The jostling of the Skypirate's ship startled Rowan out of his sleep, he turned as Iaden and Britt slowly managed to stand up in perfect combat stances. 'It's envious that they could start so powerfully, when I am still a slug at this point in the morning.' Barely, he managed to get to his feet.

  Britt smiled at him, a brutal carved expression in her eyes. "Ready yourself, we won't go easily."

  "No, we won't." Iaden muttered, a fearful expression on his face, but the moment he saw Rowan he moved into a darker, more powerful expression. He was a warrior in full, and it was glorious.

  "Let's get ready." And Rowan fell to the back, knowing all he could really do was heal, so he would leave the fighting to the others unless utterly needed...

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  But when the door to the basement like room opened, casting shadows over the barrels of who knew what, he saw a tall man, scrawny man with blue eyes looking at them earnestly. "Ahh, my new pets. Well, let's see what you've got, my pets, show me your worth."

  And the man moved, with powerful, deliberate strikes, knocking Iaden's inhumanly powerful body aside into the wall with enough force to disarm him. Britt blasted the man with a radiating shot of astral energy, who simply and literally blew it away. Rowan did not get the chance to move, a finger pinned itself against his forehead, freezing him in place.

  "Hmm... well, maybe you'll do better in the arena."

  And darkness overtook them all once again in a cold wave of power.