Word had quickly spread that Apollo the pankrator was going to teach a young Oxlander a harsh lesson in Athenian civility. Several hundred people were already in their seats and many more were pouring through the entrance. Apollo stood off to the side laughing with his friends as if he didn’t have a care in the world. Nikias had no desire to be either humiliated or pounded senseless by Apollo. But his body just wasn’t up for the fight. He knew he couldn’t beat the Athenian with his muscles. So he’d have to use his mind. His grandfather had told him over and over again that a fight could be won before the first punch had even been thrown. The trick was to get inside the head of the adversary. And then blindside him. Once, after making a stupid boast, Nikias’s grandfather had forced him to fight a much bigger man—a brutal warrior named Axe—with one arm tied behind his back. His grandfather had intended on teaching a Nikias a lesson at the hands of the other man’s fists. But Nikias had humiliated Axe in public, beating him down before the man had even thrown a punch.
