“That is what you are here for. Cease your complaining and do your job.” Then Soren looked back down at Kyle. “Very well. Just so we are clear, you are here in Thena with no papers and no citizenship. I have captured you, and you are now a registered slave belonging to House Sorengaard. You may call me Lord Soren, and as long as you behave yourself, we will get along wonderfully.
“You are here because my brother Darron, the stone-headed fool that he is, did something right for the first time. You have great potential as a fighter, even if you require training, but that is what we do here. If you progress in your training, you will be sold to one of the teams and I will turn a tidy profit. You want that, because you want me to be happy.
“When I am happy with you, you will get better food, drink, women, and the comforts of life. Disappoint me and you will go hungry or feel the lash upon your back. I am a fair master, and you are potentially valuable. Now, it is up to you to prove that you are, indeed, valuable. It is clear you are a barbarian, for you can’t speak very well. Nod if you understand.”
Kyle nodded. Hilde had been filling him in as best she could. Sorengaard was apparently one of the richest families in all of Thena. Soren was the middle of three brothers. Darron was the youngest, and their older brother, Kamor, was a senator. Soren had been running the arena for nearly a decade and because of his position, their family couldn’t have a gladiator team, but they still trained some of the best which they sold to the official teams.
The bars slid into a recessed space in the stone, but try as he might, Kyle couldn’t see where any lever had been operated to move them. He looked at the second mage who had not spoken.
There was something different about him. It was like he was pulsing with energy.
“He is using Earth Essence to shape the stone and allow the bars to move to the side. Good that you sensed he was doing something, but you need to become more attuned to the essence around you,” Hilde said.
“What about the other mage? Is he a fire mage?” Kyle asked as a ladder was extended down into his cell for him to climb out.
“For a mortal, he displayed good control of Sky and War Essence to create fire at the quarry. But remember that mortal wizards can have more than one type of essence. From what I can detect, his primary type is Deceit Essence,” Hilde answered.
While climbing up, he asked, “So he is good at lying?”
“No. Just like you used War Essence to break the quarry wall, other essences can be used in different ways. Right now, he is using it to power the manacles you are wearing. That is why your arms and legs feel so heavy. Deceit is about control, so that is not a strange thing. And earlier he tried to use it to test you for deceit, but that was when he told Soren that he couldn’t say for sure,” Hilde responded.
Kyle didn’t say anything more but thought to himself that it was only right that a mortal not be able to detect anything about him. He was supposed to be a war god after all. For a second, he wondered why he’d had such an odd thought, but didn’t spend much time worrying about it as he reached the top.
He held his hands to his sides as though to demonstrate that he was going to be compliant. Soren pointed to the first mage and said, “This is Ikari, he is head mage of the arena. You will obey his commands as though they were mine. For that matter, you should listen to any of the mages or guards here. Now, he will take you to be evaluated and to meet the others you will be training with.”
Without waiting for a response, Soren left. The second mage and one of the guards followed after him. The other three guards and Ikari stayed with Kyle.
The mage said, “Well, let’s get this over with, and then we will need to find a tutor for you. You will need to understand enough to follow commands.”
Kyle led through the maze of tunnels under the arena. They finally got to a larger room where he found six others waiting for him. The room was probably thirty by twenty and around the walls were a dozen guards with spears keeping watch on those he presumed were other fighters.
One of them was being checked out by a doctor of sorts, who was peering at her teeth. Kyle wasn’t sure if he was more shocked that she was a woman or that she was furry all over, sorta like a werewolf. It didn’t do anything to hide her curves though. Her breasts were bound tightly to her chest by a band of cloth, he presumed to keep them stable when she moved. Below, her private parts were covered by a short, loose skirt. Her feet were bare but looked well-equipped for running.
As he looked at her, he could see that she had a very human face, despite some light fur on her cheeks. Her canine teeth were more pronounced as she was being inspected, but she bore it all without complaint.
Kyle was prodded to the end of the line but tried to at least get a brief look at the others. One was so tall that he towered over Kyle by at least two feet. He was equally broad. His back was humped, arms longer than seemed proper and he had a greenish hue to his skin, but not like he
