Maybell's Emporium. A little known place by the east side of town, it was well within the shopping plaza network. It wasn't on any main street however, but on a side street of a side street, which meant most people who were not local would never be able to find it, and even locals had some difficulty sometimes. Bell himself usually never came to this shopping center, but he was able to find it using his GPS and AR glasses. Following the holographic lines in the air, he was able to find it quite quickly.
The shop looked quite old, probably from pre 2020s, or even pre 2000s. It had all sorts of oddities and trinkets in the window. A flute, a bow, and what appeared to be a shield. Deeper inside through the window, he spotted what appeared to be a sword in a stone, a box, and a Crystal Skull. There were also some creepy things, such as a monkey's paw in a glass case. The shop had a standard double window display out front, with a way to open it up in the back. There was a lot of wooden elements, looking a bit old but incredibly sturdy and well maintained, likely expertly restored. The door itself looked like a simple wooden door with a sign that said "Maybell's Emporium" on the front, and featured an elegant old style doorknob where you grabbed an ornate extended part and pulled it down while pushing in to open the door.
That said, Bell had a weird feeling from this place. It was strange for sure, like something about it just was not normal. The entire place seemed to radiate a dangerous energy, and he could feel magical energy coming from a few of the symbols carved into the door. Its almost like they were speaking to him, giving him a warning and yet inviting him in all at the same time. Their energy was thick though, it was as if to get closer he would have to wade through a rather strong stream or river while wearing heavy winter clothes.
Even standing just a few feet away from the door, Bell had a feeling this place was not ordinary. Chills crept underneath his skin and penetrated his bones. Even standing in the snow in the middle of winter naked wouldn't produce such a chill, and it made him wary. But unfortunately, it made him so wary, the moment he saw his reflection he panicked. His suppression had already come undone, he felt it was that dangerous. But that also meant he couldn't stay out here. There was no one outside currently, but who knew when that would change.
Rallying himself, he pushed forward through the torrent, and grasped the handle. He pushed open and went inside, and in that moment all of that energy he felt was gone.
"Hmm. Quite a good response time" a woman in her twenties said. The moment Bell saw her, he couldn't help but notice her beauty. Her features were an exagerated personification of a beauty that every man would fall for, and even Bell felt self conscious about being looked at by such a person. Her figure was not something that Bell had ever seen in reality, her proportions defied what he had ever seen. And it all was just so captivating, as the woman gave him a wink he felt his face become as red as a tomato.
"Ah! Umm, this is just a costume I am trying out!" Bell tried to reply, but the woman just chuckled.
"Fret not, Fox-kin. You need not make excuses with me. In the first place, it is impossible for anyone to hide their true form in my store, no matter how hard you tried anyways. Especially for a little boy like yourself. Although I will say it appears you are quite bad at control if you dropped it on the street. Then again, with my shop's aura, I suppose it couldn't be helped".
"I am not a little boy!"
"Oh yes you are. Then again, when you get to be a few thousand years old, I suppose most people are little boys and girls to me. Except my husband, the star of my light, the darkness that makes me feel, the yin to my yang. But enough about my one true love, my soul mate, the only one who shall my heart belong. We should be talking about what you are, little boy".
"Wait...you know what I am?"
"Of course. Then again, that battle yesterday may not have been very public, but it wasn't that hard to miss either, little boy".
She came out from behind the counter. Her clothing did nothing to hide her figure. Although it was not super exposing, one could say it was even more seductive as it exposed just enough but not too much. However, that was not the only thing Bell picked up on.
This woman...is dangerous.
The woman looked him over, looking at his expressions.
"Ah, I see. You have only recently awakened your powers. In that case, you found this place because you needed my help to examine you and help you learn to use and control your powers, and blend in with the humans. Do not fret little boy, I will provide you with great education and services".
Her words felt overwhelming to him. He wasn't quite old enough to fully be into that, and yet every single thing she uttered made him go red in the face. Even just looking at her made him antsy.
"You may call me Maybell le Fay, although some people like to refer to me as the Enchantress of Orkney, Old Crone, or Witch of the Silver Moon. It appears I have quite a bit to educate you about".
Bell couldn't help but gulp at that, as if instinctively understanding it might be weird and such. And yet, there was a part of him that was nagging away.
Something about this feels...off. And its not just my emotions.
"Um..." Bell tried to get out.
"Yes, little boya?" she whispered into his ear after kneeling down to his level while stroking the entire length of his spine.
"Its just...you are saying all that, but...why does it seem like your words feel so hollow?"
Everything she said felt seductive, but her body was also just that way as well. It was hard to realize at first, but...despite everything else, while it certainly felt seductive, it seemed like it wasn't actually seductive.
Not only that, but Bell was sure there was a supernatural element to this. It was like, beauty was a core part of her, perhaps intimacy and seduction as well. A succubus? If so, it might explain a lot. Perhaps it wasn't because she wanted to, but because she had to...because she was forced to. Or perhaps she just liked to mess with people. All he knew for sure is that, she wasn't at all being serious with him yet. Not truly.
"Hou" she said, finally smiling. "It appears you are quite a talented little boy. Now then, perhaps you would also like to put your request into words?"
"...would you please help me learn about my new body and powers, and teach me how to use them as well as control them?"
The woman's smile increased, as she nodded.
"Very well. Let us head into the back then".
She snapped her fingers, and then suddenly, a second her appeared behind the counter. She led the boy down a back hall, around a corner, and then down some stairs. On the outside the shop looked so small, but it appeared to be far bigger then it appeared. They then reached a door that looked far more sturdy, and had a basket right outside it.
"First of all, everything in the basket. Clothes, shoes, underwear, phone, everything".
"Wait, what?!"
"I need to examine your entire body, see how it reacts for every flake of skin, to make sure we can do this in a way that wont end with you exploding, becoming possessed by a demon, or possibly reducing all your belongings to ash".
"Wait, what was that last one?"
"Lightning and fire based abilities are powerful, but also prone to being very destructive. If we push something the wrong way, not only would you end up in that room naked, but you would have to walk home naked".
Hearing her words, Bell's face went red but he nodded and understood. He put everything in the basket until he was completely naked, and he felt incredibly self conscious being seen naked by such a beautiful older woman. Pushing through his extreme embarrassment, the two entered the room and she sealed the door behind him while he saw the room itself. Gigantic scorch marks that could have come from massive explosions, walls pulverized, and what appeared to be claw marks.
"Sorry about that. Like you, someone who awakened powers recently. Just used the room this morning to help get a feel for their dragon blood so they wouldn't destroy anything, expose themselves, or even just incinerate all their clothes. Thankfully you listened. They didn't the first time".
Dragon Blood. So someone with the powers of a dragon had used the room last. That was a bit of a shock for Bell.
"Now, stand in the center of the room. Start with your feet spread out about two feet, along with your arms to make a star shape" she said as she put on tinted glasses. "And please, no need to cover yourself. You are not the first adorable little boy I have examined, not even today. You can think of me like a doctor for these kinds of things, although only for cases and people that I take an interest in".
He moved his hands away and spread out, as she went around and closely examined him. She took extra interest in his ears and tail, although she started to take out a few tools and take some samples which got a bit on his nerves.
"Hey!"
"Aww, a bit shy?"
"...you are just messing with me, aren't you?"
"I will leave that up to your imagination".
No, even now, every word she says feels hollow. She may talk and act all seductively, but...there is zero serious interest behind it.
That didn't make it any less embarrassing, but she did seem to be doing the examination properly. She poked and prodded, she toed the line with her actions and explanations, but she never crossed it.
Furthermore, he could see it in her eyes. A sharp glint every so often, a minor shift in tone where her words became more direct and frank.
And every time she used her hands to adjust his position or see how something reacted, he felt not only the exchange of magic power, but also it felt like she was...missing someone. Someone she desparately wanted to see. Perhaps that was why no matter how embarrassing it got, he was able to make it through. This woman may have acted like one thing on the surface, but Bell was able to see her true colors more clearly the more they interacted.
A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
Bell was barely able to grab the questions he wished to ask in his throat, knowing it was ill suited for a first time meeting.
Who is the husband you are so clearly devoted to?
Who did you lose that makes you so sad and careful?
He had no doubt she would deflect it by making this even more embarrassing as well, but he thought it would be poor taste to ask those questions right out of the gate.
In the end, she had him do some jumping jacks, push ups, sit ups, and do ten laps around the room after the examination. She nodded appropriately.
"Let me take a guess. You cant keep up the suppression when wet, right?"
"Yeah..."
"Shall I explain to you why?"
"Its because of the electric field, right?"
The woman smiled. "Well done on figuring that much out, little boy. However, there are other reasons you are having difficulty with supression. Some of them cant be helped. Defense instincts and survival instincts, there will never be any way to truly stop yourself in those conditions. Not only that, but it would be unnatural".
"Because this form, this body, is my natural body?"
"Correct, little boya. Here is a treat" she said, pulling him into a hug. Needless to say, he did not like that and got embarrassed again.
"Could you please not" he said after breaking free.
"Consider it my payment for services rendered, a start of our intimate relationship. After all, you cant pay me otherwise right now correct?"
Bell gulped a bit. "...I would appreciate if you could use less misleading wording. We both know you aren't serious".
"But your reactions to that are also a part of my payment, unless you have another way".
"...can I just get dressed now?"
"I still need to see what you can do with the lightning, and there is one more test on top of that. Not finishing it would be bad, and I would have to punish you".
Not wanting to continue, he proceeded to produce all the electricity he could. Rather then just trying to control and manage it, he figured he could go all out here and just release it all. It was certainly impressive, but he soon understood something.
What...is this...
Something about it felt cleaner and clearer then before, like he had more control. And looking inside himself, he noticed something. At several of the points she had tapped him, magical energy was flowing better. Like it had been blocked, and she unblocked it. It was so powerful, and yet potentially dangerous. It gave him a newfound respect and understanding of the power he had gained.
"Did you..."
"You yourself claimed to know what I did before was hollow. So explain it".
"...you were unjamming and optimizing my magical energy points?"
"Something I could only do if you were naked so I could properly see the flow of mana through your body".
"Then the physical excercise. Was it to warm up not just my body, but get it synced with the mana through activity?"
"You are a fast study. Perhaps you may only end up taking a few days".
"A few..."
Before he could finish that sentence, chains shot out of the floor, walls, ceiling, all over. They coiled around his body, yanking him into the air and suspending him with his limbs chained up and stretched in different directions.
"What the hell is this?! Why did you do this?! You tricked me?!"
"Now now, little boy. Fret not. This is not me, but you".
"...its me?"
"Correct correct. There is another reason you have had difficulties controlling your abilities, aside from not having a good teacher or tuner. Its because you got more than just the power from that ritual site. It appears you got its seal as well. Those are mystic chains that are attempting to bind you after going all out with your power. So long as they are not under your control, it will continue to clash with you. Do not worry, I will have a bucket placed under you and make sure your tails are not in the way, and make sure you get plenty of food and water. So just focus on dealing with those chains for now".
"I absorbed the power and the seal?"
"Indeed. It appears the ritual was not quite performed correctly. Not only did it awaken the power within you, it also transferred the seal that was preventing the ritual from being used. Funny enough, that seal is specific to not only power coming from the site, but the ritual site itself. That means that without you, no one can use it or perhaps even find it again, if it moved. In any case, work hard. You probably wont want to be up there a whole week".
She said that as she left the room, leaving the immobilized boy there to be tightly suspended in the chains. He could really only wiggle his fingers and toes, and his tongue. He could move his tails a bit as well, but even they were restricted, and they felt heavier than before as well.
At the same time as that, he found himself, or his mind, elsewhere at the same time. Once again he was standing upon the island, the same one where he had claimed the power, and the blade. But unlike last time, this time he was wearing something. A metal collar around his neck, with a chain attached to it, as well as shackles around his wrists and ankles, with similar chains. The chains ran up the sand of the island, where the ritual site now was. And there were even giant chains all around the island, as if the island itself was chained to its spot.
"What the hell even is this place?" Bell wondered aloud.
"The spirit world...and your own soul" a familiar voice told him. He looked around, and tried to run towards the ocean immediately.
"Mom!"
The moment he made it to the beach though, the chains pulled him back, dragging his butt directly onto the sand and leaving a butt shaped trail across it.
"No! Damnit! Mom! Please, just show up! Let me see you!"
There was no response this time, and Bell rolled around and thrashed in the sand, his skin becoming increasingly covered in sand as he had a bit of a tantrum.
He had thought he had moved on, but something like this was basically torturous to him.
"I just want to see you" he said, as tears rolled from his body and chains began to ensnare him. When he noticed, he tried to fight them off, but they only became more intent at aggressively capturing him. "No! Get off, get away!"
A chain even went around his neck. He tried to pull it off, but it didn't seem to budge.
Maybe it would be best...if I fell here. Even I must admit the power is dangerous. It needs to be protected.
He thought like that as he waited for the chains to choke him out, but it never came. He opened his eyes, and the chains that had swarmed him were gone. The collar around his neck and the chain attached to it was there, but not the one that tried to choke him out.
I am alive? Why?
He sat up on the beach. As it was in the spirit world, or perhaps because of his own new resistances, the sand was not scorching hot on his bare skin. At first he thought those resistances had helped him too, but then he realized it.
"...even now, I am still afraid aren't I? It's exactly what Ruu said. I am afraid. Afraid of the changes going on to my body, afraid of people seeing me like a freak, afraid of what my power can do".
He then looked out at the water.
"And afraid...of truly letting go of my mom too, I think".
When he looked down, the chains had severely gone down. Both his wrists were free, as was his right leg. He looked back at the ritual site.
"But others, others wont be anywhere near as afraid will they? They will want to use the ritual site to gain this power, they might cause devastation and use that power in bad ways. You want me to say..."
He started to feel a chain coil around his right leg, but he had stopped before then.
"No, I can't promise anything like that. I am just a kid. This isn't something iv just been given. Its a part of me. Of course I will use it for fun and personal reasons, I have that right. And it would be wrong of me to lie about this".
The chain uncoiled itself and disappeared, as did the one on his left leg.
"But I will help you make sure that no one bad or unjust uses it. As the key, I will protect myself and make sure no one else uses it for nefarious reasons. And I try to make sure I dont fall into the darkness. I wont promise I will be perfect, or that I wont make mistakes. I can't do that. All I can promise...is to do my best".
At those words, the collar around his neck shattered, as did the giant chains. And then the world was engulfed in light.
----------------------------------------
The Old Crone came back into the front, where she saw a sight that did not surprise her. Three men in business suits were there, each one was white, bald, and carrying a briefcase and wearing a fedora. In fact, they looked exactly identical to each other that they could have been triplets.
"Well now, what a surprise. Lawyers from Wolfheart Legal. I wasn't expecting snakes today".
"We know he is here..."
"...you don't want a war do you..."
"He stole something from us".
The three lawyers spoke in cold, almost robotic short sentences.
"That little boy stole nothing of the sort. His power is his alone, even if a certain seal decided to play hard ball".
"The Jester is right outside. We can settle this diplomatically".
"Or we can fight, and who knows what might happen".
"Do you really wish to risk your store? Excalibur and Pandora's Box for one child?"
When they said that, she shot them a glare.
"Are you really threatening me? Such tough, bad boys" she muttered, and the men who had spoken so coldly and robotically even got a bit red. "It's funny how you act like this, thinking your law firm, which is barely even a law firm anymore, will somehow be a threat to me? I am over three thousand years old. My precious husband is even older despite how he acts, and we have been married for over two thousand years. You are batting well outside of your league, snakes. I am curious though, did you join up yourselves, or did you spawn from your boss? She still turning people to stone these days?"
The snakes finally showed an emotional reaction, and their true forms, as their forked tongues emerged as they hissed at her in a rage.
"I swear, she enjoys her puns way too much. You would think she would have better taste then such a bad pun".
The lawyers all hissed even more.
Good, they are quick to anger. If I dispose of them completely, I should be able to scare them enough to leave me be for awhile. But depending on how serious they get, and who else gets involved, even if I wont get hurt, there is no guarentee they wont take Bell away while I am busy. Provided they can move him that is. Its only been twelve hours, so I probably need to hold on for at least another day and a half to two days at least.
She had thrown his clothes into the laundry so they would be clean when he got out of there, as well as having prepared a bed and a shirt and boxers. No doubt after being made to deal with that seal, he would need some time to sleep. Despite her antics, she truly did have no real interest beyond her husband, although she had a number of friends and people she did find interesting, and fun to tease. When you get to be hundreds of years old, you end up letting loose and developing quirks. Even immortals couldn't help it.
The fact the lawyers were literal snakes was probably related to that as well.
As she was about to get serious, a pair of feet stormed up the stairs and the hall in the back, and a rather furious boy with fox ears and tails stormed in. Wearing just a T shirt and boxers, he glared at her as she said his name in surprise.
"That was fast Bell".
"Where the hell are my clothes?!"
For a moment, even she was shocked right now. Looking at the boy, disbelief had overcome everything else.
He broke the seal in only twelve hours?!
The little boy in front of him had greatly exceeded her expectations. But even moreso was that look in his eyes. It brought back melancholy memories of past friends, and her husband.
He is different.
"They were dirty you know? Probably cant be helped, little boys like you are always getting dirty so easily. I put them in the laundry. I figured you might prefer having clean clothes. Congrats on your speed by the way. Only ended up having to use the bathroom once".
He went red in the face.
"Don't you dare ever talk about that! Now, where is it! I need to check in with my dad!"
She took out his phone from her pocket and tossed it to him.
"Thats fine and all, but what do you want to do about these guys?"
He turned around, and saw the lawyers. Their faces seemed partially morphed into snakes, and their tongues were clearly forked as well.
"...are these literal snake lawyers? I know your weird and shit, but that's just tacky".
"Ha! See, I told you guys it was tacky!"
The Snake Lawyers seemed really quite annoyed at what was being said about them, and even moreso glared at him.
"Ummm, what is with these guys?"
"Oh, you can think of them as being hired thugs. They left their backup outside to pretend to be civil, but basically think of them as being people who rely on numbers because they are smallfry. They are here to kidnap you. Or kill you. Or maybe just torture you".
Bell paled. His bare feet backed up a bit as the snake lawyers closed in on him, when suddenly magical rope grabbed everyone and tossed them outside, with Maybell coming out as well. She took out a staff from her sleeve, despite it being far longer then the sleeve itself, and tapped it down onto the ground. Suddenly the street got wider, expanding outward and various structures formed and grew around them, as the area became wide enough for a battle and yet also like a labyrinth.
"Lets take this little fight to the Boundary, shall we? I dont want my store messed up after all" she said, eyeing someone behind the lawyers. "I am surprised you are here, Jester".
A man wearing a rainbow dye shirt, a black jacket, purple short pants, and some rainbow boots just smiled at her.
"It seemed like such fun, besides they are paying me quite well you know?"
"But you know you cant win against me right?"
"Hee hee, but can you keep us all in check?"
"Yes, easily. But, I wanted to see how the boy would do. Consider this some combat training for him".
"Interesting. Certainly a keen approach you got there. But, are you sure you didn't miscount?"
Suddenly, she got attacked from behind as well by the snakes, as someone else approached from the shadows. A man holding a sword, looking right at Bell.
"Well now, I dont usually go for bite sized targets, but well...when the reward is so high, I just cant help but get curious about who is involved".
Unlike Maybell, who was just embarrassing and annoying, his words felt like they had weight to them. And it was seriously off putting.
And so, Bell's second fight began.