“Eris, you’re up first.” Eris gave me a silent glance then took a step forward, expanding the forcefield into a bubble for her sole protection. I remained behind, out of the way to observe the lion girl.

The lion girl acted first with a propelled lunge. Eris reacted by erecting a multitude of layered barriers to block off the approach, only to have the opponent continue as if believing none of the barriers existed in the first place.

A set of claws sprang out of her fingertips as she made contact with the first forcefield, tearing straight through two of the layers like they were toilet paper. This caused Eris to take a different approach, turning the consistency of the barriers into a sponge that could better absorb any incoming attacks.

Doing so only seemed to slow down the slashing but still not enough to make up for the distance being gained with the advantage on the lion girl’s side. It took me a moment to realize what was actually going on and why Eris’s force fields were being treated like melted butter.

“That’s ki!” I promptly communicated with Eris via ring, at the same time of being shocked. Did no one notice so far that she used ki, instead of magic? I pondered if it was an innate trait of being part of the beast race. It allowed for her explosive movement and similar power to my own. Thinking about it, she was better at manipulating her ki externally, which granted her claws with such cutting force.

Eris ignored my distracting observation, continuously fueling her reforming barriers with each layer that crumbled. It was amazing to see Eris being slowly overwhelmed, all the way until her last forcefield.

“Enough.” I rushed the slave, squeezing firmly on her wrist and outstretched claw strike. Any later and Eris would’ve been forced to get serious.

Restraining only aided at furthering her into a frenzy as she redirected her assault, swiping at my grip with her free hand. I already knew the risk of letting one of her claws nick me and avoided it altogether by tugging inwards, placing her off balance. It allowed me to capture both of her arms and enough time to activate my fear skill, seeing as she was about to follow up with her sharp fangs.

If the tense situation wasn’t bad already, that only caused her fur to stand on edge, evoking a massive roar to match it. The set of vocal cords to cause such a perfect lion’s roar didn’t match her petite frame at all. She maintained constant eye contact, choosing to ignore everything else in her vicinity.

I pushed my ability to the limits and it felt like we were trying to assert our dominance, to see which would be the first to falter.

“Back down, let’s talk...” I timed my words with a forceful squeeze of my hands, causing her to fall to her knees. She continued to bare her fangs, twisting in pain while trying to escape from my grasp. “I hope you’re able to understand me. I’m going to let go, all you have to do is settle down.” She fully surpassed my expectations, barely displaying any adverse effects from my ability.

I loosened my grasp the moment she eased up with her struggles, letting go altogether for her to recuperate. “What do you want?” Nothing about her fangs and claws sounded like it belonged to the delicate voice that escaped her mouth.

“I’m offering you a chance.” I waited for her to stand up again, “Unfortunately, you don’t have many options. If you don’t come along with me, you’ll have death waiting for you in the fighting pit.”

“How is that any different from being your slave forever?” Her rebuttal grew harsh.

“Well, that’s the catch... I’ll grant your freedom after four years of servitude.”

“Lies, I don’t believe you!” It looked like she was trying her best to hold back from attacking me again.

“I wouldn’t lie for something like this, you can see how well I treat my slaves over there.” I pointed to Jade and Selka waiting beyond the other side of the bars, standing together with the flabbergasted employee. The lion girl peeked over, maintaining a sense of caution towards us. The moment she did, Selka waved a hand at us to greet her.

“What do you want from me?” Selka was ignored as the lion girl focused her attention back on me. I thought she would have doubted they were even slaves with her reluctance to believe I’d grant her freedom.

“I’ve got a lot of people under me but not a single one is able to tag along on dangerous excursions. That is other than Eris over here.” I gestured to Eris with a hand. Eris moved to my side and bowed her head with a nod as a show of regard.

“I want you to join and fight together with us. Though we should probably know your name before all of that.” That was the most direct I could be since she seemed to be lacking the final push required to make a decision.

“I’m Lyra, and I’ll accept on one condition.” Lyra relaxed any residual tension, “Promise a real fight once I’ve recovered to full strength.” I liked hearing the prospect of her not being in tip-top physical shape, even though I kind of already knew so by the rough treatment to her body.

“I know when someone is holding back, especially Eris. The only other person to treat me that way...” Lyra went quiet, taking in a deep breath and closing her eyes to recollect herself. I imagined it was family of some sort that fell victim to the same slavers that abducted her. It was one nightmare after the other for everybody back home and she wasn't any exception.

“Deal, You can call me Volatis and I’m looking forward to it, Lyra.” I replied immediately and figured it best to help get her mind off of any sad memories. I also made it a point to have her specifically call me by my name, instead of like the others that chose to give me the surname of varying forms of master.