Daria

Kai disappeared again after returning for her wife, and I shook my head with a sigh before pulling out my tablet. I first sent a message to the boss, informing her of Captain Virra’s conversation and subsequent departure with the two goddesses. Next, I quickly responded to Rashka to let her know that yes, I was safe, and no, I didn’t need her to fight either goddess for me but appreciated the offer.

Finally, I opened Captain Virra’s profile in order to once again adjust her threat assessment before sending a quick message to Solomon, the announcer, letting him know we were ready.

“It’s Daria, right? Perhaps now would be a good time to take us to our seats?” Lord Ithnaa asked, which prompted me to put the tablet away in order to properly respond.

“Of course. Please, follow me.”

The elevator had arrived during the captain’s confrontation with the goddesses, but enough time had already passed that the doors were now closed. I tapped on the nearby console to open them, then stepped inside. The remaining three members of Captain Virra’s crew followed shortly after, and I scanned my ID before selecting the top floor.

“So, are we just not going to talk about the captain getting attacked and then abducted by a goddess?” Samira asked without looking up from the strange orb she was carrying.

“I wouldn’t exactly call that an abduction. I mean, Bryce was literally the one to suggest it,” Sora pointed out, then Lord Ithnaa chuckled.

“And she didn’t exactly seem to be all that bothered by the attack, either. With that being said, I’m certain the captain would prefer if we waited until we were in private to discuss exactly what just happened. No offense intended, Daria.”

“None taken. I’m looking forward to hearing the official explanation later tonight.” The elevator doors opened to reveal a mid-sized room with comfortable seating and a glass wall overlooking the arena. “The fight should begin shortly, and I’ll send somebody to fetch you once it’s ended. In the meantime, help yourself to any refreshments.”

“Refreshments?” Samira finally looked up from her orb to take the room in, but only for as long as it took her to notice the food-laden tables lining the back of the room. “Oh, sweet. Thanks, Daria.”

“Of course, please enjoy, but I’d recommend against ruining your appetite. The boss is planning on inviting you all to dinner, and I suspect you’ll enjoy the food from Gusto Della Caccia much more than anything available here.”

“I appreciate the warning, but it’s likely wasted on some of us,” Lord Ithnaa smiled at the young kitsune, which caused her to stop piling food on her plate for just long enough to glare at the djinn. “Peace, Samira, I simply meant that there is no need to warn you of such things since you’re always so… judicious with what you eat. There’s nothing wrong with enjoying good food. Especially when you were deprived of it for so long.”

“Was there anything else that you needed?” I interrupted the discussion before things grew more heated.

“No, that’s alright. You should probably get out of here, so I can explain to Ithnaa exactly why commenting on somebody’s diet is generally considered bad form.”

I nodded to Sora before turning around and stepping back into the elevator. Just as I pressed the console to return to the first floor, I heard Ithnaa scoff. “Bad form? What did I say that was bad form?”

The doors closed, and I pulled my tablet out with a sigh before overriding the elevator to redirect me to the announcer’s box. The boss had already joked about purchasing the stadium with how often we’ve had to rent it out for events like this, but I had been seriously considering it.

My initial assessment had the purchase breaking even in just under a century, but that changed rather significantly if Kai killed Solomon. Working as the announcer was nothing more than a passion project for the man, who was in reality both a majority shareholder in the stadium and one of Drassun’s wealthiest entrepreneurs.

Removing him from the picture would make acquiring it significantly cheaper, but having to replace him could drastically reduce attendance and, by extension, revenue. It wasn’t a possibility I had fully considered, but it was at the forefront of my mind as I stepped out of the elevator and into the announcer’s box.

“I didn’t know! That was just the name they gave me!” Solomon shouted as Kai held him out over a wide portal that opened several kilometers above what seemed to be an active volcano.

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

“Pardon the intrusion.” I stepped forward to get the attention of the angry goddess.

“What? Can’t you see I’m busy?” She snapped back at me without taking her eyes off the well-dressed human she was holding.

“Of course, and I apologize for the interruption, but Es is concerned that there may have been a misunderstanding. Perhaps there’s something I could clarify?”

“Daria, thank the gods you’re here. Please, tell her I’m just reading from the information I was given. I didn’t know her son’s name!”

“Okay, then who the hell gave you his deadname?”

I interrupted the goddess’s questioning before Solomon could respond. “I believe I understand what happened here. It’s common for participants in these duels to have exceptionally large egos, so we have a policy of pre-writing fight introductions and having the contestants approve them beforehand. Es was concerned that the shorthand version of his name sounded out of place, and asked that we use Esmer instead. We made the change, and he approved the revision.”

“Really?” Kai frowned at me, then when I nodded, switched to glaring at Solomon. “Why didn’t you tell me that?”

“Are you fucking kidding me? That was the first thing I said! Then you smashed my desk and threatened to drop me in a gods damned volcano!”

“It wasn’t a threat,” Kai growled before releasing Solomon and letting him drop through the portal. She then turned to me with a cheerful smile. “Now, let’s get this thing started.”

I nodded and began sending messages out on my tablet. “It’ll take some time to find a replacement announcer, but we’ll begin as soon as possible.”

“How much time?” Kai paused with a worried frown.

“I’m not sure. It may be difficult when word of what happened to Solomon gets out. But I’ll ensure you’re the first one notified if we need to reschedule.”

“Fuck that. I’ll do it.”

I hesitated, but just for a moment. At this point, I was fully convinced that we would be purchasing the stadium, which would mean replacing Solomon. I was planning on using this opportunity to debut Mikhail, a charismatic young pup who just so happened to be the boss’s grandnephew.

There was still a chance I could make that happen, but I would need to be careful. Thankfully, Kai was fairly easy to manipulate. “That is… acceptable. I was worried about perceived bias turning the crowd against Es and souring your relationship with him. If I had known that wasn’t a concern, then I would have asked you to do it in the first place. I’ll be sure to do that next time.”

“Uhhh, actually, I think I like my other seat better. Plus, Z is down there and she gets lonely, you know?” Kai explained before snapping her fingers, causing Solomon to reappear kneeling on the ground nearby. “There, I hope you learned your lesson about showing proper respect to a goddess.”

Kai disappeared without waiting for a reply. I clicked my tongue before squatting down in front of the human, and pulling a white handkerchief from my pocket so I could wipe down his ash-covered face. “This wasn’t exactly the outcome I was expecting, but I suppose it’s far from the worst. How are you feeling?”

“How am I feeling? That bitch just threw me into a volcano. How the hells do you think I’m feeling?” He shouted before batting away the hand I was using to wipe his face and standing to glare down at me. “You know what? No. Fuck this, I’m out and you can tell your ‘boss’ that this is the last time we’ll be hosting for the pack. You shifters aren’t the only ones on Drassun, and it’s about damn time someone stood up to you.”

“Sit down and shut up.” I pushed mana into the words, turning them into a command, and stood as Solomon dropped to the floor to sit. Reaching down, I pulled a knife from the sheathe attached just above my ankle. It was a small, dainty thing but razor sharp and was purpose-built for these sorts of situations. “I understand the discontent, truly I do, but now is not the time for you to grow a spine. I have far too much invested in Drassun to stand by and watch while some idiot human throws it all away by angering the trickster goddess.”

He glared up at me, still unable to speak, and I shook my head. “Well, it’s no matter. I suppose we were going to have to burn this bridge eventually.”

I carefully slid the blade along the inside of my left forearm, the silver slowing my natural healing to allow the blood to pool. Next, I held the thin cut out to the kneeling human and issued my next order. “Drink.”

He seemed disgusted, but couldn’t resist the command spell. I cringed at the pain as he drank, hesitantly at first, then greedily. A dozen or so seconds later and I pulled away. Solomon already looked younger, brimming with life, and absolutely desperate for more. “We’re nearly half an hour past the scheduled start for the match. Take a moment to clean yourself up and recover, then begin with abridged introductions. Favor Es in the commentary, but not so much as to make it obvious. Understood?”

“Yes, mistress.” He stood, still a bit wobbly from the infusion of power, but otherwise unharmed. “When should I—”

“We’ll discuss that later,” I interrupted before he could ask for more of my blood. Creating ghouls like this was against Federation law, and while normally that wouldn’t stop me, Silas gave me pause. Killing a federation agent was risky at the best of times, and his relationship with Captain Virra only complicated things further. It was better just to play it safe, at least for now. “You are to head directly home at the end of this match and wait there for me to contact you. Cancel all of your plans for tomorrow and the rest of today. If anybody asks, you're to tell them that you're feeling ill and need to rest. Understood?”

“I understand,” he responded, and I knelt down to return my dagger to its sheath while I grabbed the handkerchief off the floor. My arm still hadn’t stopped bleeding, so I held the white cloth against the cut while I rode the elevator down.