In that city with white houses and bloody flowers hanging on the walls on holidays, they all went to the Arena, to celebrate Holy Days by bullfighting. It was the supreme effort of real men, those who wanted to show their strength, and fearlessness, and love to a woman or virgin of the town …
In most cases, the young men and older men who entered the arena, killed the bull, collecting applause from the hysterical crowd, picking women or virgins love, gaining immortality moment. This will make him too!
He lied in wait for the girl’s blue eyes with blonde curls, he saw their azure and careless brilliance, overshadowed by a detached smile, he was searching for the key of the heart and did not find it … That’s why he decided to enter the arena in the last battle of the day, against the Untamed Bull, the wild, black and angry beast, excited by the howling crowd that stepped on the arena sand. Fourteen young people killed in earlier clashes, he was the fifteenth who dare to face the Beast. Be defeated and all city people will know who he did it, or die with her name on the lips …
Maybe she will even smile … When the time comes, trumpets sounded sharp and Untamed Bull was freed in gray stone enclosure of the Arena. A ton of muscles and tendons hidden under pitch black skin, were ready to kill, to crush. Above the bloody eyes was shining, with the oil, the pair of horns that seemed forged of bronze. Hooves as cymbals agitating the sand blooded by the bulls that were killed in clashes in the day.
When He enters, the crowd seems stopping to breath. He was frail against the monster that had to face, and the sword in his left hand seemed a feather good to tickle the Beast. Snoring, Untamed Bull start to attack and the crowd set free a gasp of fear. Corner of his eye, he caught sight of her, somewhere in the middle lodges. There seemed to be tested by any emotion, and this caused him to become extremely tense. Barely able to dodge the attack of the monster angry. Thrust, however, gracefully, and managed to grow the thick black skin of his opponent.
The fight was long and grueling, and he should use his skill and imagination, inventing on the spot tricks that had not been seen in the Arena. Finally, the Untamed Bull tired, and he managed to fool him with a lunge to the left, turning at the same time the right leg and implanting the sword blade to guard under the left shoulder of the monster. He should beware the beast fell, almost not hearing the crowd cheers.
Severed the right ear of the Untamed Bull and got him to give her, as was customary, for everyone to find out the girl for whom he risked his live. But, looking to the place where she had stood at the beginning of the fight, he saw the empty chair. The other hundreds of girls waiting for believing that one of them will be brought offerings, but their hopes soon collapse. Untamed Bull’s ear in one hand and sword dripping blood in the other hand, he continue to look for eyes, but didn’t find her. A wave of darkness settled down on his eye, ear escaped his numb fingers, and he collapsed softly in the wet sand of the Arena. In the fall, as the sword clutched in his hand, like a scepter, its blade is braked, a stumpenter the winner’s leg, above the knee, cutting the femoral artery.
The last thing he saw was the crowd who looked at him bewildered faces …
(Translated from aMorale, by Marius Cilibia)
Leave a Reply