The only sound coming from the courtyard was the agonised screams of the young demon which were so intense, everyone including Beth took a step back in shock.

Quickly snapping from the shock, Beth's body flickers kicking up a circle of dust as she vanishes before reappearing next to the squire's. She quickly kneels and rolls the boy over slightly grimacing at the sight.

It wasn't long before the soldiers training kicked in and they exploded into action. Large heavily armoured knights pointed their lances into the other cages and commanded those inside to sit still and remain quiet or else. The only cage still covered was quickly surrounded, cover removed revealing a long-eared demonic girl before receiving the same threat as the others.

The draconic demons cage however now looked like an inverted hedgehog as almost 20 lances were poking into the cage piercing his limbs, pinning him to the floor or floating menacingly over his vital points.

A veteran of many gruesome battles, Beth immediately knew the boy had no hope of survival. His entire throat and bottom part of his jaw had been ripped out and the white bone of his spine was barely visible before blood covered it. Only a divine healer would be able to do anything and there hadn't been one of those around for a long time.

James confused, panicked eyes darted about trying to make sense of the situation before the light finally faded and all tension left his body.

Giving a loud sigh, Beth used her hand to close his eyelids and slowly stood up, taking the time to compose herself.

The attack had been so fast and done at such an angle she couldn't even see it. She was considered one of the strongest in Alzor but it would look like she stood and watched as General Rolf’s squire got killed.

-”This is going to cause a bit of a headache” [Beth]

-“What devastating speed and power for such a young one but even so, the collar should have stopped him” [Beth]

The collars were triggered by the thoughts of the individual, giving more than enough pain to stop them from breaking any rule violations. The demons screams showed just how painful the punishment was but those who understood the collars, they knew that the pain caused to prevent a misconduct was two to three times more powerful.

“Quickly bring me a status stone, let's see what we are dealing with” [Beth]

The courtyard suddenly falls into silence, causing everyone to look at the demon's cage. His body still flailing but it's clear he’s completely unconscious

“End Punishment” commands Beth and the boy’s body goes still. She would have done it sooner if she wasn't so preoccupied with the squire and the shock of his death.

One of the knights rushes over and passes Beth a status stone. It currently looks like nothing more than a grey lump of stone but once it is bound, it will flatten into a book-sized, black plate that gives off a blue hue.

Beth marches towards the cage with a grim expression. She feels sorry for the boy but he basically committed suicide. Not paying attention to the battlefield was courting death. This might not be a battlefield in the true sense, but this colosseum housed the most dangerous of creatures on the continent and should be treated as such.

-”Hell it was even a demon, only idiots would run within striking distance, but I guess it's unfair to blame the dead for their incompetence. I just hope I can calm Rolf down before rips the demon to shreds”.

The group surrounding the front of the demon's cage separate and an old mage mutters a few words before a section of the bars disappear in the shape of a door.

“If it moves… Kill it. Do no hesitate” [Beth]

Although confident in her skills, Beth wasn't one to underestimate an opponent, especially one that had already killed despite the odds.

“YES LORD COMMANDER!” the soldiers respond in unison as a wave of killing intent spills out. This is where they lived and worked and any creature that could kill despite being collared was terrifying.

-”It's a shame but if the means to break the collars control is teachable, his life will end here” [Beth]

Beth steps into the cage briefly noticing the demons strange tail, she places the stone into the palm of its hand. As his hand is already covered in his blood, there is no need to cut the skin to bind it.

A dazzling blue light resonates from the stone before it slowly starts flattening, turning black in the process.

Realising she had focused too much on the demon boy, Beth issues out commands to the rest of the soldiers and soon the same blue light can be seen from inside the other cages as stones are bound to their occupants.

-”Need to get this finished up and deal with the fallout before word reaches Rolf and all hell breaks loose”

The blue light fades and Beth picks up the now completely flat plate before withdrawing. As soon as she exits the cage the bars materialise once again, seamlessly sealing the cage.

Taking a quick glance to make sure nothing is amiss, Beth places her finger onto the tablet.

“Display” [Beth]

White words begin to appear, causing her to suck in a deep breath.

Name: Mors Letus

Active Title: Named by God of ????

Race: Demon

Type: Draconic Imp

Health: 10/100

Mana: 80/100

Spirit: 0/100

Rage: 0/100

Stamina: 0/50

Strength: 150

Intellect: 60

Influence: 10

Primary Attribute: Darkness

Secondary Attribute: None

Skills:

Racial Traits

In my time of need [Passive]

Physical or emotional damage to those perceived close to you triggers

a berserker state.

Demonic Bloodlust [Passive (AOE)]

When thinking violent thoughts, those near you will be intimidated.

Makes no distinction between a friend of foe.

Hunters Vision

By focusing senses able to view living beings with a sixth sense.

Cannot be blocked.

Unstable Heritage [Passive]

Mental instability due to two alpha bloodlines

fighting for dominance.

Primarch [Passive]

First of your kind but not the last.

Enhanced evolution options.

Regenerative Blood [Passive]

Bloodlines combine enabling rapid health regeneration.

Cannot restore limbs.

Demonic Aura [Passive]

Demon heritage emanates from the body.

Effect dependant on the situation.

Draconic Disposition [Passive]

Extremely quick to anger and holds

a grudge for a long time.

-”.... We have a chosen as a slave. Not good” [Beth]

A chosen was a being that received a gift from one of the many gods. Normally this was a skill or status and it was pretty uncommon for them to be given a title.

Titles could provide many benefits but you could only have one active at a time and had no control over which one it would be. Some theories stated that it was down to the actions and behaviour of the individual while others said it was in the hands of the gods.

As she continued to read the plate her brows kept raising as one surprise after the other hit her. She had never seen the status plate of a youngling like this.

-”Although the stats are average, he is a primarch. The first of his kind as well as a demon/dragon hybrid.” [Beth]

-”Where in the 14 kingdoms did they find this boy, new species don't just appear out of thin air.” [Beth]

-“And look at the skills and traits. The imp is the first demonic evolution and you're lucky if you get one or two but he has eight.” [Beth]

-”It looks like it was the ‘In my time of need’ skill activating that enabled him to kill the squire. He must be a named sibling with the vampire and the punishment of the collar triggered his berserker state. Damn him being unconscious, I need him to wake up before I can view the status information to confirm. Better the devil you know than the one you don't” [Beth]

The heavy atmosphere created by the death of the squire was broken by light-hearted chuckling emanating from the wooden stage.

“That demon, I’ll be taking him” [Unknown]