As the naming ceremony for the Vixens concluded, the members of the K'Ral Board withdrew through a curtained arch set up behind their balcony observatory. At the far side of the of the chamber, Kane emerged from another inset doorway and motioned imperiously for the Vixens to follow him through it.
The hall that the door opened up on was dark and dimly lit by torches, despite the early morning sun that would be rising outside the House's adobe walls. The Vixens followed the scarred gladiator trainer to the K'Ral armory, a vaulted basement sunk down into the hardpacked desert earth. Rows upon rows of armaments lined its walls, stacked in piles and racked upright; pikes, swords, numerous sheafs of arrows, axes, together with a plethora of exotic and lethal tools for murder that Sharon couldn't even begin to identify. A small platoon of leather mannequins up against one dark corner were sheathed in a wide variety of scale, padded, and plate mail armors.
Presiding over the establishment were a pair of K'Ral functionaries, one aged and gnarled and the other a towering brute who functioned as a muscular manservant. After speaking with the master trainer for a period, the armorers brought each Vixen over in turn, outfitting them with a weapon as Kane explained, "The weapons that you hold now will be your signature equipment when battling in the Arena, though the house trainers will see that you are sufficiently proficient in other fighting styles and instruments should you be forced to fight under other circumstances. These weapons control your fates now, girls, so see that you respect and master them to the peak limits of your ability. Should your advance meet with the Owners' satisfaction, you may some day enjoy the right to finer quality blades... for now, you must earn that right with these."
- Sharon found herself presented with a set of two smoothly polished hardwood cudgels of the she had displayed skill with in her earlier training bouts. These weapons, however, had a leather grip and pommel, and the far end of each was wrapped in a band of iron from which four inch-long metal pyramids sprouted - sure to do vicious damage upon contact.
- Angela, the pale northern girl who would battle under the name Victoria, was awarded a medium ax with a hooked blade, and a small buckler with a large bronze spike. She hefted the ax with a look of some familiarity, and Sharon wondered whether Kane had decided to arm her with a traditional weapon of people, whoever they might be.
- Aella was given a gladius-style short sword with bronze hilt, and a weighted net appropriate for her Mediterranean features.
- The brown-skinned native twins, Vega and Vela (Sharon was actually grateful to have a name for them now, whatever its origins) were presented with an bandolier of wicked-looking knives, and a pair of punch-daggers each.
- And finally Lani, the largest woman in the group, was offered a hefty-looking spear, two horn-like hooks sprouting from the stave just before its long sharp steel head.
Sun Jan 09 21:53:09 2005