Authors Note: Just a reminder that italics are flashbacks. This chapter is the reason I posted the last one when I wasn't completely happy with it. Hope you enjoy it.

"Dammit Deuteronomy, this is my son we're talking about!" Janus paced along the carpet of Deuteronomy's hallway.

"I am aware of that Janus. If he were not your son you would have started his training the day you realised he was a Lutador."

"Aren't you sensing a pattern with our Lutadors? They come to us, we train them, they die, usually young and in a violent way. I want better for my son."

"And I understand that. But what of his own safety, soon he will be in danger anyway. Demons aren't going to pass up the chance to kill an untrained Lutador."

"Then they'll regret it," Janus growled, extending his claws.

"You can't protect him forever."

"I know," Janus sighed, "When the day comes I will train him, but not now. He's only fifteen years old."

"We've trained younger,"

"At what cost? They don't realise the risk involved, they don't realise that they'll pay with their lives."

"It is their calling, if they don't do it then who will?"

"I don't know! Ok, does that make you happy? Without Lutadors the world would probably be doomed."

"You know it doesn't make me happy. If I could release them from their duty then I would, but I can't, it's their destiny, and we're here to train them. I'm sorry about Munkustrap, but this is the way things are. He has to be trained."


"You want me to train her?!"

Deuteronomy remained calm despite my outburst,

"She is a Lutador, Munkustrap."

I noted the use of my full name grimly, Deuteronomy was all business now.

"She's also a nervous wreck. Macavity drove her damn near to breaking point, and if she had have been trained he would have been able to kill her and take her blood. Training her will just attract Macavity's attention."

"She needs to learn how to defend herself, it's not only Macavity that lurks in the dark, many demons will try to kill her because of what she is trained or not."

"Deuteronomy, you're sentencing her to death at Macavity's claws!"

"And do you sentence her to death at the claws of every other demon in the city?"

I stopped speechless, Deuteronomy knew how to stop one of my rants by now, and still did it with flair.

"Start her training, even if only enough to defend herself, it still may not be enough power for Macavity's spell, you will be the one he wants for that."

I nodded dumbly,

"I just don't want her to get hurt, don't want her to live this god-awful life, one of us is enough."

Looking into Deuteronomy's eyes I spotted a trace of sadness.

"Munkustrap, I don't think you realise how much you remind me of your father."