Chapter 74: Going out of Business

Nathan continued to sip at the tea as Morty had yet to gain back his composure. Anais and Ena, had already subdued the men in the room and were busy eating and sipping tea. The Therian boy was kind enough to bring them some refreshments while they waited, they saw no reason not to indulge.

Anais: “Hey Ena, don’t eat all the sandwiches, you have to share.”

Ena: “Sha-ree, if thod thef weer meen.”

Anais: “I can’t understand you with your face stuffed.”

Ena: “*Gulp*, ahh, delicious. I said sorry I thought they were mine.”

Anais: “You thought a whole tray of sandwiches were yours?”

Ena: “He set them down in front of me, what was I supposed to think?”

Nathan chuckled at the two, while he secretly handed some snacks to Iris, letting her eat while not having to be seen.

Morty stood there in silent shock. The women were sitting there in such a relaxing mood. No one would think they had just entered a slum-lord’s house late at night and took out a bunch of his men, without no-one noticing.

Nathan: “Hey what are you waiting for; come, let’s talk.”

Morty snapped out of his trance, he coughed a few times to clear his throat. He wasn’t too clear on what was happening, but he wasn’t going to pass up a chance to get in bed with the Lycanian.

Morty: “E-Excuse me, I wasn’t expecting visitors so late at night, pardon me for a moment.”

Morty ducked out of the room for a second. On the table in the hallway was a candle, that he lifted to expose a rune.

Morty pressed his thumb to the rune, causing it to glow faintly, before replacing the candle and heading back to the room. He took a quick look down the other side of the hall, none of his men had arrived yet.

Morty: “(Where the hell are they?)”

Morty couldn’t be away from the room for too long, with none of his men around, he himself, had to keep an eye on the women. However, with the activation of the rune, he didn’t really need them.

Returning to the room, he found the women still idling sitting around enjoying themselves, eating away at the snacks his servant had prepared.

Morty: “I see my servant has brought some treats, I hope there to your liking.”

Ena: “Mhm-mhm.”

Anais: “No more for you, gimme that.”

Anais took the tray away from Ena, grabbing up the last few sandwiches for herself.

Morty: “Good, good, I’m glad you like them.”

Morty glanced behind him, still, no one had arrived yet. The servant should have warned the men on the outside to come in by now, what was taking them so long?

Nathan: “If your waiting for your guys to show up from outside, I assure you, they won’t be joining us.”

Morty: “E-Excuse me.”

Nathan: “They all decided to take a nap, some voluntarily, most involuntarily knocked un-conscious.”

Ena snickered a bit, she found this way of doing things much more amusing then just destroying things. Not that she didn’t like just destroying things, but it lacked a certain finesse. She didn’t know what a ‘moovee’ was, but it got her a free meal, so she was content.

Anais on the other hand wasn’t as amused, she guessed Nathan was trying to be discreet, trying to avoid anyone from outside noticing anything and bringing the guards around. Technically speaking, they were all trespassing in someone’s house late at night. If the guards were to arrive, it was a fifty-fifty chance they would be punished for the invasion. That would bring problems not just to them, but anyone associated with them.

However, unlike Anais, Nathan didn’t witness the events from earlier. Anais’s rage was growing every second that Morty, was not writhing in pain. Though she did find some amusement in seeing him so confused and unable to cope with the situation.

Morty: “Th-This is a very unorthodox way of beginning a business meeting.”

Nathan: “I agree, but honestly speaking, is your way of doing things any better, Mr. Loan-shark?”

Morty could do nothing but reluctantly agree, like he said, most of his methods when dealing with debtors were what a common man would called orthodox.

Morty: “Regardless, a guest that steps beyond set boundaries, to any other persons, this would be the actions of intruders, more than that an invader.”

Nathan: “I suppose that is true okay then, I guess we’re invaders.”

Morty doubled-back in shock, to openly admit it to his face, she must be incredibly stupid.

Nathan: “You have a face like you just thought something rude.”

Morty: “Just surprised, so what exactly could I have done to warrant such malice?”

Nathan: “What? I heard that pigs were pretty smart, maybe you’re a rare species of unintelligent ones?”

Nathan gave a blissful smile, upon saying that, which only stood to piss Morty off.

Morty: “Fine, if you won’t answer, since you admit to invading my home, then as such allow me to act accordingly.”

Morty snapped his finger and the floor began to glow. A rune symbol appeared in and encircled the room.

*Shnnnnnnnng*

Nathan: “Oh, what’s this?”

Morty: “Foolish Mutts, do you enter someone’s else domain without a thorough investigation? Your more foolish than I thought, to think I wanted to work with you.”

Morty snorted, like a pig, a Buhii sound being made, as he began to laugh.

Nathan: “Is that his laugh?”

Anais: “Sounds like a pig gargling mud.”

Ena: “Or trying to gnaw at its own leg.”

Morty: “SHUT UP FUCKING MONGRELS, YOU SHOULD BECAREFUL NOT TO PISS ME OFF. NOW TELL ME WHY YOU ARE HEAR…….or else!?”

Nathan: “Or else?”

Morty: “One snap of my finger and that rune will detonate, causing an explosion strong enough to level this building.”

Nathan: “Ha, you don’t say.”

Nathan tried to move out of the circle, but found he was unable to. A wall was preventing them from escaping the trap.

Ena: “What ? You’re in here to, you’ll just kill yourself along with us.”

Morty: “Dear girl, do you relay think I’m stupid. The explosion will only happen within the rune, the rest of the building will be fine.

Anais: “What about all your men, there still in here?”

Morty: “They can be replaced simply enough.”

Anais: “Stand back everyone, Flare!”

Anais fired a spell, only to have it dissipate on contact with the rune-wall.

Morty: “Forget it child, your little spells won’t put a dent in my rune.”

Anais: “Oh yeah, well let’s just how much it can-”

*Pwuumph”

Nathan mushed Anais on the stop of her head.

Nathan: “Don’t do that, any of your other usual spells will attract too much attention.”

Anais stood down. Nathan was accurate enough; her next spell would have destroyed the room before Morty could. Nathan turned back to Morty, a belittling grin painted across his face.

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Nathan: “You seem pretty proud of yourself, think your pretty smart?”

Morty: “I’m smarter than you anyway. I just hope I’ll be able to scrape you all off my walls when this is done, unless of course you’re willing to except a few terms?”

Nathan: “Terms?”

Morty: “Your weapon stash, where is it?”

Nathan: “Weapon stash?”

Morty: “Where do you keep all of your weapons, tell me and I’ll let you live?”

Nathan: “Is this why you beat Ramol, for my weapons…?”

Morty: “Ramol, this has nothing to do………….wait is that why you’re here, retaliation for the failing store owner?”

Nathan: “That failing store owner, is a good friend of mine, who you are taking advantage of.”

Morty: “Hahaha, this is great, we rough him up a bit and goes crying to a bunch of women to fight his battles. Forget being a mutt, he’s not even a man at this point. What a joke for being taken advantage of…dear. All our transactions were done through a written contract, with terms both parties agreed upon.”

Nathan: “A contract with enough loopholes, to keep everyone who signs it, in your debt for as long as they live.”

Morty: “*snort* I have every intention of completing the contracts, as soon as their debts are clear. It’s not my fault their so money hungry, they forget to read the fine print.”

Morty started to laugh, a disgusting sound like a pig with its mouth stuffed with food. As he laughed his cheeks would bounce in rhythm with his laughter, a sight that brought ample amounts of discomfort to everyone watching.

Nathan: “Are you laughing or gargling?”

Ena: “Sounds like he’s chewing mud.”

Anais: “Chubby cheeked, pig face, piece of shit.”

Morty: “Your little insults won’t hurt me girls, regardless of what you say-“

Anais: “Ugly, fat lips, gargle laugh, Stuffed face-“

Morty: “SHUT THE FUCK UP, FUCKING MUTTS, NO MORE TALK, NOW TELL ME WHERE TO FIND THE STASH.”

Anais: “We’re not telling you anything, BLLPHT.”

Anais pulled on her eye lid and blew a Raspberry.

Morty: “Oh yeah, maybe this will loosen your lips *snap*.”

At the snap of his finger, a spot on the rune began to constantly change its symbol, every second.

Nathan: “What’s happening there?”

Anais: “Numbers, there counting down.”

Morty: “As soon as the countdown stops, the rune will detonate, wherever you tell me or not. I can stop it, as long as you tell me where it is.”

Nathan: “If you kill us, you’ll never find what you’re looking for.”

Morty: “That’s fine, I’m sure you let Ramol keep the ones you gave him, I’ll just beat him until he tells me where he hid them.”

Nathan could tell in Morty’s voice that he was angry. He had crossed his boiling point and now he didn’t care anymore about what happened. However, this is what Nathan was waiting for.

Nathan: “Okay, you twisted my leg. Why don’t we sit down and talk this over.”

Morty: “The time for talk is over, you will tell me where the weapons are or die.”

Nathan: “No, no, I must insist you join us over here.”

Morty: “Do you take me for a fool, as if I would be stupid……….huh?”

Suddenly, for no apparent reason, Morty began to walk forward.

Morty: “What is this…? I can’t control myself?”

He tried to stop himself, but no matter how hard he tried, he could not gain control of his body.

Morty: “NO, NO, STOP, STOP.”

Morty’s cries fell on deaf ears, for within the last few steps; he had entered the rune right alongside Nathan and his company.

Nathan: “So nice of you to join us.”

Morty: “What have you done, we’re all gonna die?”

Morty was down on all fours looking up at Nathan.

Nathan: “Now you have a choice, stop the detonation or be blown to bits with us.”

Morty: “……*Mumbling*……….”

Nathan: “I’m sorry, your gonna need to speak up.”

Morty: “I SAID I CAN’T!”

Morty screamed in frustration.

Morty: “It can’t be stopped, once the countdown starts-”

Nathan: “It can’t be stopped unless you deactivate the rune in the hall, under the candle, right?”

Morty mouth went agape, that was the exact way to deactivate the rune.

Anais: “You ass, that meant you were gonna blow us up, whether we told you or not.”

Morty: “You already knew, then you let yourselves be caught.”

Nathan: “To lure you to start the sequence, so that you can trap yourself inside.”

Ena: “Nathan, this is amazing, it went as exactly as you said it would. Could this be “Future Sight?”

Nathan: “No, no, nothing like that. Idiots like him are the easiest to fool. They never believe the can be out-smarted by someone they believe to be inferior

Morty shook on the floor in rage. The Lycanian had made a fool of him and now are he acted as though he was the only doomed one.

Morty: “YOU IDIOTS, YOU DOOMED YOURSELVES; ALL FOR THE SAKE OF THAT FUCKING MU-”

Before he could finish, Anais stomped down on the back of his head, grinding her foot into his skull. Morty groaned in pain as his head was roughly dragged back and forth across the floor.

Anais: “What ? Don’t like the taste of dirt, but you recommended so firmly to Ramol, I thought you would have loved it.”

Morty try to fight back, but the more he did, the more force Anais placed on his skull.

Morty: “Doesn’t matter what you do, all of you will all die in a minute.”

Nathan: “What are you talking about?”

Nathan walked up to the edge of the rune and Morty watched in utter shock as he left the rings interior. Ena as well walked out of the barrier, followed by Anais, after mashing Morty’s head into the ground a few more times.

Nathan: “See…we will be fine.”

Morty recovered and ran up to the barrier only to be stopped and forced back by the runes barrier-wall.

Morty: “H-How, why, why can’t I get out?”

Nathan: “What are you talking about?...of course ‘you’ can’t get out.”

Morty: “Please, the rune, deactivate it, I’ll do anything, please.”

Nathan: “Did it slip your mind?...you’re the only one who can stop it, right.”

Several different liquids escaped the orifices of Morty’s face. He looked pathetic as the haughty persona from a moment ago vanished after he saw the countdown drop below twenty seconds.

Morty: “Please, I’m sorry, let me out……………….LET ME THE FUCK OUT!”

Ena: “Ten seconds left.”

Morty watch in avid horror as the rune ticked down in the final moments and then the others began to countdown, alongside it, laughing and smiling as they did.

Anais: “Five, four, three, two, one.”

The rune lit bright and engulfed Morty.

*Boooooooooooooom*

The explosion was confined only to the inside of the barrier just like Morty had said. However, the explosion was much louder then Nathan had thought it would be, so loud that he had to cover his ears in protest.

Iris: “Master?”

Nathan: “Iris, your back, how did it go?”

Nathan had sent Iris away during his time with Morty; he needed her to search his office on the second floor for something like a safe. With all the contracts he had, he must have stored them somewhere and nowhere was more secure then right next to you while you slept.

Iris waved her hand and out popped a satchel, filled to the brim, with the contracts of all Morty’s debtors.

Nathan: “Is that everything?”

Iris: “I cleared the room just as you instructed.”

After letting everyone out of the runes confines, Iris went off to investigate the second floor and, with a little searching, found where Morty stashed all his debtor’s contracts.

Iris handed over the satchel and Nathan swiftly tossed the bag into a nearby waste basket. Nathan gave Iris the go and she immediately set the contents ablaze. The contracts were slowly burning to ash and with soon they would be just lot of ash.

Iris: “Is that all?”

Nathan: “That should solve Ramol’s problem and anyone else who owed this guy anything.”

Iris: “I’m glad, if that’s all, I would like to take another look around the premises. I lead the people upstairs outside; however the loud explosion might have drawn attention.”

Anais: “When you weakened the spells strength, shouldn’t the sound have been weakened as well?”

Iris: “I apologize. I didn’t have much time; it seems I need to work on my rune creating.”

Before Morty had entered the room or even came down stairs, Nathan and his friends had already located the rune and, with a little manipulation, weakened the explosions effect. Even if they were caught in the blast, it would not have done much. They also extended the count down, not by adding more time, but instead manipulating the time in which the runes changed.

They lead Morty to believe he was winning and that the blast would be fatal. It was no reason for him to doubt this fact, since he himself made it. All they had to do was just wait until he started the unstoppable countdown. Once he did, Iris would walk him into the trap with her abilities and then use the Alssein Eye to let everyone out.

Nathan: “Don’t worry about it; all it really needed to do was make him think he was going to die, and now look at him. That blast could not have hurt that much, and yet he is unconscious.”

On the ground, although unconscious, was Morty still very much alive. He was no worse for wear, his clothes were a mess and a foul odor wafted up from him. During the blast, it seemed Morty had lost control of his bodily functions. Everyone took an involuntary step backwards upon seeing him.

Anais: “Aww, sick.”

Ena: “It’s stinks.”

Nathan: “………..Well, I think I’ll go help you Iris, with making sure no one’s around. Do your thing Anais.”

Anais: “What!?”

Nathan: “You know the plan, only you can do this, we’re counting on you.”

Anais: “Just copy my ability…don’t act like you can’t.”

Nathan: “What……… can’t hear you…it seems the blast has messed with my hearing.”

Anais: “Don’t fuck with me!”

Nathan quickly grabbed Iris ad exited the room, leaving Anais and Ena behind with the mess.

Ena: “I…I think I’ll go help-”

Anais: “Aw no you don’t, I need you to hold him up, so I can work.”

Ena: “But, but, but.”

Anais: “Come on, hurry up.”

Ena relunctantly held up Morty, for Anais while fighting the urge to gag, Anais stuck her hands on either side of Morty’s head.

Anais: “I never done this before, so I’m not sure what will happen.”

Ena nodded, ready to move away if something went wrong. Anais then activated ‘Intelligence Thief’ and began probing Morty’s mind. With this ability, she could steal information straight from her targets’ mind and, if she so chose, permanently delete it with no chance of recovering it.

She planned to remove the events of tonight from his mind, but while she was at it, she deleted every bit of information he had obtained during his time as a loan shark. His debtors, together with all the men under his employ and any partners he had, all being erased. This would insure that he would never go into business again.

She didn’t have to, but the fact that she didn’t help Ramol earlier that day was getting too her and she wanted to punish him further. What better way than by destroying the little empire that he’d built stepping on the Therian.

Ena: “Hey, hey, what’s wrong with him!?”

Anais: “Hmm, what the!?”

Anais opens her eyes to find Morty convulsing while Ena tried to hold him down. Ena dropped him and Anais lost her connection and Morty flopped around like a fish out of water.

Anais: “…….Oops?”