Gladios and Gaia

A few seconds later, they reappeared from between the houses, locked in combat. Ares saw a yellow energy sword being waved through the air, wielded by the cloaked figure, while Sairi parried with a katana. Ares pressed the binoculars tightly to his eyes, watching the battle with tense fascination, not understanding what was happening. He looked more closely and saw Sairi's katana shatter from the impact with the strange energy sword. This enraged Sairi, who raised a hand toward the cloaked man. A powerful wave of energy erupted from his palm, shaking the entire area and sending the cloaked figure flying backward until he collided with the wall of a building. Sairi closed in, and they both disappeared behind the building, out of Ares's line of sight.

He crept closer, circling around a structure until both combatants were back in his field of view. He peered around the corner of the building, completely suppressing his energy signature as he touched the wall. He heard a gunshot and deduced that Sairi had killed the cloaked man, taken his clothes, and appropriated his energy sword. Ares smiled, his lips trembling slightly.

"Things are taking an interesting turn," he mused. "But I have no intention of revealing myself to someone so dangerous. He killed him without mercy. I will find the rest of our companions, and then we will decide what to do about Sairi."

Sensing he was about to be discovered, Ares slipped back into the forest. He stood behind a tree, watching as Sairi walked away toward the city. He designated Sairi on his electronic slate, then gave a voice command to track his movements, which the device confirmed. With that, he headed back to his new motorcycle. He mounted it and rode deeper into the city as night began to fall. A few minutes later, the slate indicated two nearby individuals. He parked his motorcycle in an alley, took the slate, and began scanning for the source of the signal. He could barely see in the darkness, so he put on a pair of night-vision goggles. He moved cautiously through the shadows like a spy on a covert mission.

"I feel I'll never escape espionage," he said to himself with a touch of sarcasm. "It's what I was born for, and it seems it's what I'll die for. Your past always pursues you, no matter how the circumstances change."

Ares continued on, and from a distance, he saw a broad-shouldered, muscular man wearing the same sample uniform he himself had worn. Ares knew at once that it was likely Ivanov. He followed him until the man entered a weapons shop. Ares stopped and waited for him to come out. The absolute silence of the night allowed him to hear Ivanov's movements inside the store.

"My God, do I escape Sairi only to run into Ivanov?" he thought. "Could my luck be any worse? They walked together throughout the entire competition and were the most dangerous of the lot. I only have to remember his confrontation with Keno to feel a chill."

Ares's thoughts were interrupted by a crash inside the shop. He then saw another cloaked figure, identical to the one Sairi had fought, run out of the store and flee. Ares aimed his tracking device at the figure and ordered it to follow him.

He then saw Ivanov emerge from the shop, surveying the street. Ares ordered the device to track him as well. He then set off after the strange cloaked figure to find out why they were monitoring Sairi and Ivanov. He moved quietly between buildings until he was close to the signal. The target was just on the other side of the building in front of him. He circled around it, passing gardens, signs, billboards, and shops, as the signal grew stronger. He stopped with his back against the building, then moved slowly toward the edge. He reached the corner, leaned out, and peered into the darkness. The cloaked figure was standing there, pressing on his watch, which projected a holographic display like a computer screen. He tapped a few commands, navigating through menus. Ares pulled back behind the wall and took a deep breath, his mind racing.

Who is this cloaked man? He looks just like the one Sairi killed. What is their purpose? Why are they watching us? Are they spies for the robots?

His mind couldn't provide the answers he sought, so he decided to obtain them through deception. He altered his form to perfectly match the cloaked figure—the same height, clothes, everything. He knew he had only five minutes before he would revert to his natural state, so he had to get his answers quickly.

He took a breath and stepped out from his hiding place, walking toward the cloaked figure with confident, quiet steps. He was halfway there when the figure sensed him. The hologram vanished, and he swiftly raised a pistol, aiming it at Ares. A tremor of fear ran through Ares, but he reacted instantly, raising his hands in a gesture of surrender.

"Don't be alarmed," he said. "It's me."

The cloaked figure squinted, then lowered his weapon. "You nearly stopped my heart, man. Don't do that again."

Ares laughed, a hollow sound. "My apologies. I saw you were busy and didn't want to distract you, but it seems I did anyway. Never mind all that nonsense. Tell me, what's the news on the sample you're monitoring?"

The stranger was silent for a moment, which worried Ares. Then he said, "Nothing of interest yet. He's just walking through the city. He seemed to have entered a weapons shop when I was there. I managed to scare him to run quickly outside, then I backed off surveillance to take a break and analyze some data sent by the other comrades."

Ares tried to subtly probe for more answers. "I don't know why we have to be the ones to monitor them. This work is incredibly tedious. They should assign it to someone else."

The stranger stared at him with disapproval. "And who, in your opinion, would be assigned this task other than us?!" he said, annoyed. "We were created by our Master, and for that reason, we obey his orders without question. Do not speak like that again. You know our Master undertakes difficult tasks for the Great Gladios, and therefore we must monitor the samples and send him all updates."

Ares almost responded instinctively, asking about the strange names he had just heard, but he bit his tongue, sensing his foolish question would expose him. He tried to salvage the situation. "I know all that. But when I get bored, I tend to throw my mission to the wind and invent strange nonsense to feel less responsible for a moment."

The stranger sighed. "Yes, I know. If it weren't for that disaster caused by Keno, none of this would have happened."

The name Keno struck Ares like a lightning bolt. He was astonished to hear of a disaster Keno had caused but knew he couldn't ask about it without revealing he was an impostor.

The stranger continued, "But what can I say? What's done is done. Now, we are the last hope for humanity in Atlantis—or more specifically, the samples are the last hope for humanity. We must protect them. After that, we will overthrow Gaia and fulfill the will of the Supreme Master Gladios."