The colosseum was enormous.
Ryan had only seen it from a distance, rising above the festival like a monument to stone and power. But standing at its entrance and staring up at the towering walls made Ryan nauseous.
The structure was circular, built entirely from grey stone that had been shaped and smoothed.
The group entered the colleseum along with the massive crowd. Inside lay hundreds of thousands of seats rose in tiers, each level slightly higher than the last, creating a bowl that could hold an unimaginable number of people. And it was filling fast.
Crowds poured through the wide archways, streaming into the colosseum in a constant flow. Families, students, merchants, soldiers. Everyone seemed drawn to the spectacle.
As they approached the entrance, Ryan noticed the seating was divided. The lower tiers, closest to the arena floor, were cordoned off with velvet ropes. Guards stood at the barriers, checking credentials, collecting coins from those who wanted premium seats.
