In the guest room of a bar:
Waaah-waaah
— "Argh!! Why does this kid cry so much? As if it wasn't enough to hear that whore complaining in my head all day long, now I have to listen to this worm crying non-stop. What a life, huh!" — said the child's father.
— "Calm down, Bahuk. He's just a baby. Babies cry when they need something: food, drink, or even when they're all dirty," — said the father's friend.
— "This kid is lucky he didn't end up like his mother... Argh!! I can't stand this boy for even one more day," — said the father.
— "Bahuk??? What are you going to do with the child?" — asked the friend.
— "Hmm... I'll do the same thing I did with his mother. I need money, you know? To drink and get with some women, HAHAHAHA. Yeah... I'm going to sell him as a slave to another country," — said the father.
— "WAIT!! Are you telling me you sold your wife as a slave and now you plan to do the same with your son?" — said the friend.
— "Of course! What use does a kid have, other than causing trouble?" — said the father.
— "How... how can you be so heartless?" — said the friend, outraged.
— "Ah, that woman was useless already. I got tired of using her whenever I wanted... she ended up getting too boring, hahahaha," — said the father, laughing like a pig.
— "You can't do—"
— "Do this? What's going to happen if I do? Are you going to tell someone? No, you wouldn't do that... After all, no one would like to know who you really are, right?" — said the boy's father, with such a malevolent look.
— "Y-YOU BASTARD... Do whatever the hell you want!" — said the friend, anguished, unable to help the defenseless child.
A few hours later:
In an alley
— "Hello, my friend. We've got a returning customer here... Are you thinking of becoming a sponsor of the business? Hahahaha. Let's see... what do you have there?" — asked the man.
— "No... today I just came to bring something valuable, hahaha. His name is Fubuk, about 7 months old, I don't know," — said the boy's father.
— "Hmmm... interesting. A father wanting to sell his own son? Hahaha. Let me guess... it's for women? Drinks? Hahahaha," — asked the man.
— "Yeah, for wo—"
— "I don't care about your reasons. I just want to know about the merchandise... A child is very productive, and it's quite RARE to find an infant who hasn't even reached one year old yet. You can make good money with this — and so can I," — said the man.
— "How much will you pay for the child?" — asked the boy's father.
— "Hmm... let me see... Let's do this: in 3 months there will be a slave auction, and auctioning off this child is the best thing for business. And, as a courtesy, 15% of the money raised from the child will be yours. Deal?" — said the man.
— "Hahahaha, DEAL!!"
THREE MONTHS LATER — At the Auction
And before the boy was announced, the auctioneer decided to start with another item: a young woman of mysterious origin.
— "WELCOME EVERYONE!!!"
Applause echoed through the hall.
— "LADIES AND GENTLEMEN! WE ARE ALL GATHERED HERE TONIGHT FOR ANOTHER ONE OF OUR SPECIAL SALES!" — shouted the auctioneer, with forced enthusiasm.
Among the attendees was the boy's father, eager to get a significant price for selling his son.
— "Urgh... Only rich people here... Wait... That means I can make a lot of money! Hahahaha!" — he said, laughing greedily.
— "LET'S START WITH THE FIRST 'TOY' OF OUR PRESTIGIOUS AUCTION! HERE WE HAVE A VERY BEAUTIFUL SLAVE! A COMMON HUMAN, BORN IN THE ALLEYS! SO... WHAT DO YOU SAY?" — announced the auctioneer, with a cynical smile.
A wave of indignation swept through the audience.
— "What the hell is this? Just a regular human woman? Hahahaha! Did your budget run out to get something as useless as this woman? Hahahahaha!" — shouted one of the men, followed by laughter from other buyers.
— "I already suspected you wouldn't like it... Let me tell you something... HAHAHAHA! AT OUR LAST AUCTION, BEFORE THIS ONE, WE SOLD A BEAUTIFUL MERMAID... She was bought by our most loyal customer: Mr. Donnavel! This mermaid was found by chance by one of our 'workers' and... surprise... we discovered she was pregnant! And even better... pregnant with a human! HAHAHAHAHAHA! SO... THIS WOMAN HERE, IN FRONT OF ALL OF YOU... IS THE DAUGHTER OF THAT MERMAID! THE SAME MERMAID THAT MR. DONNAVEL BOUGHT!" — revealed the auctioneer, causing a sudden silence followed by whispers of interest.
— "Wait... A mermaid... with a human? Hahahahaha! I OFFER 200 MILLION POINGS!" — shouted a man, raising his hand.
— "DO I HEAR 210? DO I HEAR?"
— "I'LL PAY 250 MILLION POINGS!" — shouted another.
— "I OFFER 300 MILLION!" — yelled another.
— "300 MILLION POINGS!!! ANYONE OFFERING MORE??? THIS IS A LOT OF MONEY! WE DIDN'T EXPECT HER TO BRING IN SO MUCH CASH, PEOPLE! AND... IT GETS EVEN MORE INTERESTING... BECAUSE ONLY THE MEN ARE MAKING BIDS! HEHEHEHAHAHAHA!" — commented the auctioneer, with malice.
— "I'LL PAY 400 MILLION FOR THIS WOMAN!" — shouted another buyer.
The bids kept going up...
— "I'LL PAY... I'LL PAY... I'LL PAY..."
— "WHAT'S THIS? WE'RE ALREADY AT 750 MILLION POINGS! HAHAHAHAHA! ANYONE OFFERING MORE??? DID I HEAR 800 MILLION??? GOING ONCE... GOING TWICE... HAHAHAHAHA... GOING—"
— "I OFFER 1 BILLION POINGS!" — shouted a female voice, firm and determined, interrupting the auctioneer.
Complete silence.
— "WHAAAT??? 1 BILLION POINGS?! ANYONE OFFERING MORE???"
The hall remained silent.
— "GOING ONCE... GOING TWICE... SOLD..."
— "SOLD TO THIS DISTINGUISHED LADY PRESENT HERE TODAY! HAHAHAHA! CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR PURCHASE! I GUARANTEE SHE WILL BE VERY USEFUL FOR YOU!" — said the auctioneer with ulterior motives, giving a suggestive look.
— "Thank you... She better be in perfect condition," — the woman replied, with a cold and calculating tone.
A new wave of shock ran through the audience.
— "What?!" — exclaimed one of the men, outraged.
— "A woman? Buying another woman? What is she planning? Could it be... she's into that kind of thing?" — thought one of the buyers, with disdain.
— "If I had bought that bitch... I'd have good company at home... damn... that woman stole my toy..." — grumbled another, frustrated.
End of the first auction.
Later...
— "Please, miss, your merchandise is waiting! Ah... And..." the auctioneer cleared his throat, nervous. "I know it's none of my business, but... Why did you buy a female slave? Usually, they're more... let's say... 'pleasing' for the men. Hahaha..." he asked with a forced laugh.
— "Simple. I won't let vermin like you use her however you want... just to satisfy those useless sexual urges of yours," — replied the woman with disgust.
— "Hahaha... Feel free, madam... She's all yours!" — the auctioneer responded, laughing but visibly uncomfortable.
While the crowd still buzzed with excitement over the million-dollar auction, the organizers were already preparing the next item: a 7-month-old baby... who had no idea what fate awaited him.
BACK TO THE AUCTION...
— "WITH OUR FIRST ITEM SOLD... LET'S MOVE ON TO THE NEXT TOY!" — shouted the auctioneer, with fake enthusiasm. — "THAT'S RIGHT... YOU HEARD ME... WE HAVE ANOTHER HUMAN FOR SALE!"
— "ANOTHER HUMAN??? Will this one be more special than the other? I hope so... I'm really excited..." — said an old man, around 60 years old, licking his lips with disgusting anticipation.
— "LET'S GO!! THIS TIME... I HAVE SOMETHING TO SAY... AND IT'S NOT GOOD!" — the auctioneer continued, smiling wickedly.
Meanwhile, a man in filthy clothes, with bruised hands and feet, entered the auction hall. His putrid smell quickly spread.
— "Ugh... What's that smell? Had to be one of those filthy beggars..." — complained a well-dressed woman, waving her hand in front of her face.
— "THIS AUCTION... IS UNIQUE... RARE... UNLIKELY TO HAPPEN AGAIN... WHAT'S UP FOR SALE NOW HAS NOTHING SPECIAL..." the auctioneer paused dramatically, looking at everyone with wide eyes. "...OR MAYBE... THE ONLY SPECIAL THING... IS HIS AGE!!!"
The audience was confused, murmuring among themselves.
— "I WON'T DRAG OUT THIS PRESENTATION... SO, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN... THIS HONORABLE AUCTION PRESENTS TODAY... A... BEAUTIFUL... BABY!!!" — the auctioneer shouted, with the most cynical smile of the night.
— "He's approximately 7 months old... YOU CAN MOLD HIM HOWEVER YOU WANT! RAISE, TEACH, USE, DO WHATEVER YOU WANT... OF COURSE... AFTER BUYING HIM! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! SO... WHO WILL PLACE THE FIRST BID?"
— "What?? I'm not buying that... GROSS! Besides having to spend more money to take care of him, it'll take years for him to grow...," said the old man, grumbling with disgust. "The only advantage is that... as the auctioneer said... I could mold him... my way... but... Hmm... Even that's not worth it... I won't give a single Poing for that worm."
No one wanted the baby. Just an ordinary human... weak... powerless... worthless. The hall fell into a murmur of disdain.
Suddenly...
— "I'LL BUY THIS BOY... FOR 1 POING COIN!!!"
Absolute silence...
— "WHO SAID THAT???"
— "WHAT??? ONE POING COIN???" — someone from the audience shouted.
Everyone looked toward the voice... And then they saw the beggar... the filthy man who had entered earlier. Dirty, barefoot, with a strange look in his eyes.
— "One Poing coin? Hahaha..." laughed one of the buyers. "Come to think of it... I can't stop him... no one else wanted the boy... Ugh..."
— "SOLD!!!" — announced the auctioneer, laughing. — "THE 7-MONTH-OLD BABY HAS BEEN OFFICIALLY SOLD TO... THE BEGGAR IN THE CORNER!!! GO TO THE PURCHASE HALL AND CLAIM YOUR... 'TROPHY'! HAHAHAHA! GOOD LUCK!"
As the filthy man left, the boy's father, who had been watching from afar, exploded in rage...
— "WHAT THE HEEEELL!!! HOW??? WHY JUST THAT MUCH???" — he shouted, punching the walls. — "THAT DAMN AUCTIONEER SAID I'D MAKE A LOT OF MONEY!!! SON OF A B—"
Suddenly...
The metallic sound of something rolling across the floor echoed through the hall... But when everyone looked... there was nothing there anymore...
— "...Unfortunately... I had to kill you, boy's father... Hope you understand me..." — whispered a grotesque and distorted voice that echoed in the emptiness.
— "Everything went wrong... I really thought the child would be worth a fortune..."
— "It's my fault... you died... by my hands... HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
— "That was so... funny... HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
— "Had to be a useless fool... to believe... that the son of a peasant would be worth anything... HAHAHAHAHAHA!"
— "I need to do this more often... HAHAHAHAHA!"
— "See you in hell..." — concluded the shadow, which for a brief moment, took the exact form of the auctioneer, before disappearing completely.
And so... the child was bought... by a beggar? What a disappointment...
To be continued...