Rene flinched as he hastily pressed his hat over his eyes, masking both the woman and the girl from his view. His gaze turned towards the ground, and found the feet of the woman still moving closer to him.

Pressed up to the base of the fountain, crowds of people gathered on both sides of him. With his sight obscured, there was no way to gauge how close the woman was.

A chilling hand stealthily descended upon his shoulder. Rene's heart raced as he sensed a grip of delicate, yet unnervingly strong fingers, their vice-like hold constricting around him, forcefully wrenching him away from the fountain’s base.

“I was only gone for a moment. What happened?” Stelle asked, pushing away the gathered bystanders as she cleared a path for their exit.

“Sorry.” Rene quietly muttered, his head hung low.

Stelle glimpsed back at him, but said nothing more.

The ride back to the manor was silent.

********

I choked on my words.

It was dark now—-proper dark. Rene had turned off the lights in his room in preparation for sleep, but the events of the day forced him to get out of bed and sit at the desk in contemplation. Through the large window placed directly in front of the desk, he stared at the moon: his only source of illumination.

No, I knew she didn’t steal anything from the beginning. It’s that I didn’t speak up fast enough.

But what was he to do? The girl certainly did try to steal from him.

Even if she didn’t take anything. That shouldn’t absolve her of guilt. It only makes her a bad thief.

A part of him didn’t regret his display of apathy, at least in the beginning. A pickpocket was being called out. It was righteous retribution.

How could I know what that woman was going to do!? Damn it!

Then, it wasn’t his fault? Surely this is so, after all, there was nothing he could have done.

It can’t be. I even tried to speak up in the end after I saw how rough she was being handled.

Memories of that gruesome, bloody gash across the girl’s face drew themselves back to him. A thought echoed and bounced across the walls of his mind, repeating itself; incessant.

A scar that large will never fade.

That’s not certain. This world cannot be compared to Earth. If the Monads can move continents and create new races, fixing a scar should be simple for the doctors here.

She has no money.

Money can be made.

It must’ve been painful.

Good. Consider it punishment for stealing.

She’s just a kid.

…

She’s just a kid…

Rene sighed. With his free hand, he rubbed his forehead and combed through his hair.

I could’ve stopped it.

Either way, it wasn’t his fault. There was no way for Rene to foretell what ended up happening.

But I could’ve stopped it.

He looked back at the moon, which did nothing to bring him comfort. Its perfect, spotless exterior kept reminding him of what could have been.

I wonder where she is now.

In prison perhaps? A detention center? You can’t tell with these people.

Hopefully. She’ll have a bed then.

He gazed through the window positioned just above his desk. In the guest room on the second floor, he witnessed treetops swaying gracefully in the subtle breeze. A walkway, illuminated by two rows of lights, meandered between the trunks, creating a captivating dance of shadows.

The night was still young, but the intrusive thoughts were getting to him. There was no chance he was going to fall asleep in this state.

I’m taking a walk. He thought as he put on his pants.

But just then, the window shattered. And his vision went dark.

********

The hood was ripped off him; Rene frantically looked around to see that he was no longer in his room. He was outside, but as for where, it was too dark to tell.

What is this!? I was just-

The ground he kneeled on was the familiar sensation of cobblestone, and the chill of the breeze reminded him of the air currents of an alleyway.

“Is this the one?” A voice came from his right. Rene jerked his head towards the source, flinching as he noticed a figure near indistinguishable from the dark background standing right beside him.

He was shivering within the darkness once more, but this time he wasn’t alone.

“Yes.” Another voice announced itself from directly in front of him. A humanoid figure walked with silent steps out of the shadows cast by the buildings, and into the dim light that bleed in from the streets. “Toss him in.”

“Wait a moment.” The other figure spoke, gripping Rene with a strong hand. “Look at this shit coloured hair—filthy. I’d reckon his skin’ll sell better, don’t you think?”

“Does he look like a peltie to you? How much do you think you’ll get for just the hair?”

There was a snort, and Rene’s hair was let go with a forceful push.

“Why don’t we run a test eh?” In a sudden, jarring motion, a shadowy hand stripped away Rene’s sleeve, revealing the flesh of his arm. The limb extended over him, casting the silhouette of an index finger being gripped like a pen. The monotony of shadow was broken as a single gleaming red dot formed from one of the fingertips.

“Let’s see how good of a rug you’d make.”

The dark finger was pressed into his right arm, and the red smeared over his skin. Rene winced in fright and instinctively recoiled, only for another shadowy limb to extend from the darkness and hold him firmly in place.

“Stop that.” The other figure said.

“Why does that matter? He already came broken.” Like the flash of lighting, Rene’s left arm suddenly lit up with pain. Gritting his teeth, a wail of agony was suppressed to a soft groan.

A chortle sounded out from Rene’s handler. “I’ll just test using the other arm then. Can’t damage what’s already damaged.”

“You’ll taint the blood with your essence. And what will the appraisers think when they find your filth in my captive?.” The other figure replied, his voice as monotone and emotionless as the blackness that surrounded him.

Rene watched with bated breath as his handler took back his approaching hand. From the change in wind pressure, Rene could figure out that his handler had turned around to look at his associate. “When the fuck did we decide to go to the bloodletters?” He snorts, audibly displeased.

“Now.”

The silhouette of his captors motionless, and for what seemed like an eternity, the silence was filled with Rene rapid breathing and thumping heartbeat… that is, until the mechanical vroom of a vehicle echoed in from the streets beyond.

The noise rose in pitch, reaching its crescendo as the flash of its headlights briefly spilled into the alleyway, lasting only a fraction of a second. And for a moment, the veil of shadow was lifted on Rene’s captors.

They each wore an ebony skeletal mask, from which a constant stream of dark fog would pour out of, obscuring their faces with an impenetrable darkness. The masks were paired with a dark suit which covered every inch of their skin. They stared at each other.

The veil fell as the vehicle drove away, leaving Rene’s eyes to see naught but dusk.

There was no time to capture the finer details, but the man who stood beside Rene was nearly a head taller than his other captor.

“It’s been a long while since I last flayed a bitch.” The large man's deep growl matched his imposing stature.

“Silence. Remember your place.” His associate retorted.

“Which one of us paid that info broker? I intend to recupe my funds in the most logical way possible. Your sadism has no place in business.”

“Explain. How can you know his blood is worth more than his pelt.” Following the tall man’s grumble were a series of barely audible footsteps.

The silhouette of a lean figure enlarged as it approached Rene, stopping in front of him. The figure looked down on him, examining him. Rene gazed towards the ground.

“Resplendent Paradise was one of us, it would only make sense for the freaks he left behind to be similar.”

“Now, stop arguing with me and do your job.”

The hood was shoved over him.

***

I’m in a car…

The floor rumbled beneath him, and frequent changes in his momentum indicated that his velocity wasn’t constant.

Rene’s legs and arms were tied together, but thankfully his hands were tied together in front of him. Gritting his teeth through the pain emanating from his left arm, Rene contorted himself to reach into his pocket, praying that the coin he received from Stelle hadn’t fallen out.

He faintly smiled as his fingers touched someone cold and metallic. Carefully folding it in half, just as Stelle had shown him, Rene bent his neck towards the coin so he wouldn’t have to move his left arm.

“Stelle?” He whispered into the coin; “Stelle?... Hello?” Rene waited breathlessly with trepidation, but no response came from the coin. It was a piece of dead silver.

He tried a dozen more times, whispering the same word over and over again at equal intervals. Was she still sleeping? Out of range? Was the signal being blocked by the truck he was in? Seeing that his efforts were fruitless, Rene laid eyes on the red light which had always been at the corner of his vision. It shined through both the truck he was in as well as the hood he had on without any decrease in brightness, but it was getting smaller; a sign that it was getting further away.

Suddenly, a faint voice.

“Stelle?”

No, it didn’t come from the coin, but from the wall behind him. Rene pressed his ear against it.

“I heard that the price of pelts are rising—a lot.” Deep and grouchy, the voice belonged to the tall captor.

“Yes.” The shorter man replied.

“You knew that we would be going to the bloodletters before we even found out what he looked like.”

“That’s right.”

“Why are we wasting our time with another bloodbag?”

“Why do you think the price of pelts are increasing?”

“Tell me.”

“The prince said he was going to pass new laws; execution for anyone caught flaying. As for us middlemen, it’s the bloodletting camps for life—we’ll be treated no better than swine.”

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

“Wetched halfblood! The traitorous bastard treats the pelties better than his own countrymen! No, wait… isn’t this a good thing? We’ll be making more coin for the same job!”

A low chuckle slightly shook the walls.

“Heh-heh, whaddya say, eh?”

“Don’t be foolish. Say what you will about the halfbreed, but he always underpromises and overdelivers. For all we know he could be artificially inflating the pelt market in order to lure out rotbloods like you.”

“Tsk! Coward! You are no longer the man I once knew. We once took down a rank 4 together! Now look at us! Smuggling mortal scum for scraps!”

“Shut up.”

“It’s because of that woman isn’t it? Ever since you let her lay her claws on you you’ve become… What’s the word…? Docile. Know that your bitch as taken control of the leash—”

“SILENCE!”

Rene reflexively pulled his ear from the wall, not expecting something so loud. He continued to eavesdrop once the muffled sounds of conversation continued.

“Enro Somber intends to turn Cessa into a petting zoo for the Lustrians—where we are to be gawked at and handled as the animals he sees us to be. Pompous fools like you inane enough to nibble at the hand of the prince’s precious customers are nothing more feral rabbits in face of the king’s Aspeiral wardogs… This will be my last job with you.”

“What? You’re leaving?”

“People like us have no future here.”

“You’re leaving the city? To where?”

“I don’t know. Most likely Frimbria, maybe we’ll visit Atarax.”

“Atarax? Fool. I no longer know you.”

“What about you? What do you plan to do?”

“Heheh, if people are as cowardly as you, then I reckon the price of pelts will increase even more won’t it? I’ll find a new partner, someone braver an’ better than you. We’ll be swimmin in more coin than you ever dared to imagine!”

Sigh.

There was a pause.

“Good luck.”

Rene listened for a bit longer, but the conversation did not continue. Eventually the vehicle stopped, and he felt the floor tilt as if something weighty had just gotten off of it. Swiftly stuffing the coin back into his pocket, Rene moved himself into an unassuming position.

He felt a breeze indicating that the door had been opened.

“Don’t struggle.” The tall man said to him. Rene felt the bindings on his legs loose as he was grabbed by the arm.

“Walk with us.”

With his arms bound, head covered, and any possibility of escape non-existent, Rene didn’t dare disobey.

Guided by a gloved hand, Rene walked alongside his captors, clueless of where he was. The cobble ground felt rougher here—less refined. Was he in the outer city? The air smelt faintly musky with a dash of blood.

“More quiet than the others ain’t he?” This voice belonged to a tall man, to which Rene’s other captor didn’t respond. Speaking of his other captor, Rene had no clue he was; is he walking in front? Behind? The footsteps of these shadowy figures were heavily muffled and barely audible. Rene could only hear the taps of his own feet.

The hand guiding him suddenly stops, and the hood is ripped off him once again. But contrary to his expectations, there was light this time. Three men stood side by side a few meters away, the two outer men held lanterns.

“How's this?” The tall man beside Rene ruffled through his hair, “A real Artharian. You’d be lucky if I didn’t charge you for laying ‘er eyes on em.”

“And you’d be lucky if I didn’t charge you extra for answering a call on such short notice.” The man in the middle spoke with an elegance unbefitting someone in this line of work. He wore white gloves, and a lavish black suit with metallic red inlay.

“Look,” The man stretched the corners of his suit to show it off. “You didn’t even leave me enough time to get dressed.” Obviously taking delight in his own joke,

a devilish smirk marked his face. “Let’s just call it even.”

“Alright, alright, quit yer yappin and let’s get this over with.” Rene felt a force on his back as he was shoved forwards with a heavy hand. With his arms bound, he struggled to maintain his balance, and when he did, Rene raised his head to see the extravagant man standing an arms length away.

“Incredible,” he remarks, leaning in to glean at Rene’s blue eyes, “A rare specimen indeed.” Rene looked down to escape their eye contact, but he then felt his hair being picked through as the man analyzed their brown color. “To create a new species of man… Resplendent Paradise was truly deserving of the title of ‘Monad’.”

“Get on with it!” A voice rushed from the back.

The man outstretched an arm with his palm facing upwards. “Your hand, please.” He said in his usual tone, completely unperturbed.

Without a choice, Rene hesitantly placed his hand on the man’s silky glove.

As he did, the man took out a thin needle from within his suit pocket. His arm moved like a blur, and Rene felt a sharp jab on the center of his palm.

Rene jerked his hand back to see a small red drop coalesce on his newly acquired wound. The man in front of him now suddenly had a needle with an identical red drop on its tip. The needle seemed to make the blood droplet defy gravity, it would not fall off no matter how the man held it. Holding the needle in one hand, the man then reached within his chest pocket with his other and pulled out a monocle.

He placed the monocle on his eye, then proceeded to look at the droplet of blood with an expression of stupor. After blinking a few times, he moved the monocle to his other eye and looked at the blood droplet some more.

“Hold this.” The extravagant man turned to one of his men behind him and handed them the needle. Now free one extra hand, he cleaned his monocle with a handkerchief. Taking back the needle he repeated the whole process over again.

“Huh.” Snapping back from a former state of stupefaction, the extravagant man politely stored away his monocle before shaking the blood off of the needle. “This is rather unexpected.”

“Well? What is it? Tell us!” The tall captor called out excitedly from the back.

“Patience, patience, gentlemen. I’ve conducted a thorough analysis of the blood sample and can attest to the validity of the dynamic properties of which I have obtained. Be assured that my methods are perfectly accurate, and–”

“Don’t make me force it out of you.”

“No, no, I wouldn’t dare having my clothes ruined.” Rubbing his hands together, the extravagant man gave a friendly chuckle.

“It’s zero.” He calmly stated.

“What?” Rene’s other captor finally spoke up for the first time.

“The fuck do you mean ‘zero’? How the fuck could there be zero!?”

The extravagant man shook his head with a hand on his forehead. He sighed;

“I distinctly remember your voices, we’ve conducted business before. You were merely rude before but it seems this time you’ve turned shouty as well.”

From the outreaches of the lanterns’ light, Rene’s other captor walked forwards to stand shoulder to shoulder with his towering associate.

“If you’re trying to scam us, at least make it more subtle. You’re causing your boss to lose face.”

“I’ve enacted the exact same procedure as I always have. You have witnessed as such. Or are those crude shadow fog masks of yours supposed to mask your sight as well?”

“Shut yer mouth! Even a peltie’s blood’ll be worth a few shards!” The tall captor pointed as he shouted. “You expect us to believe a descendent of Paradise to be worth less than one of them?”

“Don’t be so rousey–! My goodness, my ears ring in displeasure.” Their suited adversary massaged his ears with a disappointed expression. “If it’ll calm you down, go ahead and bring out your own aetheric sensor. I’d be glad to replicate my results.”

There were a few moments of silence, the men simply stared at each other.

“Don’t have one? Well, I don’t blame you, they are rather expensive after all.” The extravagant man snided, then reached into his pocket. “Here.” With a flick of his thumb, a pale white tumbled through the air.

Rene’s tall captor easily catches it out of the air. He took a single glance before erupting in fury.

“A single Soli?! What is the meaning of this?!”

“You two schmucks brought me a mortal who’s blood transfers essence worse than water. I don’t believe there is much haggling to be had.” A hand was pressed onto Rene’s head; a hard twist forced Rene to face his captors. “The payment is for the eyes. There might some value in them”

“You bastard! You—!” The tall man’s shouting was abruptly cut short when a hand was placed on his shoulder.

“Hand back our captive back then. We’ll be conducting our business elsewhere.” Rene’s other captive said in a firm, but stern voice.

“I’m afraid that won’t be possible. After all, your partner here has accepted the money.” The suited man pointed to the coin in the tall man’s palm. “This transaction is already complete.” he smiled.

“You think you can play with us!? You—!”

“Don’t.” Rene’s other captive pulled back on his friend, then whispered in his ear for a solid thirty seconds. “Let’s go.” He gestured to his companion.

The tall man gave a growl and hesitantly turned to leave; but just before he did, he spat at the coin in his palm and tossed it towards his adversary. The coin landed just before a pair of red inlay shoes, creating a faint ting~ as it collided with the ground.

“We won't be silent about this.”

The suited man watched with a black expression as the two dark figures exited the range of the lanterns. When their silhouettes could no longer be seen, he slowly bent down and picked up the coin with a handkerchief. Giving it a good wipe and storing the coin he looked to one of his men who then nodded in turn before shoving a hood over Rene’s head.

The transport process was much the same, even more so for Rene who could not see. However, this time Rene didn't take out the coin; the sound of breathing indicated that someone else was in the same room as him. Was it another prisoner? A guard? Rene didn’t dare investigate.

Eventually, they arrived, and Rene was shepherded out of the vehicle. Along the way, he felt the temperature suddenly shift. Faint rays of light shined through the pores of the mask.

I’m indoors…

“Don’t take any blood out of him.” A familiar voice spoke out from behind.

The mask was torn off him, and a dense fog of blood assaulted his nostrils. He was met with a brutish looking man with a buzzcut and a clean shaven face. The man wore an apron, he had a belt filled with an assortment of vials and liquids, and his hands were covered with a pair of black gloves, of which a smidge of red stained the fingertips.

“Rare stock.” The brutish man said, carefully inspecting Rene whilst gripping him by the hair. “How’s the quality?”

“I couldn’t sense anything out of him.” The suited man said while pinching his nose.

“What? Nothing?” The brute inspected Rene once more, this time noticing his quivering eyes. And he smiled, revealing a set of dark red teeth. “Rare stock indeed.”

“How’s the skin then? Shall I flay him?” The brute continued.

“The color’s wrong. I didn’t bother testing it.” Opening a door, the suited man prepared to leave. “Store him for auction.”

Immediately as the door slammed shut, Rene was shoved hard from behind.

“Start walking. Don’t stop until I tell you to.”

Rene stumbled forward, his legs weak from fear. He was pushed through a narrow stone corridor with rows of barred cells lining each side. The faces within stared at him and the man walking behind, too terrified to emit even the slightest of noises. All that could be heard were two pairs of footsteps and the echoes they left behind.

“Stop.”

Rene stopped next to an empty cell.

With his index finger, the brute drew a red line on the jail cell door, and with a click, it opened.

“Get in.”

Rene did as he was ordered. Another click followed, and the door was shut behind him. Seeing that the jail door was securely locked, the jailer continued walking down the corridor until Rene could hear his footsteps no more.

The floor of the jail cell was musk with the scent of iron, and faded with red. Its cold, and almost wet texture irked Rene as he sat down on the stone floor. He took a few deep breaths to slow his racing heartbeat, and then crawled to his cell door.

Peeking his head slightly through the bars, he looked to the left and right of him. The hallways seemed to be empty, and apart from the occasional jangle of chains, the entire prison was devoid of sound.

Rene waited a few more minutes just to be sure no one was coming, scanning the hallway as the seconds rolled by. Just then, he spotted a streak of red in his peripheral vision, it was something not uncommonly seen in this setting, but this streak was different, he recognised its shape.

It was opposite of him, on the other side of the hallway. Behind bars a few cells down from his own, a girl wearing a blood stained shirt and carrying lifeless eyes slumped tiredly against the wall; the signature curved streak carved on her face.

A visceral sense of guilt immediately manifested within him, strangling his throat, stabbing into his heart. Rene lifted his head to call out to her, yet as he opened his mouth, he hesitated. There was nothing he could possibly say that would aid the situation. There was no point in speaking.

With that in mind, he gritted his teeth as he scurried to the back of his cell.

Rene curled up in the corner with his back faced towards the cell door. With the coin now obscured from any potential visitors, he carefully took it out of his pocket.

With his hand cupped over his mouth, he whispered into the coin.

“Hello?... Hello?”

“Stelle?”

No response.

Rene winced at the silence. He clenched down on the coin with a shaking fist and pressed his hand against his mouth. Staring solemnly at the corner of the room, his left arm started to hurt again.

He was being auctioned off. But as what? A slave? A servant? As material? This was a world built on blood. His eyes were going to be gouged out of him. His skin was going to be flayed off. His blood was going to be siphoned away.

Loosening his grip, Rene looked at the coin once more. It was a dead piece of silver, and the sense of wonder he had when he first received the coin had vanished completely. It was only a piece of metal that was capable of bending.

I can’t hear her, but maybe she can hear me.

He was in denial, creating excuses. But at this point there was nothing to lose.

“Stelle..? I’ve been kidnapped. I-I don’t know where I am. They said I was being prepared for auc-”

BOOM!

The ground quaked with a resounding crack, sending shockwaves through the walls. The resulting reverberations made the cell doors clamor against their locks; this was followed by the sounds of stones crumbling and cascading against one another.

“Rene Spring? I’m looking for a Rene Spring? Is Rene Spring here?” The voice of a woman echoed throughout the hallway. It wasn’t Stelle’s voice, nevertheless, Rene responded without hesitation.

“H-Here! I’m here!” Pocketing his coin, he bolted to the cell door, pressing himself against the bars. She was too far down the hallway however, he couldn’t see her.

Just then, the door on the opposite end of the hallway slammed open with a bang.

“Who are you! Who do you work for!?” The brute growled back at the sudden intruder. The woman didn’t reply.

“DIE THEN!”

Rene stumbled away from the cell door as the sound of running rapidly approached him. The footsteps reached a crescendo, the figure of a butcher sprinted into view. With blood in his eyes, he moved with a frenzy, but after making it halfway across Rene’s cell, his muscles froze, and his posture abruptly halted.

Carried by momentum, the brute’s figure fell forwards, colliding with the ground. As he did, his entire body split apart into thin horizontal slices. With a huge spray of blood, the slices of the brute’s corpse littered the floor like a spread deck of cards.

Splattered with blood, the macabre scene had stunned Rene into silence. He had seen corpses before in the form of cadavers, but this… No, this couldn’t even count as a corpse. A life had just been snuffed out in front of him, a life that was instantly reduced to a pile of meat.

“You must be Rene.”

The voice of the woman knocked him out of his stupor; he hadn’t even noticed her presence beforehand.

The Aphelian woman elegantly wore a knee-length dark green coat, its collar luxuriously lined with thick fur. Adorning her left arm was a vambrace that seamlessly melded into a formidable leather gauntlet.

Rene gave a nervous nod.

The woman approached the jail cell door, and casually waded into the puddle of blood pooling in front of it. With each step she took, however, the blood would simply disperse away from boots, as if she had an air of unapproachability.

A wave of her hand caused Rene to feel a breeze of wind; and with a gentle push, the cell door swung open with a creak. It seems that she had instantly destroyed the lock as well.

“Alright then, come along.” She gestured.

“You’re being rescued.”