"Welcome to nyayana," Seungcheol announced with a grand flourish just as Jooheon slid into the empty seat beside Kihyun.

"Where have you been?" Kihyun asked, eyes narrowed.

"Just scoping things out," Jooheon answered, his eyes immediately going to Hyungwon. He winced before looking over at them. "Changkyun thought I'd be better off sitting down here."

"You just don't trust me to teleport the human out," Kihyun accused, and when Jooheon didn't deny it, Kihyun clenched his jaw and returned his attention to the arena.

One of the boys, the one who had jumped up earlier, had once more grabbed the top bars of the cage, only this time, he snaked a wrist up, grabbing the witch's ankle.

The witch's face twitched in irritation before green sparks blossomed from his palms. He touched one finger to the metal bar, and the green current ran through the bars, zapping the boy's hands. He yelped and tumbled down onto the bottom of the cage once more, his body convulsing before going still.

"Shit," the witch muttered before looking over at Seungcheol. "Does this mean I lose?"

Several witches in the audience booed, and Hoseok leaned closer to Taehyung to explain. "Many witches place bets on which human will win. I reckon several just lost a lot of money. Or sometimes they bet on enchanted items or other things of value."

Taehyung's brow creased but he said nothing.

A moment later, the bottoms of the cages disappeared, and the boys each fell to the ground several meters below. Hyungwon landed agilely on all fours, absorbing the shock in his bent knees and elbows. A boy down the line was not so lucky, however, and from his short scream, Taehyung could only assume that he'd twisted an ankle, if not worse.

The boy who had been shocked plummeted through the air, his body hitting the sand below with an ugly thump, stirring up the sand in a small cloud. He twitched several times before going still.

Taehyung stared at the boy's twisted body. "He's..."

"Dead," Kihyun answered, not looking (or sounding) altogether too bothered by it. "It happens, and it's going to happen a lot more, so get over it now."

"Are they all going to die?" Taehyung asked, looking over at Hoseok instead because Kihyun had never made him comfortable. Taehyung's eyes begged Hoseok to deny it. "They can't, that would just be...no, they..."

Hoseok sighed. "All but one. There has to be a winner. Seungcheol will go over this year's rules in a moment."

"They're all going to die except one?" Taehyung repeated, making a choked sound in the back of his throat.

"You already know about Hyungwon's first nyayana," Jooheon said quietly. "Why are you surprised?"

"Because I thought- I thought that maybe it was just that year's event. I didn't know...do they all turn out like this?"

The witches around him shrugged.

"Pretty much," Jooheon answered, and Taehyung felt a weight settle in his stomach.

Hoseok looked over at him in concern, biting down gently on his lower lip. "You know...we can only save Hyungwon. You know that, right?"

Taehyung nodded, but the knowledge didn't stop him from looking around at the other boys. They looked to be around his age. What if he had been taken? Or Jungkook?

"Even if they got out alive, something this traumatic will just make their lives miserable," Hoseok added, trying to reason with Taehyung. "Take Hyungwon, for instance. From what Changkyun has told me, Hyungwon was alone in the world without purpose before Changkyun found him. Even then, Hyungwon had to live with what he'd done, and he still wasn't able to really enjoy life. He's been stuck in an apartment for years and years, and he only really interacts with a handful of people. Do you really want that kind of lifestyle imposed on these boys? And do you really think any other witches would take them in?"

Taehyung sighed, not wanting to admit that Hoseok was right, but he couldn't deny it either.

"This nyayana is a test of obedience," Seungcheol announced, his voice magically amplified. Beside Taehyung, Hoseok frowned, and Jooheon leaned forward. Kihyun remained staring at Seungcheol in general disgust. Seungcheol grinned at the audience before raising a hand and snapping his fingers. Immediately, the remaining boys shifted, their forms changing as various appendages - ears, tails, wings, claws - sprouted. Several of the boys fell to the ground in pain, clutching their heads. Some of them looked uncomfortable but managed to endure whatever pain had been inflicted. Hyungwon didn't react, as he was already being held in a state halfway between that of a human and that of an animal. Judging from the others, it must have been painful.

Taehyung wondered if Hyungwon was in pain as well.

Besides Hyungwon as half-human half-feline, the other boys appeared to represent a bear, a wolf, a mouse, some sort of snake (the only thing that had shifted had been the boy's teeth into deadly poison-tipped fangs), what looked to be a rabbit of some sort...The list went on.

The dead boy had been the only one to remain mercifully human.

Some of the boys, like Hyungwon, seemed to suit their animal counterparts. Others, however, appeared as strange abnormalities, gross conglomerations of traits that should not have been mixed.

The entire sight was bizarre, frightening yet entrancing at the same time. Taehyung couldn't look away, nor could the witches by his side or those throughout the room. Soft whispers had begun to sprout, following by quiet sounds of approval and - more insistently - interest, a dark, eager desire to see how it all unfolded.

"I must say," Seungcheol continued as the head coven began to float down towards the ground. "I can't claim full originality of thought for this year's event. Indeed, I must attribute credit where it's due. So, for the concept of keeping humans as mere pets, I would like to sincerely thank Im Changkyun for bring us this year's nyayana."

The vast room went silent for just a moment before the whispers started up again, more furiously this time. Blood had been scented in the form of a challenge, a grotesque mockery between powerful rivals.

Indeed, this nyayana was one that would not be soon forgotten.

Seungcheol waved a hand in the air, and the noise level decreased immediately. "I hope you enjoy the show," he said with a sharp smile directed upward to where Taehyung could only assume Changkyun was sitting. "Let's begin, shall we?"