Match ended

The priests finished collecting the men and their gate closed. Round five started out like the last four. This time the women weren't sure what to tell the men so for the most part it was quieter. The men had been counting on my group being tired but for the most part we were still ok. We hadn't even spent that much time clearing the rounds.

I waited as men warily came out of the gate. These men were even better armed than the last group. I cursed as I recognized one of the men. He had stopped when he had stepped out. So that had been her plan to get all six into the arena with me. She had traded him, on a temp basis of course. Though it looked like she hadn't told him exactly what this fight was.

The younger fighter didn't know enough for me to sign him a question he would understand. Men behind him were getting annoyed at the stopped man. One pushed him and he fell back against the stone wall. I waited watching as the men moved by him. He shook his head and looked back at me, he seemed worried.

I waited until the last man stepped into the ring.I looked right at the member of my extended unit and asked, "Are you my brother?"

The boy stood and I activated the ring, it had taken a second to work last time and it did again. The boy bowed like the man next to me had taught him to do. The ring came to life above his head and died before he could react. As it registered with him that the other opponents had fallen he knelt where he was. I glanced up at the matriarch of Estro. She was giving off waves of anger, and worried about what might happen when her other fighters entered the ring. This had not gone like she planned at all. I looked back at the man, "Come over here then, before the priests come out preferably. You still aren't in the ring over there anyway."

The younger man froze before stepping down. He was in this fight one way or the other. He moved quickly watching his feet. He picked a path between his normal commander and the trainer kneeling again as soon as he crossed the line between them. I flashed a few signs at him. I wasn't sure he understood them as I felt confusion. The man nodded though and turned to be behind his normal commander. I was right that the man hadn't gotten the whole thing as his commander leaned over to start whispering to him.

The priests had hesitated once their door was up. There was one more person not dead or incapacitated then they thought there would be. They didn't pause long before gathering up the men again.

One of the priests stopped, counting our party then looked up at our lord. "My lord, What do you want done about the next round? There will be too many fighters now."

The darkness seemed to sigh, I got the feeling that the priest that had spoken was as aware. "One more makes no difference. The law has been met, as long as the rest of the players enter the arena. They could leave again, if Mir and his men allow it."

I saw the priest thinking quickly. He didn't seem to reach a conclusion. "Yes, my lord."

He left and the iron gate dropped behind him. I was beginning to feel a little sorry for the men lowering and raising those gates. They hadn't planned on needing to move them that often. Most of the women were quiet as this strongest group of fighters started entering the arena. I was tired but I was trying to hide it from the metal monsters that had heard everything going on in the arena even if they hadn't understood. They did get that I had fought five rounds already and no one can do that without it leaving a mark. Most people wouldn't have survived one round in the arena normally.

My brothers stood as soon as the first metal monster stepped into the ring. The gate the men were coming through hadn't closed yet. They must have figured that trying to circle around was pointless, since their metal armor had to be better then our leathers. The first few men found out how wrong they were as the trainer landed blows that dented their armor and then took their helmets off in the same blow. One of my other brothers followed putting the dazed men to sleep.

I sat down on the arena floor as the iron gate slammed shut again. I was tired, the youngest brother had stayed next to me. He was watching the metal monsters as they tried to surround the three men that seemed like a crazed force of nature. The younger man moved closer to me, "Are you doing ok, alfa?"

"Keep your mind on what is going on around us, it won't be too much longer before those apes figure out, our brothers are a distraction."

The young man ducked on intict a few moments later as a sword bounced against the shield I had raised. It would have killed my brother if it hadn't been for that shield. The shield didn't just stop the power of the strike. It redirected the energy into a form I could then use. I just held the power for now. Two more apes realized I had been left exposed. I let out a whistle as their weapons swung towards me. I wasn't able to give my brothers more warning then that but they didn't hesitate in hitting the ground. The weapons collided with the shield and then the stun spell activated. Most of the apes hadn't reacted, but a few were smarter then your average ape and they had hit the ground when they saw my unit do it.

My pack put them to rest within minutes. Only two had died, which in my book was a victory for them. The priesthood cleaned up like they had been doing. Some of them looked decidedly sick. Clearly they had made bad bets. I looked up from where I sat. The messenger seemed to be talking to our lord but I couldn't make out what he was saying.

This next fight was the one most likely to kill me. Even with collecting the energy for that last spell from outside forces I was almost dead on my feet. Well, on my but I was sitting in the center of the arena. My brothers were standing over me. One of my oldest pack members looked down on me. "You cannot blackout until our lord calls the fight alfa. I will find water to dunk you in if you cannot stay with us on your own."

I frowned at the man as the priest's iron gate closed again. "That is no way to talk to me. I should shock you for that." The man only laughed and gave the motion for standing and turned to face the opening iron gate. I sighed at the man, who was in charge here anyway? I stood before the gate was all the way up and tried very hard not to look as tired as I felt. There would only be 11 fighters in this last group. Too bad five of them knew me well enough not to be fooled but the standing dead and they could kill me. The men came out from behind the gate.

The five men from Estro stood together. They weren't afraid of each other, they had accepted the risk of being betrayed by one of their brothers, fully. As they had been taught to do. The other six men looked around at the arena. They had moved away from the five men. Clearly they had already had words, probably after they had heard me ask their other brother if he was my brother. The gate came crashing down. The people that had been lifting it clearly let it fall free after this last small group.

In the group of five the one that had the most commanding presence looked over at the group of six. "This won't even be close to sporting, you should really just beg for my brother's mercy."

The six men looked from the group of five and back to my group of five. They tossed down their weapons and knelt so they were just inside the ring. I nodded to my pack member that was closest to the men. I kept my eyes on the other group of my brothers, as the other men fell to my pack. When the last one was out my pack returned. They were watching our brothers. "It is just us now. What are you going to do?"

The whole stadium seemed to be holding their breath. "This is not the fight my brothers and I were told would happen here today. We didn't find out until the priests separated us into rounds. I am quite angry with our matriarch." The four men to each side of him nodded.

"The matriarch has to take care of the bigger picture for our family." I watched as the trainer seemed to say the right thing but his emotions didn't match.

"I won't take another match, set by that woman. So am I your brother?"

I smiled, "Your mother doesn't make you one of my brothers. I don't give a shit who schedules your fights, as long as the law is met. I don't fight my brothers, but only you can tell me. Are you my brother?"

The leader of the other pack nodded, "Yes, sir." The pack leader stepped down into the ring. He stayed a back far enough to not be within reach before taking a knee. The other four with him followed and so did the four of my pack. I turned and looked up at our lord. I blinked and felt wosey but I kept my feet.

"Kneel, let the priests finish collecting the blood price." It said just loud enough for the whole arena to hear.

I knelt and felt our lord's flames moving around the arena. "Yes, my lord." I felt the flames dance in amusement but it was hard to tell. On my knees it was even harder not to pass out.

"Servant." Our lord was talking to the priest that had been wearing the big hat in my dream. "Strike all ten names from the arena roaster. The only person who can grant a fight concerning them is me. You will inform me of the numbers involved in this fight as soon as you get them. Take Mir, and his men to the house they won. Then bring me the matriarch of Estro and her daughters. You know where I will be."

I think our lord said more but I couldn't focus. One of my pack put an arm around my shoulders, I was small compared with my brothers. He seemed to be saying something, I wondered if it was important. Probably not, I was tired. I should sleep. My brother snapped his fingers in front of my face. What a rude thing to do. The flames felt so warm. They went all around. The black was flickering against, was that green around me? Our lord was black and even his special servants were smaller holders of his black, so what was the green?

Some of the black started breaking up the green, I wanted to stop it, but I couldn't bring myself to act against the black. I only wanted to stop it to understand, maybe I will be able to ask someone, if I get some sleep.

I felt like the ground was falling away. People were talking around me, Couldn't they just let a tired man sleep, damn it. I heard someone laughing, was that me. I think maybe I am laughing, I should stop that, it won't help me sleep.