The boat was stationed at a small port at Korsica. The surrounding area looked civilized, but the judges were unsure of their surroundings.

Gideon: “Captain, when will we be leaving tomorrow?”

Captain: “At ten. Be out here precisely at that time. I got a bad feeling about this place.”

Deborah: “I’ve got a bad feeling about you taking my money,” she said eyeing the shrew, “maybe there is a leader here that will have pity on us for one night since we have no money.”

Shrew: “You’re a sassy creature aren’t you?”

 

                Deborah sucked her teeth and Gideon followed her into town. The inhabitants were iguanas and the judges felt out of place every moment they were there. The lizards looked at them with haunting eyes. Both judges tried to avoid contact with the natives. What was also an eerie sight was a certain statue that appeared along the way. The statue was of an iguana which wore a crown and sat in a chair that a king would. They passed at least five of them; each one was different than the last. One of them showed the lizard flexing his skinny frame, the other showed the lizard dressed in armor with a sword over his shoulder, and the rest of the statues followed suit.

 

 

Gideon: “Talk about a power trip.”

Deborah: “That must be the king. Should we talk to him?”

Gideon: “I see why not, a room in a palace would be nice. I’ll ask this creature where to find the king. Excuse me, could you tell us where your king’s palace is?”

The lizard gave Gideon a stare that sent a chill down his spine.

Lizard: “Just follow that path there,” he said pointing with his long finger, “The king will be very delighted with your presence.”

 

The weather became cloudy as the judges continued. The architecture in the land was brilliant. The buildings were as beautiful as Shavron’s; however, the iguanas did not do a very good job at housekeeping. Moss and fungi began to grow in the cracks of the buildings. There were also a series of frescos painted on the walls depicting gladiator battles. There was a bear fighting a lion, another showed a dog fighting a jackal, but most of the frescos showed a lizard as one of the opponents. Finally the judges reached the king’s residence. It was a large castle with four towers. The stairway to the entrance was split in half by a stream of water. Its walls were a cold, dead gray. The two sculptures placed near the door were large and daunting. Gideon was fearful and began to lag behind Deborah.

Deborah: “Come on, there’s nothing to fear.”

Gideon: “I don’t trust this place. Let’s not give our true identities here. Take off your crest and put it in you bag.”

Deborah: “You can put yours in but I’m leaving mine on.”

Gideon: “Fine, just follow my act. If they ask who we are we are merchants, got it.”

Deborah: “Merchants? Is that the best you can come up with?”

Gideon was annoyed by her comment.

Gideon: “At the moment yes. If you have any better ideas you’re free to let me know.”

Deborah: “All right, all right we are merchants.”

 

               Approaching the statues, the judges were overwhelmed by their size. They were sculpted with armor that covered their chest, arms, and lower legs. When the judges tried to pass between the statues their path was blocked. The statues were not statues at all, but two guards on duty. Gideon took a deep swallow.

Gideon: “Excuse me we need to speak with your king.”

Deborah: “We have to see him right away.”

The guards gave no response. They continued to look down on the judges. Deborah nudged Gideon in the side for him to speak.

Gideon: “We are merchants who have come to trade.”

 

              This remark got the guards attention. One of them whispered in the ear of the other. The guard left momentarily and then came back. The judges were allowed to pass. They were escorted directly to the king. The judges stood silently before a throne. A lizard wearing a crown and red cloak came in and sat down on the throne.

King: “I’ve been told that you are merchants. What do you have to trade?”

Gideon: “Uh—spices”

Deborah: Spices?” she said looking at Gideon.

Gideon: “Yeah spices! You know…the ones we brought with us?” he said pointing outside.

Deborah: “Your lying is going to get us in trouble” she said whispering.

Gideon: “If you would follow along like I said we’ll be fine,” he whispered back.

The bickering continued until the lizard king spoke up.

King: “What kind of spices?”

Gideon: “All kinds!”

King: “Sounds appealing. I will take you up on the offer.”

Suddenly the king’s eyes caught sight of Gideon’s sword hilt. He sat straight up in his chair.

King: “Is that a sword? Do you know how to use it?”

The lizard king’s glare was disturbing. Gideon touched his sword, trying to move it out of view.

Gideon: “Yes. But we have something else we need from you. My friend and I need a place to sleep. We don’t have any money. Could you help us?”

King: “But of course. I have two open rooms upstairs. My servants will show you to your rooms.”

The judges paid their respects to the king. Gideon and Deborah followed one of the guards upstairs. The kings held his hands together and twiddled his fingers. He had different plan for the two creatures. He was thinking hard until a guard addressed him.

Guard: “My king do you understand the opportunity before you? You could—“

King: “Silence fool! Stand at attention. I totally understand the situation far more than you do. We haven’t seen a gladiator game in months. I know that rabbit is lying. Whoever heard of merchants that carries no money? His folly will be my footstool. Get the word out that there will be a game tomorrow morning.”

Guard: “But will the rabbit fight?”

King: “Don’t worry that will be taken care of. The rabbit will fight no worry in that.”

 

Gideon and Deborah had dinner with he king. The meal was delicious and after that they went to bed. The next morning Gideon knocked on Deborah’s door. He got no answer. He tried again and the door cracked open.

Gideon: “Deborah, are you all right. I’m coming in”

Deborah was not there. The room was made as if no one had slept there. Gideon inspected the scene and found a letter placed on the bed. This is how it ran:

 

 

Gideon immediately went to Deborah’s aid. The palace and the entire city were deserted. As Gideon approached the coliseum, the cheering became louder with every step. Inside, the rabbit walked down a long tunnel with soldiers positioned on both sides. One of them whispered to the other,

 

Gideon broke the threshold and stepped into the center arena. He was looking in all directions as the crowd’s cheering grew louder. Finally, the crowd grew silent. Gideon spotted the Lizard king and Deborah off to his right. The cheetah was tied by her hands to prevent her escape. She was struggling to get free. Suddenly, the lizard king aggressively took her by the arm.

Carztgill: “If you move again, I’ll do worst to you than that rabbit down there.”

Deborah got the hint and stopped moving. The lizard king stood up; the deadly game was about to begin.

Cartzgill: “Welcome my fellow creatures to the game. You’ve waited for a fight and now the wait is over. It’s a fight like no other. A mere rabbit will take on our champion.”

Cartzgill pulled out the crest of battle from under his cloak. He read the inscription on the back.

Cartzgill: “Ha! I wouldn’t want you to go into battle without your full attire,” he said throwing the crest into the ring,” Maybe your god will help you.”

Gideon picked up his crest and placed it around his neck.

Cartzgill: “Our first gladiator is a mere light weight. I present to you the foe that has to go; the hare from who knows where; I introduce you to the righteous rabbit.”

 

The crowd booed. Some of them threw rotten vegetables and fruit at him. Gideon dodged the raid. A shadow was cast over the arena floor by a group of lizards pulling a canopy over the coliseum.

Cartzgill: “Now my friends I present to you the savant of speed; the hustle of muscle; I give you our undefeated champion, Dolius!”

 

Suddenly, the canopy was pull back. All eyes were on the arch at the end of the arena. Gideon’s heart pounded rapidly. He stood to see the beast that would emerge from the darkened tunnel. A tall potent figure stepped in between the arch. As the iguana came forward, the crowd cheered. The iguana played to the crowd, blowing kiss and he posed on all fours for an enormous barrage of cheers. Gideon rolled his eyes. The lizard was three times the size of Gideon. Its muscles seemed to have been carved by an artist. The lizard wore a silver breastplate and heavy arm bracelets.

Cartzgill: “How does it feel, rabbit? It’s going to get ugly down there.”

Gideon: “Yeah, just like your face!”

The crowd went hysterical; they were laughing and it wasn’t at Gideon.

The king was mortified. He stood up, raised his head, and produced a roar that brought the crowd to silence.

Cartzgill: “DOLIUS, KILL HIM!”

The lizard approached; Gideon raised his blade for a strike. The two opponents came to a stare-down. Gideon attacked first, aiming for the lizards face; but Dolius was quick and came upon Gideon in a fury. Gideon was able to dodge the biting and clawing. He jumped back and took his fighting stance again. The iguana posed; the crowd applauded him.

Cartzgill: “Superb, Dolius, give us a show!”

 

             In a flash, Dolius used his whip-like tail to cut the rabbit in half. The rabbit jumped backwards just evading the cutting force by an inch. His vest had a gash in it. Gideon landed squarely on his feet and ran forward to deal three strikes of his blade. Every shot was blocked. Dolius was too careful to let the rabbit strike his neck or stomach. He stood tall, brushed himself off, and mocked the hare’s attempt. The iguana returned to all fours and fixed his eyes on Gideon. Gideon tried to scare the lizard with the sudden swing of his blade; the iguana did not flinch.

“That was stupid,” Gideon thought.

 

Dolius charged Gideon. The rabbit took off running as fast as he could. Dolius pursued him around the ring at commanding speed. Gideon was a step ahead, but barely. The iguana was able to clip him from behind. Gideon rolled in the dirt. Dolius continued to play with the hare. He pranced around his fallen opponent in a circle kicking dirt at him.

Gideon was breathing deeply. He was weakened by the fall. With the help of his blade, he slowly returned to his feet. Dolius was able to force Gideon to the center of the arena with a series of threatening bites. Cartzgill watched as the two inched over to a group of hidden platforms imbedded in the arena floor. When the two were perfectly in place, Cartzgill stood up and in a loud voice he said,

Cartzgill: “ACTIVATE THE PILLARS!”

 

His words were carried from one soldier to another until the command reached the depths of the coliseum. The hidden platform was a large pillar constructed under the coliseum. There were four pillars in all, each activated by a group of iguana that turned a series of cranks to make the pillars rise high into the air. The command was given and the iguanas went to work. The large stone pillars turned easily in a spiral of dust. Gideon was surprised by the sudden spin. He fell and lost his sword. The movement of the pillar sent the blade off the side. After a few attempts, Gideon was able to get his footing. Dolius glided smoothly on his hind legs with the circular rotation of the pillar. The main pillar rose fifty feet into the air. The other three descended from that height. The pillars stopped; the crowd screamed; and Dolius jumped at Gideon with claws drawn and teeth bared. The rabbit quickly positioned himself for a “monkey flip”. Although the iguana was large, Gideon was able to send the beast over the side. Dolius landed on one of the lower pillars, he shook off the fall and returned to avenge the action.

 

Dolius quickly climbed back to the top of the main pillar, cutting off the rabbit’s escape. He grabbed Gideon by the ears and threw him to the other side to the platform. Gideon was helpless; he had never faced an opponent like this before. The iguana placed himself on all fours. He crept slowly towards the hare. His cold blue eyes were centered on Gideon. The crowd cheered; their bloodcurdling cheers put a sickness in the rabbit’s stomach. Dolius made a mad dash to finish the fight once and for all, but Gideon used the iguana’s head like a springboard and jumped over his opponent. The hare jumped from pillar to pillar until he arrived back on the arena floor. Dolius followed in murderous fury. Gideon ran to his sword, he turned to see the iguana running at full speed towards him.

Gideon: “I can’t beat him,” he whispered, “O Lord, help me.”

The iguana came; the rabbit raised his sword; and the crowd rose to their feet.

Cartzgill: “It’s over!”

Deborah: “GIDEON, RUN!”

 

Dolius took hold of Gideon’s throat, pushing his head against the arena’s wall. Gideon’s sword was planted squarely at the iguana chest. For a brief moment the two keep this stance. Gideon’s sword penetrated the lizard’s breastplate. The blade went into his heart. Dolius’s hand fell away from the rabbit’s neck. The great lizard flopped to the floor in a cloud of dust. Gideon slid down the wall and fell to the ground in exhaustion.

The crowd was perplexed by the occurrence: how could a mere rabbit beat their champion? Heads were turning looking for an answer. During this time Deborah was untying her hands. Once the ropes were off, she jumped over into the arena with Gideon. She helped him to his feet.

Deborah: “Are you all right?”

Gideon: “I’m doing better than the lizard,” he said retrieving his sword.

Cartzgill shook with rage. He knew he was beaten at his own game.

Cartzgill: “GARBAGE...BOTH OF YOU VERMIN! No one beats me like this especially a rabbit! MY FELLOW CREATURES WHOEVER KILLS THESE TWO WILL RECEIVE TWENTY THOUSAND PIECES OF SILVER!”

It was an offer that the crowd could not refuse. The iguanas began to leave their seats. They jumped into the arena and crept over to the judges. Just as the crowd was within a few feet of them, the main pillar, for some strange reason, began to crack. The crack was so serve that it caused the pillar to fall. Suddenly the whole coliseum was beginning to crack.

Cartzgill: “W-what is going on?”

The coliseum was falling apart. The iguanas were trapped.

Gideon: “How are we to get out of this?”

Deborah spotted an opening not far from where they were. The two judges ran for the exit. Cartzgill caught sight of them.

Catrzgill: “No! You won’t esca-”

 

The lizards words were cut short and the coliseum fell upon him and his kind. When the dust had settled, both judges looked back at the rubble. They knew that the Holy One had played a part in their escape. The two judges hurried to the port, but the tree shrew was gone.

Gideon: “What do we do now?”

 

There were a few boats at the port. Many of them were not designed to carry multiple passengers. However after some searching, they found a boat that could do the job. It was a good enough size to carry four. It had two circular wheels to push the boat along. The wheels were powered by pedals, and there was a seat for the driver.

Deborah: “Well who’s going to start pedaling?”

Gideon crossed his arms.

Deborah: “All right I’ll start, but we’re switching places after a few minutes.”

The journey took them about half a day. They arrived at Judi port during the night. Finding Samson would have to wait until tomorrow.