The spectacle began.
Banners flew from every tall building along the avenues leading to the arena. Citizens tossed flowers into the street, to assure the gods they held no envy for those of loftier station. For reasons only the God of Trickery might name, city dwellers invested favour in this house or that, cheering more or less vigorously depending upon who passed. Mara’s litter and escort were greeted with loud applause. Again dressed as a common servant, and placed behind the litter alongside Kevin in the cortege, Arakasi commented, ‘It seems the mob favours the Acoma this month, my Lady,The victory in Tsubar has made you a heroine among the commoners.’
Noise defeated Mara’s attempted reply.
The long, stately boulevard that crossed the imperial precinct was thronged with folk from every walk of Tsurani life. Their clothing ranged from the costliest cloths and jewels worn by high-ranking nobles to the craftsman’s unadorned broadcloth and the meanest beggar’s rags. The games offered by the Warlord in celebration of the Light of Heaven brought the finest ornaments out of jewel chests — the more daring of the wealthy merchants dressing their daughters for display in the hope of attracting a noble suitor.
Surrounded by the flash of rare metal ornaments as well as lacquer combs, jades, and gemstones, Mara’s escort jostled and vied for road space along with dozens of other house guards and their litter-borne Lords and Ladies. Some were carried in palanquins painted in carnival colours or sequinned with flecks of iridescent shell; others held whole families, shouldered by as many as twenty slaves. For as far as the eye could see, the festival crowd made a vast, brilliant swirl of a thousand colours; only the slaves stood out, in commonplace robes of dull grey.
Kevin stared like a blind man just given sight. Past a retinue of warriors in red and purple, between the canopy poles of an uncountable crush of litters, he saw a wall hung with ribbons and banners that he took to be the end of the boulevard. But as the Acoma party drew closer, his eyes widened in amazement. The barrier was no wall but a segment of the Grand Imperial Stadium.
The amphitheatre, was vast, far larger than anything he might have imagined. The litters, soldiers, and commoners on foot poured up a broad flight of steps, then across a concourse to a second flight. At the top lay yet another concourse, and beyond that the entrance to the stadium. As Mara’s litter began the ascent, Kevin looked to either side and judged there must be at least another dozen entrances from the palace quarter alone.
Even here the guards had to shove and jostle to clear the way for their Lady’s passage. All of Tsurani society had turned out to attend the games in the Emperor’s honour, or to line up and gawk at the spectacle presented by their betters. Only great occasions such as this brought them so close to the might of the Empire, and country folk flocked in droves to the city to point, jabber, and stare.
Despite the festive atmosphere, the warriors maintained vigilance. Men of unclear rank and position moved through the crowd. Many wore guild badges; others were messengers, vendors, or rumourmongers; a few might be agents, or spies, or thieves; assassins might wear any disguise. Any state festival that intermingled clans and political parties became an extension of the Game of the Council.
Beyond the highest stair arose a stone arch two hundred feet across. Kevin tried to calculate the size of the arena beyond, and failed. The tiers of open-air seats must hold a hundred thousand spectators, and no amphitheatre in the Kingdom could compare.
At the first terrace, Lujan shouted, ‘Acoma!’
Individuals of lesser rank hurried clear of Mara’s retinue. As the warriors ascended the second flight of steps, Kevin noticed bystanders exclaiming in surprise and pointing. When he realized the stares were for him, his ears reddened. Commoners unaccustomed to his height and barbarian aspect made him an object of gossip and speculation.
At the top of the second terrace, Lujan marched his guard through the crowd and cleared a space beside other noble retinues. The litter bearers lowered their burden, and Kevin assisted Mara from the cushions. The Force Commander, a Strike Leader named Kenji and three guards, and Arakasi fell in at either side of the Lady and her body slave. The balance of the Acoma guard departed with the litter bearers, to wait upon them in the street at the bottom of the stairs.
Lujan led the way into a corridor to the left of the archway. A hundred or more rows of seats rose above the level upon which Mara’s party moved, while another fifty rows descended toward the arena floor. To the left, two areas stood cordoned off, one of them dominated by a box adorned in lacquerworked gold and imperial white. The other section was bare of any decoration but was immediately noticeable by contrast. The occupants all wore black robes.