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Rebellis Ludus 2

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Aurelius laid on his back, the ground still spinning beneath him even as he stared up at the mostly cloudless sky. He was exhausted, and everything hurt. He'd been at the Purpura Rosa estate for more than a week and it was just over two days before he started antsy. His Dominus bade him find his own way and find something the occupy his time; Aurelius knew fighting, and so he elected to remain a gladiator. So it was that he'd begun his training and, despite receiving far better care within Cassius' ownership than ever before, the man selected to train him was far better too... and far more demanding.

Several feet away the Lion knew that his lanista stood judging him. When the Tiger finally spoke, the words reinforced that impression. "Have you decided to nap, Aurelius? I had thought you wanted to be a gladiator for our Patronus!"

Growling, Aurelius rolled over, stiffling a groan as he got back to his feet. He took in a deep breath, then let it out in a huff before looking around for his training gladius; it had left his paw after he'd been thrown. Finally locating it, the Lion picked it up off of the sandy floor of the training area. "I hope I am still as active as you are when I reach your age... old man."

Quintus, Aurelius learned early on, was the lanista for Cassius' ludus, or as close to one as the human seemed interested in using. The Tiger was a chisled work of art athletically speaking, built like a statue and still in excellent shape despite having likely well over five decades to his name. As far as a slave was considered he was ancient, and yet he had handed the Lion's tail to him during training since the beginning.

Waiting for Aurelius to take a battle stance again, the Tiger waited until the Lion was set before responding. "If you plan to serve the Patronus as a gladiator you will not live long enough to reach my age, novitius."

The Lion hated that Quintus referred to him as a novitius; Arelius had been fighting for years, and yet, compared to the Tiger he easily could have been. Grunting, he smacked the manica on his left forearm with his training gladius. "Ready when you are."

Less than ten seconds later, Aurelius was on his back again, Quintus standing over him with the Lion's gladius in one paw, the other held out to help him up. "Not that ready, apparently, Aurelius."

No longer bothering to stifle his groan, Aurelius accepted the help and was hauled to his feet. He accepted the gladius back from his instructor. "My old Dominus always said that any man with a weapon could destory another who had none..."

Quintus let out a huff of disdain. "Then your old Dominus was a fool. I spent over ten years as a Cestus and one thing I learned is that weapons can lead to victory, yes, but they just as often lead to overconfidence."

Reaching up with his unoccupied paw to wipe at a line of blood that was leaking from his nose, Aurelius adjusted his stance, sinking into a ready position. "Again?"

The Tiger waved him away. "No... I am done for the day, which means you are done for the day, novitius."

The Lion growled. "When will you stop calling me that?"

Quintus offered a flippant reply "When you stop acting like one."

Letting out a huff, Aurelius was half-tempted to strike at his instructor with his practice gladius, but, despite being told he was free, the Lion was still too familiar what happened to slaves who acted out. Lowering his wooden blade, he moved closer to the Tiger. "You really spent ten years as a Cestus?"

Quintus offered a succinct nod. "Yes... and much time practicing pancratium. Although I've trained with many weapons over the years, my base skills were learned while I was trained to fight unarmed."

Aurelius offerd a scornful 'ha'. "Maybe I'd have more luck fighting you with a gladius in your paw."

The Tiger grunted. "I promised the Patronus that I would not harm you significantly-- no... no gladius for me."

The Lion scowled. "A tridens then... I always faired well against the retiarii."

Quintus shook his head. "No... definitely not. Three of my kills in the arena were when I was armed with a fuscina."

While it sounded like posturing, Aurelius, having been constantly bested by the tiger for over a week, was willing to believe it. "It sounds as though you spent a lot of time as a gladiator. How did you come to be owned by the Purpusa Rosa?"

Very little seemed to agitate the Tiger, but something about what he'd said caused Quintus' fur to stand on end, and he actually let out a hissing growl before responding "The Patronus would be angry if he heard you suggest he 'owned' any of us."

Aurelius wasn't about to double-down on his statement, but he also wasn't going to surrender the thought that they were hardly free men or citizens. "How long have you been living here on the estate?"

The changed question seemed to pacify the Tiger. He moved to doff his leather training armor, returning it to the storage shed beside the practice circle. "I was the fifth slave purchased by the Patronus. He was..." Quintus paused, considering for a moment. "Thirteen at the time... so... one decade."

The Lion grunted, loosening up his own armor. "So you were already old when he purchased you then?"

He hadn't meant it as an insult and Quintus seemed to relize that. "His father insisted that Cassius have slaves of his own-- he was shown out to purchase two when he was twelve, then purchased four more when he was thirteen; I was the third of those four, and have served him faithfully since."

Arurelius handed his armor to the Tiger, who stowed it, then did the same when the Lion offered his wooden gladius. The Purpura Rosa clan were known as avid purchasers of slaves so having their son learn about the process made sense, but that many slaves for a young man. "Why so many?"

Quintus closed the shed and turned to regard the Lion. "The Patronus declared on his 12th birthday that he did not wish to be a slave owner. His father took offense and spent the next two years instructing him on how to be a slave owner, including causing the death of several in his employ whenever the young master acted out or objected. Of his original six, only two of us remain."

Aurelius shook his head, cursing "Mars' balls..."

The Tiger grunted in affirmation. "Eventually, his father sent him away because of the possibilities his outlook could cause problems for the image of the family. I was to remain his bodyguard during his relegatio, and he only returned here to the estate last year, several months before the last of his family went to Pluto's realm."

The Lion considered that a moment, following after Quintus as the Tiger started walking back to the villa. "And the Dominus still maintains his ludus? For as much as he dislikes the idea of slaves, he still supports the gladiator fights?"

Quintus grunted. "Free men can be gladiators and, besides, yes-- everyone has a part to play in this estate and the Familia Rosae Purpureae has always been one that has gained its notoriety in the arena. In order to keep the family name strong many of us choose to fight in the Patronus' ludus... but only those who will win are usually allowed in the arena."

It was an off-hand insult, that much Aurelius knew but, at the same time, he couldn't completely object... not until he defeated the Tiger during training, at least. Still, that made him think. "Even with the Dominus', ah, 'lenior manus'?"

The Tiger paused, turning to regard him. "The Patronus can have a 'gentle hand' because he has me, novitius. I am his claws, and I am responsible for ensuring that his ludus continues to win 19 out of every 20 matches."

Aurelius inhaled at that; the first thought in his mind was that the Tiger was just throwing numbers out there. The Lion had learned to count out of necessity when doing drills, and winning almost every match was almost unheared of. "This ludus really wins that many of the matches?"

Quintus offered a succinct nod in response. "Yes. As Is aid, nobody enters the arena without my approval-- this was decreed by the Patronus himself."

Something about the statement both rubbed the Lion the wrong way, but also spurred him on. "I've been here for some time, but I haven't heard of even one match being held. How often does the--"

The Tiger's paw reached out to smack him on the back of his head. "Just because YOU don't know about it doesn't mean it doesn't happen, novitius. The last match we took part in was this very morning."

That made no sense to the Lion; every other ludus he'd been a part of made a huge deal about each and every match. Judging from Quintus' expression though, Aurelus had a feeling that it was yet another thing his new household did differently. "And... the ludus won?"

Quintus nodded a single time. "Of course. Cacumen... one one of our newest gladiators other than yourself. He is currently the only fighting Cestus we have."

The two of them ascended the steps, taking the side entrance into the villa as they discussed the finer points of combat, first for a Cestus, then a Dimacharus, then a Secutor-- they had just started comparing close combat to something ranged like a saggitarius when a Cheetah approached, calling out to Quintus. "Doctore! Accipiter is looking for you."

The Tiger turned to regard the thin feline, reaching out to rest a paw on the Cheetah's shoulder. "Very well, Celeri. Let him know I will meet him by the horreum."

The Cheetah offered a quick nod then, about facing, took off like a shot down the hall. Aurelus paused a moment until he reviewed the discussion. "He called you Doctore? Did you train him too? The Cheetah?"

Quintus nodded. "Celeri spent some time as a saggiarius in the pit until he decided to follow after Accipiter to serve as a hunter.... and, yes, before you ask, I trained them both. I've trained every one of the Patronus' gladiators."

The Lion grunted. "I still haven't met any of them."

The Tiger nodded calmly. "You will, eventually... but you are still new here, novitus. When I deem the time is right you will likely spar against most of them. Comraderie is important to the Patronus and, as such, it is important to me."

Aurelius stood in the hallway facing Quintus, shifting his weight from foot to foot. "When will I--?"

The Tiger held up a paw to forestall him. "I will leave you here, Aurelius. I have training coming up with Nero, but, first, I need to check in on Accipiter."

That disclosure made the Lion pause. "You are training Nero? In what? I had thought the Goat was learning how to be a vilicus from his father."

A faint smirk quirked the lip on one corner of Quintus' muzzle. "There is value in knowing how to fight, even when you are hoping to never have to. Cura ut valeas, Aurelius."

Knowing that the Tiger was done with him for the day, Aurelius offered a nod. "Yeah... vale, Quintus."

With Quintus off to attend other matters, Aurelius found himself once more under his own care, left to figure out how to spend the remainder of his day. Back when he'd been owned by different Domini he rarely had a spare moment to rest but, ever since being purchased by Cassius, the Lion often found himself with nothig to do. The morning training had been a great way to find structure but when that came to an end he was again left with a question of what to do. <<>>

Reaching a paw up beneath his arm, the Lion ran his fingers through the thicker fur there, feeling the slickness of sweat from a morning of training; he didn't need to bother bringing his digits up to his nose to tell that he was likely well-scented. With that on his mind, Aurelius had concluded that the next way to fill some time in his day would be to visit the balneum. He'd spent more than two decades without the option of bathing, which, considering his new Dominus provided use of it for those in service to his household, the Lion figured that he would take advantage of that opportunity.

It was still a new and novel experience for him; the first time was in the company of Cassius, but Aurelius learned quickly that he was not required to be accompanied by his Dominus to use the facilities. There was something wonderful about the ability to bathe and to be clean whenever he wanted-- doubly so because the water was warm. A smile on his muzzle, the Lion winced as he went to doff his padded subarmalis, but raising his arms over his shoulders made him realize just how good the warm water would feel on his aching muscles.

Rolling the cloth up to carry beneath his arm, he turned the hall leading to the balneum and approached the doors with anticipation, but fronze when he heard voices. The balneum, to Aurelius' knowledge was usually empty in the early afternoon with most of the household preferring to use it in the morning and the evening but, much to his surprise, it sounded as though it was occupied. Even though he'd been present as a member of the Purpusa Rosa household, the Lion still hadn't met a majority of their number.

Moving to the door, Aurelius definitely heard two voices; one, he didn't recognize-- the other was unmistakably Cassius. Having been so busy with getting used to his new ludus, the Lion hadn't encountered his Dominus since the first day they bathed together; it was an awkward experience for Aurelius, but Cassius had left an unmistkable impression on him and, until that moment he didn't realize just how much he wanted to interact more with him... even hearing his Dominus' voice somehow made a tingle run up the Lion's spine.

He was just about to welcome himself into the room when his movement was halted by a grunt, followed by the second voice speaking in such a lascivious tone that it almost sounded as if the words were coming from Cupid himself. "Was my victory to your liking, Domine?"

The response, breathy and expectant, was none other than Cassius'. "You have yet to... let me down... and I am... grateful... for that... Cacumen."

Breath hitched in his throat, Aurelius peered through the crack in the balnaeum doors and the very air was pulled from his lungs when he took in the sight. Resting against the edge of the baths was Cassius, crossed arms cradling his chin while an athletically built Buck was holding him from behind, one arm on the Human's shoulder, the other gripping his hip beneath the water, which was turbulent around their bodies due to the Buck's vigorous thrusting. The Lion was struck dumb as he stared at the scene.

Aurelius' eyes were plastered to the perfect, blemish-free pale skin of the Human, jaw quivering as he took in the sight of that flawless body and the way it moved beneath the ministrations of the Buck rutting him from behind. Cacumen was the name of the gladiator who had won a match fo the ludus that morning, and, apparently, that gladiator was-- what? Being rewarded? The Lion felt his muzzle go dry as he watched their bodies move together within the bath, fur-on-flesh and Buck buried within Human.

The Buck was well-built and, like any slave, had numerous scars across his fur. One of the gladiator's antlers were tangled in green and, from the plants bloomed a single purple flower. Aurelius, unable to take his eyes away from the scene, watched as, without missing a thrust, the Buck reached up and plucked the flower, reaching down to slip it into Cassius' hair. "You are a beautiful creature, Erus... were than I had the skills to carve you out of marble, but no simple rock could do you justice."

It was not the only praise the Buck offered while defiling the pristine perfection of Cassius' body and Aurelius felt his extended claws sinking into the padding of his subarmalis. While his Dominus didn't seem to object to the treatment and, were the Lion being truthful to himself, seemed to actively enjoy it, Aurelius found himself agitated by what he saw. Slaves did not mount their masters; the Ferae Spatiantes were slaves, not lovers, and, in the off-chance a Human wanted such a thing from their slaves, they were never the ones who-- Aurelius stiffled a growl, gritting his teeth when he realized that one of his paws had slid beneath his subligaculum, touching his firm sheath and the flesh that had escaped it. Seemingly into the opposition of his logical mind, his body could not deny what it was seeing.

The Buck continued to murmur honeyed words into Cassius' ears, treating the Human as if he were a close lover rather than his Dominus, and it drove Aurelius wild. He tried to convince himself that the affront to rightful place was the issue but, as his paw began to move more vigorously over his own erection, the Lion was unable to keep up the pretense or deny it any longer: since their first time in the balnaeum... ever since he was given his new name... ever since he felt his Dominus' gentle touch, Aurelius wanted him. He wanted Cassius in the way that Cacumen was able to have him... and he hated it.

Aurelius knew better. Almost every instinct in his body told him it was foolish, but the single instinct that said to take what he wanted and make it his was shouting so loudly that the Lion could barely concentrate. His loincloth fell to the ground as he began pumping his paw even faster-- harder-- mercilessly insisting that, if he were giving into his body then he would punish it at the same time; he tightened his grip, ensurin that he would hurt even as he satisfied himself.

Even as he worked himself into a frenzy, paw moving faster than when he was in combat, Aurelius began to think it wasn't enough; he'd been touched by Cassius, but not in the way that Cacumen was... the Buck was touching him-- inside him. The Lion could practically imagine his own paw being the tight insides of his Dominum but every time his mind began to wander in that direction he disciplined himself, squeezing harder and disrupting the stimulation. Still, despite that, he maintained his position by the door, eyes unable to leave the sight of his Dominus being rutted with such obvious enjoyment... for both of them.

The realization that Cassius was enjoying himelf sent a shiver up Aurelius' spine and he felt the fur across his back stand on end; the sensation of his paw on his member quickly overwhelmed him and, despite the fury with which he castigated his offending phallus, he could not outweigh the lurid enjoyment of the stimulation and he knew that, coupled with the sight and sounds of the Buck breeding their Master a scant 20 cubits from him was too much, and the Lion had to bite down on his own subarmalis, stuffed hastily into his muzzle to keep from roaring as he loosed himself all over his loincloth, which had also been positioned at the last moment to capture all of his liquid shame.

Whether despite or because of the pain he'd inflicted on himself for daring to watch such an affront, Aurelius' release was the most bone-shaking, toe-curling, knuckle-whitening one of his life as his body was completely overwhelmed by his exposure to what was transpiring in the balneum, and, as he heard Cassius cry out in his own muffled elation, the Lion found himself angry beyond all belief that it wasn't his own touch that had brought the Human to such heights of passion. He winced a moment later when he heard the not-so-muted bugle of a satisfied Buck, and he shuddered as he imagined the Cestus' fluids painting the insides of his Dominus.

He growled to himself under his breath. "Me potius oportuit..."

Even as he sat on his bare rump outside the balneum, lost in a mix of satisfaction and self-reproach, the Lion heard the discussion of his Dominus and the Buck start anew and, judging from the sounds of water, they were exiting the baths. He cleaned up as quickly as possible and, having no way to address his sticky subligaculum, he decided to bare the shame of putting it back on, seed-drenched inside sticking to his fur; the Lion would clean up later but, in that moment, he didn't have much time.

That time, in fact, was at an end shortly after he managed to tie it off. Sliding his rolled up subarmalis under an arm, he stepped to the side as the balneum doors opened. He stood at attention. "Salve, Domine!"

Cassius turned to regard Aurelius, a half-smile still on his face, likely from something Cacumen had just said-- the Lion pushed the thought down; it wasn't wise to be jealous when facing his Dominus. The Human ultimately inclined his head. "Aurelius, bona dies. It is good to see you... I trust you are becoming more accustomed to the estate?"

The Lion lowered his head. "I am. Thank you, Domine."

The Buck beside Cassius cleared his throat. "Is this the newest gladiator, Dominulus?"

The fact that Cacumen would use such a term of endearment for their Dominus started Aurelius' blood boiling, but he resolved to keep his composure; he'd just met the Buck formally, but already came to the conclusion that he would very much like to beat him into pulp. Cassuis, seemingly oblivious to the unannounced rivalry, reached up to pull the purple flower out of his hair-- the very one that Cucumen had put in it while they had been 'in the act'. Smiling, the Human stepped up and, raising his hand, slid it into Aurelius' mane. "Yes, Cucumen... this is Aurelius. I freed him from a ludus putidus in town."

Cacumen's voice was entirely honey as he addressed their Dominus, but his eyes were hostile, staring right at Aurelius while Cassius was facing away. "Of course, Dominulus... you are always so benevolent... helping the helpless and giving hope to the hopeless."

Cassius stepped away, leaving the flower in Aurelius' mane. "I hope you have given some thought to what we discussed when you first arrived, Aurelius."

The Lion nodded. "I have, Domine, and I have joined your Ludus. Quintus has been training me since I made that choice."

Cacumen, still staring at Aurelius, twitched his nose; the Lion realized that the Buck could smell semen on him and, based on the way that the Cestus' eyes were glancing between him and Cassius, there was little doubt that his fellow gladiator had a hint of what might have happened. "Well, if that's the case, I may have to come watch YOU work some day while you're engaged..."

Aurelius knew in that moment that the Buck definitely knew. Offering his most neutral smile, the Lion shot back. "I look forward to sparring with you when Quintus--"

The Buck interrupted him. "Then I look forward to showing you the ropes."

Smiling, and apparently oblivious to the posturing taking place between his gladiators, Cassius reached up and gave Aurelius a pat on his shoulder. "It is good to see you again, Aurelius. I look forward to you finding your place in this household."

Cacumen followed right after the Dominus, offering a casual laugh... and a very pointed stare at Aurelius while addressing the Human. "Anywhere but above you, Dominulus... I'm certain you would never allow something like that." It was followed up with a wink at the Lion, and then, they were gone, heading off down the hall, leaving Aurelius outside the balneum, alone, with semen still drying beneath his loincloth against his fur. Groaning, he headed in toward the bath, issuing a single, simple curse. "Pestis!"