Gladiator Clash (Time Hunters, Book 1) (11 page)

Parma:
a round shield, roughly one metre wide. It was strengthened using iron.

Galea:
the helmet of a Roman soldier. It was usually made from bronze and officers' helmets had a plume, made from horse hair dyed red – to represent blood and scare the enemy.

See the rise and fall of Ancient Rome in this brilliant timeline!

Tom and Isis never know where in history they'll go to next! Check out in what order their adventures
actually
happen.

Impress your friends with these facts about Ancient Rome.

Only children from wealthy families would be educated. Many were tutored at home and schools were only for boys. Punishments were severe and some schools even used slaves to hold the children down to be whipped.
Ouch!

Dinner time was known as Cena and it could last for hours. Ancient Romans would eat dormice, sea urchins and even peacock tongues.
Er, sounds tasty
…

Doctors would sometimes go to extreme lengths to find out what was wrong with a patient, by tasting their poo or drinking their wee.
How gross is that?!

Cobwebs were used to stop cuts bleeding.
Bet you're glad we have plasters now?

During the 3rd Century over 20 Roman emperors ruled were assassinated.
What a deadly job!

Which knight was the bravest?

Who was King Arthur?

Were dragons real?

Read on to see where Tom goes on his next action-packed Time Hunters adventure!

King Arthur called the lancers next – now it was Tom's go!

“Best of three!” the king announced. “READY…”

Tom stood with a thundering heart, facing the stocky man on the opposite side of the clearing. The branch that Al had chosen for him was far heavier than any cricket bat Tom had picked up.

“SET…”

The muscles in his arms quivered, but Tom ignored them.

“CHARGE!” King Arthur cried.

“Aaaargh!” Tom growled.

Mustering every ounce of strength he had, he sprinted towards his opponent. The harder he ran, the quicker the other man's lance came at him. But Tom didn't flinch.

Doof!

Tom took a punch in the belly from his opponent's lance. He doubled over, feeling Al's mead sloshing about angrily in his stomach.

Tom stood up quickly, readying himself for another charge. He had two more chances left.

“You can be a knight, Tom,” he muttered under his breath. “Be brave. Show no weakness.” By now, though, the muscles in his arm were really aching.

Once again, Tom sprinted at the man opposite him.
Clonk!
His lance started to trail on the ground.
Clonk-a-donk!
He stumbled and tripped.