The beast never blinked.
That was the first thing Ian noticed.
The creature inside the cage morphed and stood as still as stone. Human-shaped. Man-sized. Draped in long, blood-dark robes that clung to its frame like wet silk.
Its head tilted slightly, and a smile — too wide, too knowing — was carved across its face.
But its eyes…
They were blank.
Not dull, not dead. Just… empty.
Like windows that opened to a place no sane soul had ever returned from.
The cage's runes hissed, the containment wards flickering with stress. The crowd, so blood-hungry just moments before, grew uneasy. Even the announcer faltered, voice cracking beneath the strain of the silence.
"...and, uh… challenger… designation unknown. No sponsor.…"
Ian rose slowly from his seat.
"Rat," he said, voice low, "where did this one come from?"
"I—I don't know," Blackrat stammered, scanning his ledger. "Wasn't in any of the imports. No coin was placed. It's not… it's not part of the rotation."
