Tromos was quite surprised at the turnout for the Top House Fighters’ Dinner. This was an event that Tromos hosted almost at random, but normally, he’d not have that many guests. The Vohran house fighters never turned up for the dinner, they were admittedly too… hormonally addled to do so, they’d never had a Torr or Spast house fighter until recently and most of the best house fighters were single. In fact, normally, only Tromos, the Vrekan house fighter Valorier and the Temthan house fighter Timik regularly brought their Plus Ones, and Timik, being a very attractive and very horny Temthan stud, always brought someone different. Tromos always just brought his wife, Kindyna, while Valorier would bring one of his four wives. Today, he had brought Vissana, his oldest wife. Adelfaniosis, the top Athren house fighter, didn’t always turn up to these events, but whenever he did, he’d bring along his friend, Felisiasara, but Tromos didn’t know what gender Felisiasara was, and, since this was his third time meeting them, he was a little too scared to ask. Psiksi, the top (and for a while, only) Skyavok house fighter, did often bring someone but the previous two dinners, he’d come alone.
This time though, not only had Saahrahtaar, the top Thraki house fighter, and Ct’Era, the top Banikan house fighter, both turned up, but, amazingly, there was actually a Spast house fighter present. Tenuk hadn’t brought a plus one, but Tenuk was also technically underage, despite being 57 years old, and insisted that he kinda didn’t know anyone to invite. Both Timik and Psiksi had brought members of Xeno Dessaron One as their dates, and, for once, Tanok, the Lanex house fighter, had also brought a plus one, the newly hired Ora Soundsheer, a newer Lanex house fighter who had impressed both the crowds and the Raptor as of late. Tromos felt somewhat bad not realising that Tanok was gay, as he and his fellow Ksithan and Temthan house fighters had mocked Tanok in the past for not having ever been seen with a partner.
What amazed Tromos more though was that Retvik, who had been the number one Rethan house fighter for at least a decade now, had brought a plus one, and although Tromos didn’t know much about Rethans, he was pretty sure that 1. Retvik wasn’t supposed to go on dates and 2. Retvik’s date was a General.
“So, welcome everyone! I know it has been a while since we had a Top House Fighters’ Dinner, but it’s nice to see some new, fresh faces! For those of you who don’t know me, I’m Tromos Polemistis, I’m the top Ksithan house fighter and also the master house fighter of the Great Arenas, working for the Raptor directly. It’s a pleasure to have you all here!” Tromos trailed off, then eyed Retvik. “I… I’m sorry to ask, but, Retvik, friend, I’ve known you for years, I thought you were bound to some weird bloodline and couldn’t have a partner? And what is that silver band you have been wearing lately?”
Retvik just shrugged. “Back on the 9th, the High General dissolved that stupid tradition and I was repatriated.”
“You’re not an exile any more?”
“No. In fact, I am now a captain of the 1000th Legion!” Retvik smiled. “This here is my poten-partner, General Kuta Tieridos.”
Tromos glanced at Kuta, studying them briefly. “I don’t have to call you ‘general’, do I?”
“Oh no, not at all!” Kuta also smiled, showing off a pair of fangs that put Tromos’s own pearly white fangs to shame. “You may just refer to me as Kuta.”
“Or Little Bitey!” Psiksi and Kayel both giggled in unison. To Tromos’s surprise, Kuta didn’t seem to mind the cheeky insult.
“Well, Retvik, you found someone as weirdly tolerant and tolerable as you are. Congratulations!” Tanok waved from across the table. “Also congratulations on the promotion and the not being an exile and all that.”
“Same can be said for you, Tanok!” Timik grinned, putting an arm around Nyssi. “All these years you’ve been our best Lanex fighter, coming to these dinners on your own, and here you are, with a boyfriend!”
Ora shifted nervously in his seat, fearing he’d be judged, but he was surprised to see that his new boyfriend seemed unbothered, but all the other gladiators seemed absolutely fine with their relationship too.
“You’re… not judging us?” Ora asked.
“Why would we judge?” Valorier asked back, as he pulled his wife close. “We are all of different species. We all have different tastes, different desires, different sexual orientations. Just look around you and see for yourself.”
“Valorier there has four wives, but Tromos only lets him bring one. And Valorier’s actually a bit unusual for a Vrekan as he ONLY has four wives!” Timik laughed.
“Ora, you and Tanok being gay isn’t a problem around here!” Tenuk smiled. “Same way that it’s not a problem that not everyone here is, well, sexual!”
Adelfaniosis glanced at the little Spast. “You too are asexual, Formchanger? It is common for us Athrens to remain neutral, but Formchangers are known to be flirtatious among both their own and others.”
Tenuk hesitated, then nodded. “Yeah, I am. I’m just not interested in relationships at all. Might be an age thing, since I’m technically a teenager mentally, but-”
“Harrumph, Spast-Tenuk, you are a Spast, you are longer-lived than any of us!” Saahrahtaar hissed.
Tenuk felt somewhat threatened by the large Thraki who barely fit at the table, but he just shrugged it off. “I think MOST people just assume I’m kinda old when I’m really not. How old are you, mister Saahrahtaar?”
Saahrahtaar scoffed, spitting out a tiny bit of flame. “I am 274 years young!”
“I’m 57 years old!” Tenuk beamed. “And what about the rest of you?”
Everyone else glanced at each other. Tromos stood up and went around the table, counting everyone up. “I think, apart from Ct’Era, who hit 99 last month, none of us here are over 100 years old. We had a lot of our older gladiators retire over the last few years, so this batch is somewhat young.”
“I turned 100 on the 29th of the 2nd…” Kuta muttered under their breath.
Tromos glanced at Kuta again. “Seriously? I’m normally bad at guessing the age of Threanics, but I’d swear you looked younger than Retvik. And Retvik is a bona-fide fit, incredibly healthy Rethan…” Tromos paused. “You’re not a vr-”
“Please do not suggest I have Vrykolaxia. I get that a lot. I do not have it. I spent a year locked in quarantine during the first outbreak and that was not fun.”
“Oh. Sorry…” Tromos paused again. “But anyway, I won’t judge. We are all of different ages, and we’re all of different sexual preferences and all that. The whole point of neutral lands is that we celebrate these differences and work together to overcome ignorance.”
“We also kick tail!” Timik added. “Most of us here are prominent gladiators, after all!”
“That too, yes!” Tromos remained upright as a gaggle of Ksithans appeared, bringing a wide array of dishes to the table. Once they were all gone, he raised his glass. “Anyway, a toast. To us, to our relationships, old, new and budding, and to our futures. I wish you all a bright future, beneath the gaze of the Time Dragon, the Star Whale, the Life Serpent and our blessed Death Wolf. Cheers.”
A resonating cheer echoed around the table as everyone else raised their glasses.
“To us!”
“TO US!”