by Sean Davies
“That stuck up Vampire is Charlene,” Veronica explained. “The Werewolf bitch by her side is Lorena and the dopey looking Mage dude is Richard. They’re our good friends that run the Triumvirate of Sorrow,” she added sarcastically.
Silvario scowled at Kaine and then carried on. “Regardless of what may have happened, the only logical course of action for our races is to once again unite and live in safety here in the Catacombs.”
“If I may interject,” a smart looking Vampire raised his hand before making his point. “The last Autocrat, who I, Albert Tiberius, served proudly as chief economic advisor, was a passionate yet reasonable leader. He won the war with help from our races,” he gestured politely to the Dogs of War, “so I think the best course of action would be to strike a deal with his son Edgar II. I’m sure both sides have a lot to offer each other if we could come to a compromise.”
“Speak for yourself you Imperian warmonger,” a cyberpunk Mage said in disgust. “Fuck dealing with another tyrant.”
“We agree,” a lithe dark skinned Vampire lady said in a highly accented tone.
“No deals with the Imperian oppressor,” an equally dark and beautiful Werewolf woman by her side said.
“The techno Mage chick is Zero. She’s the leader of the Clockwork Angels gang in Industria,” Veronica once again divulged. “The exotic ladies are the leaders of the Tropican Furies; the Vampire is called Estaveina and the Werewolf is Nebilia. Both gangs aided their nation’s resistance movements, so they don’t think too highly of us lot from Imperia.”
Silvario called for silence and the room became deathly silent once again. “The Trinity has already made its decision. All Supernaturals must come back into the fold and join us in the Catacombs. Any who do not heed our advice and continue to threaten the secrecy that has kept our society alive for hundreds of years will be persecuted harshly.”
Charlene spoke up again. “Thank you, Silvario. The Triumvirate will take your kind offer into consideration, unlike some gangs.” She pointed at Lucius. “We do not flaunt our Supernatural heritage in senseless displays of recklessness and violence.”
Lucius continued looking at Silvario and didn’t say a word, and the rest of the gang followed head and allowed the Triumvir’s accusations to pass over them like water off a ducks back. Being ignored seemed to infuriate Charlene to boiling point, but Silvario was already walking away from the stage and back to the portal.
The gangs walked towards the portal back to the atrium. Most stayed with their comrades, but some likeminded groups mingled and talked together in hushed tones.
Lucius neared the Dogs of War and walked along side Kaine. “Well that was a waste of time as expected. We should have talk some time, my old friend.”
Kaine’s ears prickled. “Got something good up your sleeve, Lucius?”
“Don’t want to say here. Any chance of a private meeting some time?”
Kaine slapped him on the back playfully. “Of course lad! Swing by Industria City some time, you’ll be our honoured guests.”
They shook hands and went their separate ways. The gang left the Catacombs and made their way back to the Hotel Noir. No one said much to each other until they reached their vehicles just in case anyone else was listening in.
“Was that as lame and pointless as you expected?” Veronica asked him when they were driving along in her car.
“Yeah. Except for the Shadow Market, that was a complete waste of time. Do they actually have the power to punish the gangs and orders that don’t go back underground?” Winston asked.
“Not even close. They may have some Sanctium on their side but not enough to take us all down. The biggest advantage they have is the defensive magic in the Catacombs, so it would be a nightmare to fight them on their turf. They could even shut down the portals in theory, trapping entire sections indefinitely.
“All they really do now is mouth off like they did tonight, put down the few unbalanced Supernaturals that go psycho and terrorise the humans, and pretend to be in charge. But it seems that their time is almost up, and I think they can sense it.”
They got to the underground garage and filtered off. Lucius told Winston that he’d get in touch with the details about the trade with the Gloom in the morning, and Veronica kissed him and told him to ‘have fun’ with her trademark cheeky wink.
He made his way to reception thinking that he’d go straight to bed, but Mary was still at the front desk with another young girl. She looked so bored that he was surprised she was till awake. “Still here?” Winston asked. He realised it was a very obvious question as soon the words left his mouth.
“Hmm?” She jolted upright. “Oh, Winston, hi! Yeah, my shift doesn’t finish for a few more hours. It’s been a quiet night.”
“Well, do you fancy checking out my room – might be a bit more interesting?”
“Now? Really?” Mary looked at the other Girl who looked a bit jealous. “But what about my shift?”
“Just come up. I’ll speak to Lucius tomorrow and sort it out.”
Mary made a giddy gesture to the other girl who sighed and shrugged, saying, “Go on then, go and have a good time.”
“Oh thank you thank you thank you!” Mary said, practically jumping on the spot.
Winston put his arm around Mary's waist and took her up to his room.
Chapter 5:
The Trade
Everybody now waited for Winston to make his move. They all seemed to be holding their breath in anticipation, stunned silent by suspense, waiting for the portal to be drawn.
The pallets of sweets, treats and chocolate were all sorted for delivery. The fork trucks were powered up and ready, their drivers were humans in the know, and they were prepped and ready for their quick trip into the Gloom.
Around him stood his full guard, Lucius, and many heavily armed members of the Shadow Circle. More armed gang members stood guard on the raised walkways that ran along the windows near the roof, and Winston knew others would be patrolling outside and watching the gate. It was vital that tonight went according to plan.
The light from the twin moons shone down through the big windows and it made Winston think of the night before.
His encounter with Mary had been short and sweet. He had shown her around his room and given her a little run down of what he planned on doing with the place. She had nodded along looking star struck, made amazed comments, and gasped a lot. He made sure not to show her the Alchemy room, claiming it was a cupboard where he kept his unpacked junk from home. When he showed her his four poster bed, he’d pressed himself against her backside, brushed her wavy hair to one side, and started to kiss her neck. He slipped his hand down the front of her trousers and into her underwear, brushing against her thick landing strip of pubic hair and down into her moist pussy.
It wasn’t long before they’d stripped down and made good use of the fancy bed. He remembered how her small form had looked in the moonlight when she got on top of him. Her breasts were very small but her shapely ass more than made up for the lack of chest. Her nipples were as small and cute as she was and they both had small silver ring piercings that Winston enjoyed pulling on. She ran her hands through her pussy hair to rub her clit every time she climaxed. As he drew near to finishing, she got off of him and sucked his cock quickly, tugging her hand up and down his shaft as her mouth handled the top end. It was so intense that he was clawing at the pillows behind him as he filled her mouth with what felt like a hell of a lot of cum.
“I swallowed it all up for you,” Mary said as she crawled up the bed to be level with him.
“Thanks, we should definitely do that again some time.”
They dozed off to sleep in each other’s arms and didn’t wake up until late afternoon. Mary didn’t have to work for a while because she was doing another late shift so Winston offered to order some room service food.
“Are you sure? It’s really expensive!” she’d asked, surprised.
“Of course, don’t worry about it,” he’d replied. He felt bad kicking her out right after waking up with her.
He called down to reception and ordered a small feast of breakfast and lunch foods. It got delivered a short while later by a member of staff who wheeled it all in on a food cart. Winston laid it out on the table while Mary looked on astonished. He poured them both a coffee each and they tucked in.
“Oh my god, this is good!” she said, shovelling it down.
“It is, isn’t it? So, do you like working here?”
“It’s alright. Pays the bills and there’s enough left over to go out partying with my friends at the weekend. They’re a bit jealous of me working here.”
Winston asked what her friends did and each one of them had a minimum wage job doing something in Capital. Her whole group of was comprised of underachievers. They all were in college together taking part time jobs where they could, and then at varying stages dropped out and took full time contracts. They worked for the weekend, partied hard, and then started the pattern again.
“What do you make of what happened at the World GOVT building the other day?” Winston asked, wondering what the normal human perspective on the matter was.
“Huh? Oh, those weird airships and Inquisitor people? I don’t know, I don’t really follow that stuff much to be honest. I’m just glad I don’t work there! Some of them came here looking for the Governor and they were so rude!”
He questioned her more about other things and she seemed completely oblivious to the secrets of the world around her. Winston understood how the Supernaturals could exist so easily in the human world; it seemed like the average person was only concerned with making ends meet and having something good to look forward to, like a night out, holiday, or new car. Anything scary, confusing, or just different from the routine was justified with a simple explanation or shrugged off completely, and the focus returned to the basics; how much will that cost? How much do I have in the bank? What am I doing after work? What should I have for dinner? He couldn’t blame her because he’d been just as oblivious as she was before he’d gotten his book, except without the social life.
They hung out until she had to go to work. Winston enjoyed her naive views and simple chitchat, and she was easy on the eyes too.
“We’ll do this again sometime, right?” she asked as Winston opened the door, pretty blue eyes full of longing.
“Sure, that would be great.” He hesitated. “I sort of have a girlfriend though, but we’re kind of open about this stuff, if that bothers you?”
She looked a little hurt but quickly looked at the room behind him before meeting his eyes again. “Well that’s not exactly what I wanted to hear, but… yeah, sure, why not? I think we could have some fun together. Will this sort-of girlfriend mind me seeing you?”
“She might be a little jealous but she’ll most likely want to sleep with you too,” Winston joked.
“Oh, my! Well I don’t know about that. Is she pretty though?”
“Let’s just say you wouldn’t be disappointed if you did feel like experimenting.”
“I’ve never tried it with a girl before but I do really like you. I reckon you’ll have to take me somewhere really nice and I might consider it,” Mary said coyly.
“You’ve got yourself a deal. I’ll give you a call.” Winston shook her hand jokingly and they kissed goodbye.
“Make sure you do!” she said as she left.
A little later he got a knock at his door. A mage was standing at the front door with a clipboard, and behind him there was a couple of humans with sack trucks loaded with boxes.
“Winston Reynolds?” the mage asked.
“Yeah, that’s me.”
“Good, sign and print here and here please,” the Mage said dryly.
Winston signed and the humans unloaded the boxes inside his room. Without even saying goodbye, they left him with his supplies.
Winston opened a few boxes to check the contents. There was his crystal ware equipment, ceramics, wooden containers, glass vials and jars, resealable plastic bags, an array of ingredients, and more. He didn’t know where to start so he decided to knock for Lewis and see if he wanted to help. Lewis was more than happy to – if anything he was rather excited at the prospect of helping Winston get set up, so he came over and they both got stuck into unpacking.
“So was it the Vampire or the receptionist last night?” Lewis asked as he carefully took the crystal ware equipment out of its paper and bubble wrap packaging.
“The receptionist. I reckon she’ll have a few single friends if you’re interested?”
Lewis shook his head. “Not for me. I’ve got too much to do, stuff that you should be spending your nights doing. Your book won’t study itself, you know.”
“All work and no play will make Lewis a very dull boy,” Winston joked as he emptied and stocked his cupboards with containers and vials of ingredients.
“I have fun too, you know. I just have my priorities in the right place, that’s all. Besides, I’m rich enough to buy a night or two with a better looking girl than that receptionist.”
“Hey, what’s wrong with her? I think she’s cute.”
“Oh, she’s okay I guess. Got a nice round arse on her, but me personally... well I’m all about the titties.” He moved his face side to side quickly, pretending to have his head in between a big pair of breasts.
Winston was in stitches. “So I’m guessing you wouldn’t say no to Veronica, then?”
“Her tits are massive and I wouldn’t say no to seeing them or having a play around. But I wouldn’t fuck her because it would be well weird after you’ve been in there. And besides... I think sleeping with a Vampire makes you half a necrophiliac.” He tried to keep a straight face but soon broke into laughter.
Winston laughed and hit him on the arm playfully. “You’re a dick, Lewis.”
“Yeah, can’t really argue with you there,” he replied smiling.
They finished unpacking and had a glass of water. Winston decided he’d have to do a food and drink shop very soon.
“Want to help me with some Dreamleaf?” Winston asked.
“Sure, but only if you’re sharing,” Lewis said cheekily.
“Check this book out.” He passed Lewis the book that Gregory had given him. “It’s got some good pointers.”
“Wow! This is amazing, how did he find this stuff out?”
“He usually tests it out on himself.”
“No way. Dangerous way of learning but I suppose the results speak for themselves.”
They began by laying the Nightmare Nettle in the crucible, heating them until the leaves became dry and crispy. Then they crunched the leaves with their hands into the mortar and sprinkled in a little Tropican cannabis, and using the pestle Winston crushed the mixture together. The normal recipe would require a few drops of water at this stage but Gregory had a better method.
Lewis had mixed the spare Nettle in a flask with some water and a few drops of medicinal alcohol. He then set up a three chambered alembic and attached three rubber tubes leading to a beaker each. Using the magefire stone he boiled the mixture and waited for the steam to condense. The liquid that was collected in the first two flasks went straight down the sink – according to Greg’s notes, these would be primarily comprised of the Nightmare Nettle’s stomach emptying and terror inducing poisons. The substance from the third and topmost alembic chamber would be a concentrated form of hallucinogenic. Lewis added this to Winston’s mixture in lieu of plain water.
They both added some regular tobacco and mixed it all together. Next, they placed it into a ceramic bowl and heated it slightly, only allowing enough heat to dry it all out. What they were left with was a bowl of clumpy deep blue Dreamleaf.
Lewis opened some small resealable plastic bags and Winston scooped the Dreamleaf into them. He put all but one away in a drawer so they could both sample it.
“Do you have any pape
rs and filters at yours?” Winston asked.
“You really did overlook the basics when you moved in, didn’t you? I’ll go get them.”
Lewis returned a few minutes later with some shopping bags. “I brought the rolling gear, a couple bottles of fizzy drink, some crisps, sweets, cookies, and chocolate from my room.”
“You’d make a pretty good Freak with your sweet tooth,” Winston joked.
“Trust me, once you start smoking this batch you’ll be glad of my taste in food.”
Both of them rolled a thick joint of Dream leaf. Winston used his lighter to light the ends, and they took long appreciative drags on their creation. It felt cool and tingly as it travelled down into their lungs, and an immediate sense of relaxation followed as they exhaled two streams of light blue smoke. Then the walls started changing colour.
For the rest of the day Winston and Lewis sat around his living room, watching the television move around the room with its happy clown reporter, watching the floor phase in and out of existence, staring at the trippy coloured patterns on the wall, talking nonsense, giggling, and eating a lot of junk food.
At some point they received a text message from Lucius telling them when to meet in the underground garage. They tried to get their heads back to normality and prepared for the evening ahead.
Many members of the Shadow Circle accompanied Lucius, Winston, Lewis, and the guard to the Capital’s small warehouse and factory district. Travelling in the armoured vans instead of flashy cars, even Kavarne and Lynette were in the back of one, choosing safety over speed. The candy factory was heavily guarded by their people but it was in the heart of Triumvir territory, and as the boss and two Book Wielders were heading there it would be a highly appealing time for their enemies to strike.
Veronica and Winston sat very closely next to each other in the back of one of the vans. She was wearing a tight red sweater, black leather trousers, black boots, and small black leather jacket, with all of her astounding curves emphasised immensely. Her long black hair was down but kept neatly back with a plain silver hair band. She cuddled up to him and grasped his hands tightly in her cold grip. They hadn’t spoken much but he’d felt her poking around his head when they’d first met up in the garage, and she had soon eased up and smiled. Winston assumed that she’d read his desire for a threesome with Mary. He supposed they’d talk more later in the evening when they weren’t surrounded by other armed individuals.