory you've found. You heard them today. They love you." A pause, and then he continued, "Besides, fighting is all you know how to do."

Sed retorted, "There are other places to fight. Other things to fight for, too. Things that actually matter."

The half-orc sat straighter; "You can't be talking about soldiery, since it doesn't pay enough and there's no glory to be had in it. Are you suggesting we go adventuring? Defending the weak, rescuing damsels, recovering the treasures of the Ancients? Gorlahn's beard, Ss'edrak, I have a family to feed. And go home to!"

With a sigh, Sed settled back in his chair. "I know, I know. No need to use my full name over it. How is Liandre, by the way? Saw a courier bring you a letter."

Smiling, Chai'uz began reading the letter from his wife aloud, sharing details about their two children, the neighborhood scandals, and her slowly advancing pregnancy. All the while, Sed's thoughts drifted. He was happy for his friend and the domesticity that he'd found. He didn't want to drag Chai into danger and away from the simple life that was bringing such joy. Even so, he felt a quiet desperate need growing in him. A need to escape routine and script. A need for something... new.

****

Dawn saw Sed and Chai leaving Garatha and heading west, back toward their hometown. Liandre and their children were waiting for Chai'uz, but Sed had no family to go back to. He had no siblings, he'd never taken a wife, or a husband for that matter, and his mother had died when he was quite young, perhaps six or seven. As they rode, he thought of her. She had been, as he was, serpent-touched. Her heritage had shown itself in reptilian eyes and scales on her wrists and ankles. Her skin, he recalled, had been smooth, dry, and cool to the touch, even in the heat of the desert summers. With her more obvious bloodline, she'd been something of an outcast in the city of humans, elves, and alferi (those with both human and elf heritage, of any blend). Sed was lucky enough that his heritage showed only as a ridge of scales along his spine, easily hidden by clothing and his distinctive coppery hair. Once his mother had passed, he'd made his way to an orphanage of sorts run by the local church of Gorlahn.

The orphanage was where he first met Chai'uz. Even then, at nine years old, the orcish heritage had made Chai tall, though it had not yet given him the broad shoulders and dense muscles he carried as an adult. Standing so tall, it was difficult for the orgeri boy to avoid the attention of those looking for an outsider to take out their rage on. One pair of boys in particular had been relentless in their persecution of Chai, because their parents had been caravan guards, killed by orc raiders. Sed had told them to leave the orgeri alone, and gotten quite a few bruises for his trouble, but the next time they had started making trouble, Sed had used a bit of magic his mother had shown him, and the boys had both been left retching and coughing. It was an unpleasant thing to watch, and so Sed rarely used the toxic magic of his ancestors after that. The two boys, and everyone else at the orphanage, had left Chai'uz and Sed alone after that. In the solitude, a friendship grew.

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Both boys grew strong and had a knack for finding fights, so they'd been selected to train as Staves of Gorlahn, itinerant priests of the dragon god of the oppressed. Staves wandered the countryside, offering healing and aid where needed, stopping the unrighteous when encountered, and seeking vengeance when they were too late in their other callings. It was a thorough education, teaching them not just martial pursuits and scripture, but also to read and write both the common tongue and the language of dragons; speak it too, though Chai never quite mastered the sibilant utterances of the dragon tongue. But Staves work tirelessly for little and less, and both boys had dreams of riches and wonder. When they were of age to choose their path, they sought the red sands of the arena and had never looked back.

Sed shook himself from his memories as he heard a gentle thrum from his shield. It had been a prize won several years ago in a tournament in one of the larger cities on the coast, and it warned him when danger was near. He reached his arm through the straps, and a quick gesture to Chai put the orgeri on alert as well. Not a moment later, a half dozen shapes emerged from the sand all around them, long tails glistening with poison and claws snapping menacingly.

"I told you there were other places to fight, Chai," Sed gritted out.

"And these kinds of odds are exactly why I don't want to adventure," came back the terse reply. "Should we try and run?"

"You know those stingers will make quick work of the horses, and these things tend to be faster than they look." As if to illustrate Sed's point, a scorpion darted in and tried to sting his horse. He was quick enough to interpose his shield, but if more than one came at once, he'd be hard pressed to do anything about it. "I think we have to fight. Can you take the three on the right?"

A grunt from Chai, followed by, "Do I have a choice?" and the two of them leapt into motion.

****

The fight had been a quick, savage affair with none of the posturing or showmanship one found in the arena.

Chai had been quick to go on the offensive, rolling sideways from the saddle to build momentum, then making brutal, continuous swings with his oversized sword. His first three strikes had badly mangled the first scorpion, crushing one claw, severing the other, and cracking through the exoskeleton where its tail met its body. The tail went limp, and Chai turned to find another target. Sed took it on himself to distract the others. He leapt from his horse and struck to his left and right as he ran between two scorpions. His first strike pierced chitin, but the second was rebuffed by a claw. Both foes turned to face him. He let out a wordless cry of challenge, and a third scorpion focused in on him. Good, thought Sed, I have the attention of my three.

That turned out to be a tricky thing to manage, as all three began to attack him furiously. His armor held against the snapping claws, though he knew bruises would form where one caught him around his greave and squeezed. He managed to intercept the stinging tails of first one and then another, but the third slid by his guard and punched into his side, driving the metal of his armor into the injury even as it injected venom. Grunting, then screaming in pain as he felt the burn of the venom take hold, he twisted to drive his spear into the open maw of the offending scorpion. He thrust once, then pulled back and thrust again, his spear seeming to burst with light as it caught the sun before driving deep into his foe, and the scorpion sagged.

A bellow from the far side of the horses made his breath catch with worry for Chai, but he knew that to lose focus in a fight like this could mean losing a limb or his life. One of the remaining scorpions took his thrusting arm as an invitation and caught him at the elbow with its claw. A terrible popping noise told him the arm would need healing before it would work normally again. He bashed with his shield, hoping for the beast to release his spear arm to defend itself. His first blow was weak enough Chai's oldest daughter would have laughed it off, and with a roar Sed tried once more, catching the beast in one of its many eyes. It released his arm and scuttled back slightly, letting Sed get both his opponents in his sight once more. He could see a dark ichor leaking from a ruined eye on that scorpion, but its sibling remained untouched.

The two charged in unison, claws snapping and tails whipping forward, seeking weak points to drive more poison into his body. He danced out of their grasp, then blocked a stinger each with shield and spear, though the combined onslaught left him no room for a counterattack. Defending patiently, he backed away, making sure the foes could not encircle him again. One of the scorpions overextended and Sed took the opening to drive his spear into the already ruined eye, hoping to pierce the bug's brain. With another flash of reflected sun and a spray of ichor, he found himself facing a single opponent, but once again, he was left exposed. He felt the stinger slide into the gap under his arm before he could recover from his spear thrust, once again drawing a pained cry. As he staggered, trying to pull away, he felt a claw close around his ankle, leaving him off-balance. He fell heavily to the sand, his foot still trapped.

A strength born of desperation seized him, and he scrabbled at the haft of his spear before stabbing it into the monster's maw. He felt a rush of power pass through him and down his spear, and it thrust triumphantly through the top of his foe's head. The claw grasping his ankle went limp, and so too did he. As he felt his conciousness slipping away, he swore he heard a voice carried on the desert wind say, "true glory must be hard won," and then he felt darkness claim him.

****

Sed lay in the sand, panting, while his horse licked the sweat from his brow. Chai gave a groan from nearby, the sort of sound that expresses a mountain of discontent with no actual danger behind it.

"See," Sed asked with a chuckle. "That was a great fight."

"Speak for yourself," grumbled his friend, "I have sand in ALL my crevices."

"We live in a desert, we always have sand somewhere," was Sed's philosophical response. The orgeri simply gave another long winded groan.

Suddenly remembering that his friend was not, as he was, serpent-touched, Sed called "Did you get stung?"

"Just once, and I had an anti-venom. I used it after I finished chopping them all up. You?"

"Twice, but their venom isn't too bad considering who my mother was."

"Right," Chai grunted. "Makes sense. All you creepy crawlies deserve each other. You had enough of a breather?"

"Sure," replied Sed. Let's get back to riding before my horse finishes flaying my face for the salt." Sed stood, and saw that Chai had made a sledge to drag behind his mount, and had indeed chopped the scorpions up, carefully stacking them and securing them. Raising an eyebrow at his friend, Sed inquired, "Scorpion stew?"

With a snort, Chai mounted his horse. "Don't be an idiot. They taste worse than rat. But the chitin is good for making armor and the brains and eyes have use in potions." He gestured at the sledge, "This lot might be worth as much as the fight in the arena was, if we negotiate it well."

Swinging into his own saddle, Sed grinned. "Does that mean you'll think about adventuring? Sounds like the price is right..."

Chai turned back to him with squinted eyes. "I'll talk to Liandre. If she doesn't skin us both as soon as I mention it, maybe we can give it a try. Gorlahn knows I won't make half the coin in prize fights without you driving the fans in. Now shut up about it. I worked while you napped. Now you get to keep us on the road while I close my eyes." The orgeri turned and then muttered, "better not wake me up until we're at least halfway home, or I'll show you just how easy I've been going in the arena."

A wide smile on his face, Sed grabbed his friend's reins. "Sure, sure. Maybe I should bring it up. Liandre always liked me better anyway you know, so--" He didn't get to finish the thought, because Chai shoved him off his horse. But then the half-orc stopped and waited for him to dust himself off and remount. "Fine. I'll let you do it. And if she says no, I'll start trying to get you top billing, see if we can't get you a little more following before I leave the arena for good." They rode in silence a while before Sed whispered, "You're a good friend." If Chai heard him, he gave no sign, and they continued on their way.