As they stepped into the arena, they could hear the crowd screaming in some foreign language. The sun bead down upon them, blinding any view of the onlookers. The sand beneath their feet was hot, and ominous dark droplets smeared against their bare skin.

The roaring voices suddenly hushed at the signal of a trumpet. Some strange sounds were called by an unidentifiable leader, met with a petrifying rumble as the audience stomped approval.

The two spun to stand back-to-back, tense for the inevitable moment of violence. This wasn’t a civilized court, this was a barbarian colosseum. It just so happened that the two siblings found themselves in *the* colosseum.

The two could hear each other’s breaths as a metallic rumble reverberated around the stone. They searched warily, eyes overpowered by the light above.

What emerged from the brightness was gold, with a thick mane and deep growl. This, a- a *thing* so menacing, must be a god. They were pitted against a god.