Dreamt I was back in old stomping grounds as a gladiator. Back in the day, I was a force to be reckoned with, but I had left for unknown reasons.
I returned wearing the nondescript gear that was my trademark appearance but no one recognized me. Before I decided to leave for good, I was accosted outside the barracks.
The brute wrote flashy shiny armor that served to serve the eyes of the viewer more than the skin of the wearer. He chewed me out about my “shitty costume” and bragged that he could snap me in two without scratching his gloves.
He sized me up as I calmly inspected him. His balance was off and his musculature was optimized for display rather than power. The spikes on his armor could easily be used against him in certain holds and his cockiness about his height advantage revealed his ignorance about centers of gravity.
He made a comment about me serving him sexually to prove I was able to start gladiator training. I said nothing to him. I already knew the outcome of any physical altercation between us and I didn’t feel like having more blood on my hands tonight.
He took my silence as submission and walked away laughing. As he left, he passed a beggar-thief who warned him about assumptions and stereotypes. “Not every champion announces it.” The brute kicked the ragged robed man and stormed away.
The beggar-thief came close but remained out of arm’s reach as mutual respect. “Things have changed, friend. You and this city. Your myth is preferred over your reality by the citizens here. They’ll want you to be bloodthirsty again. To be brutal again. And then to be bested by the pretty who have never so much as broken a bone. They’ll make sure you follow that script no matter how much you don’t want to.”
He showed me the buckle he stole off the brute’s sandal. Gold over pot metal. “Who you really are has been forgotten. They don’t want to remember. Your myth is preferred over your reality.”
“This is not your home, friend. Let the road comfort you until you find your next one.”
The beggar-thief turned and took the lit torch off the wall. He walked away from me, letting the darkness welcome me back as the dream ended.