Chapter 6: War, Death and old Friends

I was reborn into a hate-driven, power-hungry, lost world, I no longer recognized. I was a Greek sailor in this life, in the great Greek naval fleet. We were at deadly war with the Persians. The Persians were great descendants of the few who had stayed behind in Mesopotamia, they created the city of Babylon, which would later be known as the Persian empire.

I stood on my boat in the middle of the battle as men all around me were screaming in agony, it echoed throughout the seas; our boat rammed a Persian vessel. The Persians poured over into our boat. I pulled my sword out and began to fight. Slaying one after another, the Persians were great warriors, and we were highly outnumbered. Just when we thought we killed them all, another boat rammed us from behind and more Persians poured in. I fought, and fought, as our boat began to sink. I fought as long as I could. Eventually, I was stabbed right through the back. I watched the blood pour from my chest; slowly dripping from the point of the enemy's sword bulging from my chest. They threw my body overboard as I struggled to breathe, the blood began flooding my lungs. In the ocean my armor weighed me down; I began to sink, watching the fiery blazes of the war consume the surface of the ocean. I could see the boats sinking around me, dead Persian, and Greek men, all floating down into the depths of their deaths. Death was always painful no matter the cause. Death with no meaning...hurt the most.

I was reborn again, in the period of great Rome, another life plagued with war and death. It all became so normal for me now. I fought against Rome in a great battle. Ultimately, my armies were defeated, and I was taken as a prisoner of war. I was sold off to a gladiator trader and was forced to fight in the arena for the roman's entertainment. We were trained vigorously every day, whipped, and beaten, if we could not live up to expectations. I was forced to fight in many battles. My first was against three lions; they were very hungry. I'll never forget that first battle. As the first lion charged at me, I charged back. It leaped into the air to pounce on me. Just as it came down, I slid underneath it, gutting its belly open. I leaped up quickly off the ground, spinning around as the second one started swatting its giant paw at me, barely dodging it. I raised my sword and sliced down upon the beast, halfway cutting its head off. The third took its time, it was cautious, pacing in circles around me. We walked in circles until it decided to finally come at me. It got close, I prepared myself and stood my ground, it stood up on both back legs swatting both front paws at my face. I rolled to the left and jumped up just before it lunged at me again. I spun around, quickly dodging its paws. I shoved my sword right into its side; deep into its heart, instantly killing it. The crowd roared, shouting my name.

Crixus, Crixus, Crixus.

They loved me.

I was well taken care of, the best a warrior slave could be anyway. I fought many times again after that, almost always outnumbered, I was undefeated. I killed four gladiators without even being scratched once. I often felt remorse for having to commit such atrocities. Most of these men were criminals and deserved such a fate. The ones that didn't, the ones who were only prisoners for the satisfaction of Rome. I put them down, peacefully, their deaths were quick and painless. I delivered them from this terrible life and sent them off to the next. Hopefully far away in the stars where things might be better. Life on earth was hell, I wouldn't wish this on any soul. I was getting close to earning my freedom, until one day, I finally met my match.

A new gladiator trained in the same house as my own, quickly becoming a rising star in the colosseum, Spartacus was his name. A very skilled warrior, and much like myself, he was one of those who did not deserve this fate. I kept my distance from him, knowing one day I would have to end his life at the end of my blade. The day finally came, we were matched to fight. I stood in the arena, the grounds shaking from the outpour of excitement; the fans in the stands were going nuts, hungry for blood. I chose a sword and shield for this battle. Spartacus was a great warrior, he carried two large swords into battle.

The battle began, each one of us exchanged blow for blow, block for block. We battled for what seemed like forever, both evenly matched, my chest was all torn from the cuts of his blades, flesh hanging from the lacerations. In the decisive moments of the battle, we were locked by our swords. He was relentless, with each strike quickly followed by another. He laughed and grinned through it all. In the end, he managed to overcome my strength, a quick blow to my face, I deflected it with my shield; too slow, he followed up with his second sword, striking my leg. I fell on one knee. Raising my shield for cover as he bashed against it, over, and over. Eventually, knocking it from my hand. I raised my sword in defense, he hit it so hard, with both of his swords, it flew from my hand. I had no time to react before his swords were at my throat. He stopped with the tip of his blades barely pressed against the sides of my neck, the crowd was ecstatic. I welcomed my death, he looked to the stands, where the emperor sat, awaiting his decision. To my surprise, they did not order him to kill me. I was spared and allowed to live.

After the battle, Spartacus and I were tended to, our wounds mended and cleaned. We were left to rest and heal overnight in a dark room lit only by a burning light on the wall.

When night came, Spartacus and I were finally alone for the first time. It was the first time we had ever had a true conversation.

"You are a brave warrior; you fight as if all you have ever known is war," Spartacus said to me

"War is all I've ever known," I replied

"Tell me Crixus, how many battles have you seen."

I explained this lifetime of mine to him before I was a gladiator; he explained his. we talked for a long time. Spartacus was a good man. Betrayed by his own country. A loyal man whose family was murdered, and he blamed for it. He was forced into slavery after devastatingly slaughtering all the Romans who killed his family. He was put against an entire battalion; it was said he almost killed them all. The Romans tortured him after his capture, they made an example of him by forcing him to fight in the colosseum. His story was tragic, and I was honored to of been beaten by such a great warrior.

"Tell me Crixus, who trained you how to fight? I've never seen any warrior fight as well as you, certainly not just a simple soldier."

He asked me suspiciously.

"I received training in my garrison," I told him

He scoffed

"No simple training could teach a man to fight the way you do. You have no fear of death, I could see it in your eyes, a dangerous look. I've seen that look before, long ago."

"What are you getting at Spartacus," I asked him

He smiled

"Tis only a question, in fact, I would bet my life it would take any man, many lifetimes to fight as well as you."

"Yes, Spartacus, I'm a spawn of the great gods of rome then. You got me." I said jokingly

He laughed at it a bit and spoke.

"Well, if this be true, you shall make one pathetic god someday."

We both laughed a bit before our injuries hurt more.

"You certainly have secrets you refuse to share." He exclaimed,

"I was like a god in another life you know, a great king. Crixus, I believe you too may have lived a similar life once. A great queen mother. Perhaps, a great warrior, or protector, tell me, am I wrong? " Spartacus said

I did not reply to him, could he be implying he knew me from long ago.

Then it all began to be clear to me, his moves, and the way he defended against me in battle. That form reminded me of him, the great Osiris. Was he a Starseed?

"Osiris?" I asked with hope

Bursting in laughter,

" I thought it might be you, young one," he said with a huge smile across his face.

"My lord!"

I began to try and stand from my bed to bow before my king.

He stopped me

"No, no, you lie there and rest now child, I am no lord here just a simple man, as you," he said as he stood before me now, he laid me back down. He grabbed a wet cloth and began to clean my wounds that opened again.

"You almost killed me you know," I said frustrated.

"I know, I'm sorry, had they ordered your death, I would have laid down my life," Spartacus said.

"Tell me, Spartacus, how many lives have you lived before this one," I asked him

Spartacus stayed silent as he finished redressing my wound, then he began to tell me the story of his awakening

"All I've ever known is war, I came from a planet in the Lyran constellation. Our race was highly advanced and had colonized most of the many other solar systems around us. We eventually colonized a planet that was wiped out by another race from the Orion constellation. They claimed the planet to be their own, they ordered our kind to leave. Before they had a chance to comply, they attacked my people on that planet. My people sought revenge after this. This spiraled into a never-ending intergalactic war."

I knew of this war, I also lived through this war. I was shocked when I learned we had met before. I did not tell him this. I allowed him to continue telling me of all that he had lived through.

He chuckled a bit and spoke.

"Believe it or not young one, I was a great and honorable man in that life. I fought many battles for my race and was never defeated. I eventually retired as a proud admiral; the war raged on without me. It hurt me to know that the war may never end, they would rather wipe each other out to the point of extinction before either side surrendered. Thankfully, a great warrior named Ra finally brought peace and ended the war."

Osiris heroically acted in that war. It helped us turn the tides of the war before his death, an act that led to peace for both species. I could hear in his voice how happy that made him. He continued,

"In my death, I pulled myself from being reborn to ponder on the events in that life. Even in death, they haunted me, my choices and actions tore me apart. That was when they came to me, the light beings, they pulled me into a great field surrounded by stones, appearing before me, they gave me a choice, they told me I couldn't go on lost in the darkness forever. I could be reborn repeatedly, always knowing who I was, and the things I had done, saving the universe from evil, ensuring peace throughout the galaxies, or they could make me forget forever and be reborn into life in ignorant bliss.

I accepted this life as a Starseed for all of eternity, I wanted to bring everlasting peace to all. I was reborn countless times throughout the cosmos. Every time, fighting some battle for some race who would not see to reason, no matter how hard I tried."

He stopped speaking for a moment, he stood up and walked away from me placing his hands behind his back. Spartacus walked to the nearest window and looked out to the night sky. I was about to ask him a question when he started again.

"You know, I see great pain in your eyes, I can see you have also lived many lives filled with death and war. I know you understand this when I say it, war takes a toll on a man. Lifetimes of war can mentally destroy you, pushing you to heights of mental exhaustion unlike you've ever known. Although, no war has ever been harder than the one I fight within me every day."

Spartacus looked back at me as he said his last sentence, his eyes were red and slightly puffy. It is as if he wanted to break down and cry right there, but no matter how hard he tried he could not. His glossy eyes twisted my stomach as I felt the pain that poured from them. He looked back at the stars and began to speak again.

"Once again, after trying and fighting so hard, to stop the galaxies many wars, I died, having lost count of what death this was, I stopped being a part of life. I drifted for a while in spirit, taking in all the universe had to offer. Till I came upon this beautiful world. She was just calling out to me as if she had always known me. I could not deny her beauty, I was reborn again, into this world, as the great son of Enki, Osiris. I took this life for granted, having lived life peacefully for so long with my mother on earth. Even many more peaceful years with my father, after my mother had passed. Although, we know how this life ends."

He looked down at the ground as he finished this sentence with pain in his voice.

Filled with grief I began to apologize for not being able to save him.

He stopped me before I could finish,

"No need to apologize, you did all that you could, I did not expect you to save me from a beast such as those. Besides, it gets worse; I was reborn again on Nibiru after my life on earth. I was pulled away and instantly shot into this life without choice." Nibiru was at war with the reptilians. The reptilians demanded the Anunnaki give them the earth in retribution for their past transgressions. The reptilians accused the Anunnaki of executing some of their own long, long ago. I assumed the reptilians wanted revenge for the two dead reptiles frozen in amber. They were placed on display for all to see. The people were appalled when the reptilians were allowed to enter the planet's orbit. We were all told they were coming to negotiate peace and we would return their dead. Before the ships arrived, a group had gathered many people together to leave the planet. They claimed we had been lied to and would be slaughtered when the reptilian ships came. The people of Nibiru would not believe this, I was an older teenager then; I blindly followed them and what they said. The ships arrived to evacuate us, and they only had a few hundred of us gathered to board each ship. They begged and pleaded for more to come with us, but the people would not listen. The day came, the draconian ships filled the air; we were about to take off. They rained hellfire down upon all of Nibiru without warning immediately as they entered our skies. I watched in the air from the ship as our city was vaporized in mere minutes. In orbit, the planet was surrounded by reptilian warships, a great battle taking place all around us. I was petrified, bearing witness to the carnage of my world. We flew as far as we could till Nibiru was no longer in sight. I'm unsure of the fate Nibiru met, or its people." He ended with

I could not believe what I was hearing. How could the great Nibiru have fallen by the hands of the reptilians? I began to get angry as I pounded the stone bed I laid in until Spartacus told me what happened next,

"After seeing what happened to our homeworld, many of us began to question our saviors. How could you have known of this we asked them, some even accusing them of high treason for not doing more to stop it. One of the crew began to become angry at these accusations, she defended herself from the accusations. She claimed no one could be trusted. Had she told the elders than they would of all been put to death, her form began to change as she explained this with great frustration, she took the form of a reptilian, her true form in that life. Everyone on the ship began to cower in fear; I prepared for a fight. Something caught my eye, the reptilian wore a chest plate that had a symbol branded, glowing a bright neon blue. I had seen it before, I had seen Tiamat looking at the same symbol on our boat ride to see the Nephilim. I immediately questioned where she got that symbol from. The creature slowly walked to me towering before me. She looked down, slowly, staring into my eyes, "you are not him," it said angrily. "

My heart sank,

" Tiamat?"

I asked Spartacus with utter excitement.

Spartacus looked back at me. He had no doubts about it. He spoke again.

"It was her, she walked away from me after our confrontation and told everyone they had nothing to fear, all the crew aboard were reptilians. However, she explained they were a de facto group of draconians who did not agree with the methods of the mothership. They had saved many species in the galaxy from extinction. The ancient reptilians they rose against, were harvesting worlds, and still fed on living beings. They harvested lives and forced them to bear their young like cattle. Obliterating anything they could not control. Enslaving all they could. They had infiltrated the Anunnaki long ago and learned of earth. They set their sights on it, knowing they had to eliminate their Anunnaki rulers before they could take control."

Anger filled me, knowing I had already seen this future once before. The destruction of earth and the moon still haunted me every day. I had sworn to protect Nevaeh and Aldrin for the rest of time; I would fulfill my promise.

Spartacus continued,

"We traveled for so long it felt like, we looked for more survivors, then a reptilian fleet eventually found us and forced us to board them. Tiamat and the other reptilians hid us all into secret compartments on her ship. She boarded their ship, knowing it would be certain death had they not complied. I watched from the cracks hidden away under a tile in the ship, the giant reptilians, came aboard our ship once we docked on theirs, screeching, and clicking. Their language was something I could not understand. Things seemed to be going fine at first, it looked as if they would let Tiamat go on about her travels. Whatever images she was showing them on her handheld device seemed to of made them believe her. As they began to leave, one of the lizards stood close to a hidden spot in the wall another of us was hidden in. Before I knew it, the hidden man from Nibiru ran out of their hiding spot screaming in fear. How stupid could they have been? The reptile grabbed them by the back of the neck as he begged and pleaded to be sparred. The other reptilians raised their weapons at Tiamat and her crew. The screeching clicks began to echo throughout the ship, things were getting out of control and chaotic fast. The reptilian was still holding the screaming man. Suddenly it roared into his face and bit half it clean off. Tiamat reacted quickly, she pulled a hidden pistol out and began firing it with one hand, while moving swiftly through the rest of them, dodging their gunfire, slicing away all that got in her way with her blade in the other hand. The rest of the people from Nibiru did not move from their hiding spots. Tiamat's crew was all killed, only she remained against three reptilians. She fought them off bravely killing the first with ease but began struggling with the last two. I could not watch anymore; I noticed a large draconian dagger on the ground. I came out of my hiding spot and I grabbed it. I leaped onto a reptilian's back, stabbing it, over, and over, in the neck, till it dropped to the ground. Tiamat slew the other one easily after I joined in."

I wasn't surprised, Tiamat in every life was always the greatest warrior I had ever known, Spartacus continued his story.

"Tiamat ran to the controls of the ship and started it up, she began to take off as more reptilians tried to board us. I ran to seal the doors, I pushed the button shutting them, but one of the reptilians caught the doors, trying hard to pull it back open. I struggled so much prying its long skinny fingers off the door. I grabbed a knife off the ground, slashing at them, it released the door but pulled me out by the arm with it. The door sealed and the ship took off, barely managing to escape. I was tortured every day as they cut pieces of my flesh off, severing me, limb from limb, they ate it in front of me. They desperately tried to tempt me. Death called me but I would not come. They wanted to know Tiamat's destination; I never would tell them. Hell, I never even knew anyway. Finally, after a long few days, I succumbed to my injuries and passed in that life, I was reborn into this one and now here I am stuck with you."

It was hard hearing how Spartacus's life ended and all that happened to Nibiru. I was also deeply curious if Tiamat survived that horrible situation. I felt pity for Spartacus, being imprisoned in one life and then having to do it again in the next. It couldn't have been easy. I wanted to free him from this life.

"Spartacus, when we have healed, I'm getting you out of here, even if it means giving up my life," I told him

He walked back over to me looking seriously into my eyes, he stood there and then began to smile. He softly placed his hand on my shoulder and spoke.

"Let's do that then Crixus, ill happily die fighting by your side once more."

Spartacus and I didn't talk much after that day, especially not in the open. I began to hear rumors circulating of a great rebellion coming, led by Spartacus. We were all told to wait for the sign. This was all we knew. It came suddenly, one day in the training grounds; a guard began to whip Spartacus for refusing to train this day. He gloriously stood there as each crack of the whip slashed against his flesh. He looked around at all of us, we stopped training and stared at the rising situation. Spartacus turned his gaze to the guard whipping him, we knew it was time. The next crack of the whip came, Spartacus caught the whip in his hand and pulled the guard right to him grabbing him by the throat, he pulled the little roman up into the air. He pulled the guard's sword from his waist, the guard dangled there trying to pry the hands of Spartacus from his neck. He raised the sword into the air, shouting.

"Now is the fall of Rome".

We all shouted back, raising our training weapons. By this time, all the house guards had assembled in the yard, surrounding us, demanding we lay down our weapons as they trembled with fear, no one would dare fight a gladiator; let alone multitudes of them. Spartacus still holding the man by his throat dropped him immediately. The man turned to run away, desperately trying to regain his breath. Spartacus shoved the blade right through the back of his head, it ripped out through his eyes. All mayhem broke loose, the gladiators attacked the house guards. It was beautifully chaotic, we stormed through the house slaying all that stood in our way, then ran through the streets slaughtering the mightiest soldiers of Rome like flies.

We fought for years, living much longer than we ever expected. We amassed an army of rebels and fought against the Romans for our freedom. We never truly felt we could win, but we were free. We freed many slaves and saved hundreds of innocent lives in the process. Many chose to fight alongside us. Spartacus and I fought bravely for as long as we could, making the great roman army look like fools. We killed thousands of them. Alas, in these lives, all good things must come to an end. We fought our last battle. We both fell on the same day, each tasting roman iron before passing on. Spartacus stood tall with a smile on his face as three roman soldiers struggled to take him down, each stabbing him over and over, as he barely swung his blade back. I had been greatly injured, they pulled me to Spartacus and kicked me on my knees near him, and began to shout at him.

"Surrender now Spartacus, if you do not, your comrade will meet a horrible death and face his crimes in the afterlife!"

I began laughing with the rest of my strength. A mountain of dead Romans laid out between us, I watched as Spartacus, still standing as the roman soldiers exhausted themselves, attempting to finally kill him. He turned to look at me still grinning and now laughing with me in short chuckles. A man barely still living, as blood was draining out from the sides of his mouth, gushing from his many penetrations and lacerations in his stomach and back and sides. A supernatural being he was indeed. I was executed in front of him, still laughing together till the very end, as they became frustrated and drove their sword down into me. They stabbed me through the throat, in one of my most excruciating deaths. I began to suffocate as I choked on my own blood that filled my throat. They pulled the sword back out. Yelling at each other in Latin mumblings, they lined the sword up again as I began choking harder, blood oozing from my mouth. I was struggling to hold myself up. Pain soared through my body and Spartacus was no longer laughing. He swung his sword once more blowing two of the soldiers away while kicking the third soldier back, he sprinted towards the two soldiers on me. They cowered in fear for a moment, till Spartacus fell dead inches before me.

By now, I had fallen flat on the ground as well, completely suffocating in my blood, the two soldiers who were left came running, stabbing Spartacus in the head over, and over next to me, ensuring he could not get up, my vision beginning to haze out now. In the last seconds of that life, I was barely conscious. They turned to me. Raised their swords, I died before ever witnessing any of the maulings my body received.

One of the many gruesome deaths I would have gone through within these never-ending lives of war, at least I still had good friends. I took great comfort in knowing I could possibly see him again one day. I worried for Tiamat, hoping I could hold her again soon. I had a long journey in the afterlife, reflecting for as long as I could on the memories of this life with Spartacus, Osiris, my friend. Eventually, the time came, I heard them calling and went on into the next life.

Chapter 7: Bloodlust

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