Misfortune Market: A HASEA CHRONICLES STORY (BOOK 1.5) (6 page)

The Will O’ Wisp eventually sold for nineteen notches – the winner was a Bloodseeker with long hair that had been died the colour of blood, which had the effect of making his grimacing Hannya mask appear even more gruesome.

“Be careful with this,” warned the Overseer as his right hand man carried it over to the waiting Oni for exchange.

The Bloodseeker gave a dark laugh. “Don’t worry, I won’t have it for long. I intend to gift it to another very soon.”

Not a gift the recipient will enjoy receiving, I’ll bet.

I kept my eye on the Bloodseeker as he finalised his terms and picked up the item. The crowd instantly parted like the Red Sea, giving him ample space to get through. I glanced at Gabriella and the others, seeing their collective concern.
We can’t let him just walk out with a weapon of that power.
I was wracking my brain to think of a solution, but put it on the back burner, when I saw the Bloodseeker take a seat at one of the makeshift bars and carefully set it down on a stool next to him.
He’s not going anywhere yet, thank god.
I kept a mental check of his position.
That could come in useful if things get out of hand.

A few moments later the Overseer gestured towards his silent assistant and the Devil walked over to the third lot.

The ‘lot’ was a terrified looking Shinroba Elf bound by her hands and feet.  She gave a small whimper as the Devil roughly hoisted her over his shoulder and threw her down at the feet of the Overseer. I felt anger burning in my stomach, a deep rage that I could barely contain.
How dare these arrogant arseholes think they have the right to do this to innocent people!

The Elf stared out at the unforgiving crowd, her damp golden eyes searching for compassion but finding none.

“Lot number three may look like any Shinroba Elf.  But she is in fact an
unsullied
Shinroba Elf. As we all know, such a pure specimen is a rare commodity these days. This delicious creature was captured whist attempting to hide from Hades’ forces in the Bloodsand Deserts in Pandemonia.” The Overseer gave a shake of his head. “It is foolish to think that anyone can hide from a force as powerful as the Demon King.” 

A burst of laughter came from several Umbra members of the crowd. However, just like when the dagger had been unveiled, there were expressions of discomfort from many of the Luminars that made up the numbers.

“We have Gemmell to thank for procuring this fine specimen and keeping her fresh for the next bidder to enjoy.” He aimed the tip of his cane towards the Yokai pimp, who gave a thumbs up. The girls around him turned their faces away, fresh tears spilling down their cheeks.

“P-please, let me go,” sniffed the girl.

“Silence!” growled the Overseer and smacked her across the back of the legs with his cane. She let out a whimper and fell silent. It took every ounce of my resolve not to jump right onto the stage and tear the Overseer’s head from his shoulders at that moment. Next to me, I could feel that every other Guardian felt exactly the same.

“This beauty is only fifty years old, and as you can see has a simply exquisite tanned face and hair as dark as Wilderoot oil.” He crouched down and let a few strands of it trail through his gloved hand. “She will make a wonderful servant for any buyer. You can use her to cook, clean and…whatever else your heart desires. However, pure is rare, and rare fetches a price. As such we will start the bidding at a respectable two notches.”

Coins went skyward as soon as the Overseer stopped speaking. He sauntered up and down the stage, pointing his cane as the numbers rose. In comparison to the dagger and the Wisp, the rise was far less remarkable. After only ten seconds, the only coin-holding arm still in the air belonged to the drunk Skinshifter who Gabriella had knocked to the floor.

“Five notches for the bitch,” he slurred, and the other shifters around him gave deep, bellowing laughs as if he had told the world’s funniest joke.

“Sold for five notches to number thirty-six! Please come to the side of the stage to collect your delectable prize!”

The Skinshifter received slaps on the backs from those he was with and he staggered forward, using his huge hand to keep his mask in place, which had splintered and cracked from what looked like a pretty rough fight. He stumbled up the stairs, ignoring the Oni who tried to stop him and went straight for the girl. In a second, the Devil spun around and drove a hoof into his chest, sending him careening across the stage.

“Do
not
come on the stage!” yelled the Overseer, his veneer of composure slipping loose for the first time. He took a deep breath and calmed his voice. “I would politely ask that you - like all the other bidders - speak to my associates and settle the terms of your purchase,
before
you collect your prize, from
them.
”

The stunned Skinshifter raised a hand in apology and picked himself up off the floor, before walking over to the Oni. A moment later the trembling Elf was handed to him and he scooped the poor thing up, throwing her over his shoulder as the Devil had done, and strolled back down the steps with the swagger of someone who had just won the lottery. He joined the others who laughed and prodded at the crying girl.

“Ella, we can’t let this carry on!” hissed Scarlett through gritted teeth.

“I know, I know.” Gabriella lowered her head for a moment, lost in thought.  A second it snapped back up. “Screw it. Everyone gather around me.”

We all formed a tight circle around our leader, hiding her from sight. After checking around for prying eyes, she lifted her coms bracelet to the mouth slit in her female Noh mask. “Crow’s Nest, this is Huntmaster De Luca requesting full backup. I repeat, I am requesting full backup. The situation down here is far worse than we thought. We need immediate support,” she whispered.

There was a tense moment of silence and then my earpiece crackled into life. “This is Crow’s Nest. Your request has been received and approved. All available Guardians have been pulled from their assignments and are en-route to your location. ETA fifteen minutes.”

Gabriella clicked off.

“Does this qualify as a top code emergency?” asked Grey.

She gave him a sideways glance. “It is now.”

“Won’t you get in trouble?”

“Probably. But I couldn’t care less.”

I couldn’t help but smile under my mask.
Yet another of the many reasons I love this girl.

“A lot can happen in fifteen minutes, and we can’t chance someone leaving with Andrea before backup arrives. If we lose sight of her, she’s gone,” explained Gabriella. “Delagio, I need to get hold of one of those coins.”

The Kinesist cracked his knuckles in an exaggerated manner and then shook out his hands. “No problem, boss.”

Gabriella turned to me. “Alex, I want you to stop that asshole Skinshifter from taking the Elf out of Inferus. Take Grey with you.”

Grey and I both nodded in unison. “On it,” I said.

“Scarlett, I need you two to get that Wisp away from that Bloodseeker without calling attention to yourself if you can. We can’t afford to have something that dangerous leave either.”

The Bloodling nodded. “If there’s a way, I’ll get it done.”

“Grey, let’s go,” I whispered.

We walked away from the team, threading our way through the crowd. I never let my eyes drift from the Skinshifter, who had now been joined by three of his friends and was staggering towards the tunnel covered by the drape.

Four of them, two of us. It’ll be hard, but not impossible.

We passed through the drape and saw that the Skinshifters were throwing the Elf roughly between them, manhandling her and laughing at her terrified whimpers. I could feel the anger inside me brimming to the surface, could feel my teeth gritting together as I glared through the mask eyeholes at the arrogant Pandemonians.

Attack them.

The dark thought thundered into my mind.
No, I need to be careful about this.
I tried to wait – it was stupid to attack four huge Skinshifters inside cramped tunnels surrounded by innocent people – especially if they shifted back - but I could barely contain my rage. The further we followed them, the more in became uncontrollable it became.

Get them, now!

I can’t wait any more.

“You ready?” I said through gritted teeth.

Grey looked shocked. “Wait…what?”

“Protect the girl, okay?”

“Alex…”

“Stop!” I shouted at the top of my lungs. My voice reverberated all the way down the long passage. Around me I could see those inside the holes they called homes shrink, trying to avoid the conflict they knew was brewing.

The Skinshifters slowed and turned, their massive frames filling the narrow sewer tunnels. They all wore identical masks and the only way to tell them apart were by the colours of their overalls – purple for the leader, red, green and blue for his friends. The leader let the Shinroba Elf slide from his shoulder to the murky ground.

“You talkin’ to me?” he slurred.

“Yes I’m talking to you. You’re not taking that girl anywhere.”

The Skinshifter waved a dismissive hand. “I ain’t got time for this. Get your own whore, there’s plenty of em,” he growled and turned away, picking up the trembling girl once again. The others laughed and started walking again.

My body moved on automatic pilot and before I knew what I was doing, I was sprinting down the tunnel and launching into a flying kick. I caught the leader square in the back and he lurched forward, knocking down his comrades like skittles. Before the Elf could hit the floor I whisked her away and threw her to the approaching Grey.

He caught her in his grip and pulled her behind him. “Don’t move or fight,” he warned. “We’re here to help.” She blinked in confusion and then nodded.

“Motherfucker!” The Skinshifter slammed a hand onto the floor, splashing up foul water. He stood up slowly, his frame seeming to stretch and grow as he turned to face me. His mask had dislodged, revealing a grimacing mouth covered in scars. Behind him his friends were climbing back to their feet. He dipped a hand into the back of his waistband and pulled out a long, adamantine knife. “That was the biggest mistake you’ll ever make.”

I raised a hand over my back and withdrew the Crimson Twin sword from its holster. Its blood red blade glistened in the flickering lantern light.

“I doubt it.”

Everything happened as fast as a click of fingers. Purple leader charged, slashing out with his knife. I pivoted on the spot and kicked out, slamming his arm into the wall with the heel of my boot. There was a loud crack and a howl as his wrist snapped and the blade clattered to the floor. I stamped the toe of my boot against the handle of the knife and sent it flying towards Red. He hissed as it buried deep into his shoulder.

A split-second later a fist flashed at me from the side as Blue sent out a rock-sized fist. It caught me by surprise and spots bloomed in my vision as my head pinballed off the wall. The mask fell from my head and splashed to the ground. He came straight in with a follow-up punch. I ducked under the attack and swept out with the blade, severing his legs below the knees. He let out a piercing scream as his body thumped against the ground. A second later his skin started to go slack as his true form dragged itself from the wounded shell.

“Grey!”

The Guardian sprinted forward as I blocked an almighty kick from Green and he jumped high into the air, pulling a silver blade from his Kapre belt and driving it deep into the skull of the emerging hound. A thick jet of blood sprayed over his uniform and the beast fell silent. He heaved the blade free and retreated back down the tunnel to where the trembling Elf stood.

Green let out a roar of fury when he saw his dead friend. He snatched out a knife of his own and slashed out.

Riiip.

The blade slashed against my arm just as I jerked away, tearing nothing but cloth. He kept lashing out and I blocked each attack with my sword, sending up showers of sparks. Raising his blade above his head, he lunged at me. I somersaulted backwards, extending a foot and catching him under the chin at the apex of my jump. The blow lifted him right off his feet and he collapsed to the ground – stunned – at the same time I landed in a crouch. I glanced up and my heart snagged in my chest.

Shit.

Purple and Red had torn free of their imprint skins, the remains of their clothes lying in a pile of tattered gore. I clutched the sword tighter in my hand until my knuckles turned white and tried to steady my breathing. It was tough enough to fight a Skinshifter when they were in human form. Things got a whole lot harder when they reverted back.

Within seconds their bodies had snapped and twitched into place, and two snarling hounds the size of horses were glaring back at me. They were so large their shoulders pressed against the sides of the tunnels and they had to charge me one by one.

But they still charged.

Purple let out a thundering roar so loud it made the lanterns shake on their hooks and the material of my overalls ripple. He lowered his head and cantered towards me, jaws open wide and saliva streaming from between his thumb-sized fangs. I slowed my breath and remained perfectly still, even though every muscle in my entire body was screaming at me to move. I waited until he was seconds away from me.