Helith and his team had dropped them off at an auction house. The employees at the auction bound Tilos, Raven, and Hiro in chains. They took off Tilos’ and his companions' sandals for some reason. The auction employees then brought them over to a pillar that revealed their [Status]. Then they took Tilos, Hiro, and Raven backstage, behind the auction stage. Four blue lanterns hung from the wall behind Tilos, dimly lighting the backstage room.

Other enslaved people were with them, waiting their turn to go up on stage. Tilos watched group after group of slaves were called to the front stage to be sold to their new masters. The backstage slowly became less crowded as time went on. Finally, Tilos, Raven, and Hiro were at the front of the queue.

Chains were wrapped around Tilos’ wrist and ankles, limiting his range of motion. Hiro, Raven, and the other slaves had similar chains on them.

“This is not how I pictured I would spend my day. We should be back in Amun, celebrating our wealth of treasure.” Hiro said with disgust on his face. “Not bound in chains. Waiting to be sold to savages.”

“It could be worse. They had the option to execute us,” Raven said.

A guard opened the door to the room. Light from the auction room slipped throw from behind him into the backstage. The light cast shadows obscuring the facial features of the guard.

“Alright, come on up,” The guard directed the man in front of Raven up the stairs.

Tilos followed Raven, climbing the stairs leading to the door and emerging onto the auction stage. The bright light blinded his eyes. It took a few seconds for them to adjust.

He looked out at the audience. He counted about two hundred individual heads. It was easy to distinguish between the masters and servants. Masters wore expensive clothes, while their servants dressed in simple garments. Each master held a numbered card which also gave them away.

“We have a special selection today. A three-slave bundle, each from the Trinity Church. Whose members are trained from birth to be fighters.” The announcer in front of Tilos spoke.

“Actually no-,” Hiro grunted as one of the guards thrust a baton in his stomach.

“Keep quiet,” the guard whispered next to Hiro’s ear.

“Sorry about that interruption.” The announcer glareded at Hiro and then pointed towards Raven. “This lovely lady here is a Cleric, individuals who are experts in spellcraft, alchemy, and artificery. She has the [Alchemist] class. I’m sure you can put her to good use making potions for your other gladiators.” He then pointed to Hiro, “This loud mouth is an Inquisitor. Whose members are famed for their assassins and intrigue skills. His class is an [Enchanter]. You will have to be careful around this one.” He then pointed towards Tilos. “Last, but not less. Is Tilos of the Templar. The main fighting force of the Trinity Church. He has the [Templar] class. And his Legacy, [Kragna Blademaster], is a powerful one. A Legacy centered around swordsmanship and force magic.”

The crowd erupted into chatter, slavemasters talking amongst their peers and servants. Tilos focused on his hearing and deciphered the cacophony of noise into something recognizable as speech. Most were speaking in languages that Tilos could not understand. But a few spoke Ithrani when conversing with their servants or peers. The slavemasters were very interested in them, particularly Tilos. A Legacy centered around combat and that granting a magical affinity was perfect for a gladiator.

“They each are on a three-year indentured contract. The starting bid for all three will be forty thousand gold pieces.” The auction announcer spoke.

“Forty-Five thousand!” A female shouted. She held up her card, numbered twelve.

“Fifty thousand!” A man with a card marked five said.

“Sixty thousand!”

“Eighty thousand!”

“Hundred thousand!”

“Three hundred thousand!” A man in the back said. He raised his card, marked with the number six.

The audience quieted, low mummers reaching Tilos’ ears. Tilos squinted, his eyes focusing on the final bidder. He was sitting at the back of the audience. The man was bald and his skin was pale, almost sickly. Bright yellow eyes stared back at Tilos. Two bushy black eyebrows made the man look imposing when you added in his bald scalp.

“Going once,” the announcer scanned the crowd.

“Going twice,” he spoke once more.

“Sold to bidder number six!” The announcer said with a big smile on his face.

***

The carriage rolled over something, jumping into the air. Tilos flew up, and hit his head against the metal bars of the cell.

“Fuck, could you be more gentle,” Tilos shouted to the driver.

He got no response. After their contracts were sold, Tilos, Raven, and Hiro were loaded up into the back of a carriage. It was more cage than carriage, metal bars surrounding them, locking them within. Through the slits, Nifflan blurred past them. Tilos barely glimpsed the cityscape as the carriage sped down the street.

The carriage slowed and stopped in front of a large gate. Green metal bars made up the material used for the gate. Animals, shaped by twisted sections of the green metal bars, decorated the gate’s surface. A sentence from a language Tilos could not read decorated the top portion of the gate. Tilos could tell that the language was adjacent to Ithrani.

Beyond the gate was a large estate, a building standing three stories tall. At the center was a wide-open field of dirt sand.

Tilos turned to Raven, “Any idea what that says.” Tilos pointed towards the wording on the gate.

Raven squinted her eyes at the gate. “Felwen’s Ludus,” She said slowly.

Guards dressed in leather and chainmail armor, with swords by their sides, approached the gate and opened it. Allowing the carriage to enter the estate.

The carriage stopped in the center of the field. The guards from earlier arrived at the back of the carriage. One stepped up and opened the cell Tilos, and the rest were in.

“Alright, time to get out,” a guard said. He was a big man in more ways than one. Tall, but not as tall as Hiro. His stomach protruded from the bottom of the leather and chainmail vest he was wearing.

Tilos got up, hands and ankles still bounding chains. He shuffled out of the cart, careful not to fall while descending the stairs. His bare feet landed on the hot dirt sand, burning his soles slightly. He looked around; they were in an oval field at the estate's center. In front of him was the gate they had entered. He looked to his left. Doors leading into the building lined the walls.

A smiling, beautiful Ionian woman stepped into Tilos’ view. He noticed her smile did not reach her light brown eyes. Her black hair was combed back and styled with some kind of shiny product that reflected the rays of the sun.

“Hi, you must be one of the new gladiators that master Felwen bought,” a masculine voice came from the woman’s mouth.

Tilos’ eyes widened as he nodded his head. He was surprised by the sound of her voice. Or should he say his voice. Tilos looked over the man’s figure, finding no evidence of curves. His eyes then drifted around the estate, taking in the surroundings. Then the man stepped into Tilos’ view again.

“You are the Templar, correct?” the man asked.

“Yes, is that a problem for you?” Tilos responded.

“No, quite the opposite,” The man's smile broadened until he resembled a fox. Tilos noticed his clothes for the first time. Top-of-the-line fashion in the Aesir realms. Perfect and clean, not stitching out of place or a stain smugged on the fabric. “Where are my manners? My name is Creed. You and I will become quite close during your stay here.”

“Creed, stop antagonizing our new gladiators,” the same bald man who bought Tilos’ slave contract arrived behind Tilos.

Tilos nearly jumped, so used to feeling people through the Weave. He would have to get back into keeping one of his minds on monitoring his senses, mitigating the chances of someone sneaking upon him.

Creed bowed to the bald man, “Master Felwen, I would never do such a barbaric thing. I was just making sure our new guest felt welcomed.”

“Guards, escort our new gladiators to their rooms for the night.” Felwen gestured to the guards nearby. “Creed, with me.” Felwen turned and walked off at a brisk pace.

Creed stared at Tilos briefly, then followed after his master.

The guards pushed Tilos, Hiro, and Raven forward, guiding them towards a corridor that pierced into the estate's interior.

Shadows enveloped Tilos as he entered the corridor. Sheets hung above, blocking the sunlight.

The dirt and sand mixture extended all the way here too. Bits of it got stuck between his toes, making them uncomfortable.

“Stop,” one of the guards said from behind them. He came up and grabbed Tilos’ arm. “This one is yours.” He guided Tilos into the cell, the door made of metal bars. He unlocked the chains around Tilos’ arms and legs, taking the chains with him as he exited the cell.

The guard closed the barred door behind him, locking it. “We’ll come back for you tomorrow,” He said before guiding Raven and Hiro further down the hall.

Tilos turned around. A thin mattress and a bucket for waste were the only items in his cell. The floors were made of stone, and so were the walls and ceiling. He sat down on the thin mattress spread out on the floor. He then crossed his legs and activated [Meditate].