Rain at the Rodeo

[ExplodingIce]

Rain tugged against his irons,but they got smarter as time went on. Now instead of a single set of fetters at the wrist,he was bound three times,at the wrist,before the elbow,and across the biceps. It was effective,and pretty painful. Today he was to be auctioned off and the flashbacks to last time made him shiver. He could hear the crowd outside and he wondered who wouls bid on him. Would they buy him as a work slave? Or would they have something worse in mind. The darkness of the holding cell meant all he could do was think and wait. It was almost worse to be kept waiting. 

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The auctioneer smiled as he handed the chain over to the winner. Today hed made quite the haul. A generator with three days worth of fuel, a few personal slaves with some interesting skills,a favor from a very powerful trader. But hed saved the best for last. He was so certain this slave would fetch a good price hed even gone out of his way to advertise this one. Hed sent out invites to several important houses and had made sure to let some people get glimpses of the bull to increase the hype. 

"Bring out the bull." He told his attendant quietly and stepped forward to address the crowd, the lights dimming and a spotlight being placed on him. 

"Esteemed guests now is the time youve all been waiting for. The final lot of the night. A real treasure for anyone. Need a strong worker? Maybe a body guard? A gladiator? An entertainer? This one does it all. Pedigree breeding,trained and educated by a major house,tempered on the streets,I give you Rainbull." He called and with a wave of his hand the lights turned to his assistant who had led Rain out onto the stage and forced him to his knees,attaching his collar chain to a hook on the floor so he couldnt move much.

[[NPC] Draconian Forces]

The small group of soldiers were, to say the least, a bit bewildered to be where they were. This wasn’t unheard of per se, but they were a little bit iffy as to why they were here. Arsenic had gathered the five of them up, handed them a paper with instructions on it, and said something akin to ‘The Sovereign wants this, go pick it up for him.’ Upon being questioned, their answer was ‘He’s being auctioned off. At least attempt to win him.’ Then they watched the butler shrug and walk off. They all looked down at the paper and in rather violent handwriting from the Sovereign it said, “GET ME THE BULL OR I WILL KILL YOU!” Though, in smaller, much more neat handwriting it said, “We heard there was a talented slave up for sale that might be of some use to us. Please do your best to obtain him. Dress for the event, you’re there on behalf of the Sovereign. Look and act like it.”

So here they were.

In a crowd of people.

Waiting.

Most of this had been very boring, but at least the eye candy had been nice. The crowd had started to get worked up and the auctioneer was saying something. They all turned to pay attention, glancing around when they heard this one being described. The Sovereign wanted this one . . . Why? Maybe he wanted someone new to take care of his vast array of pets; hadn’t the last handler of them been eaten? Arsenic made a decent body guard, didn’t he? Would he really need another one? And what about the Elite Guard that followed him around wherever he went? They saw no reason why he would want a gladiator, he spent too much time with his dolls to care. They were skeptical on the entertainer part, but no one really wanted to know about that. They liked their heads and insides where they were, thanks.


“On behalf of the Sovereign,” Mused one of the guards, “We would like to put in our bid for the Bull.”

[Alverna Au Voth]

Alverna Au Voth sat in the crowd, she had been quiet up until this point. This environment reminded her of some of the gambling dens she had been to in the past. Small men trying to prove how big their dicks where by throwing around things they did not have. Still she was not here for fun and games, as much as she would have liked to bid on some of the other entertainment, she was only here for one thing.

Her Network of spies and thieves around the city told her that a truly remarkable specimen would be present at this event. A man she once heard of and seen before at night clubs. Even before the calamity she liked to keep her ear to the ground. An she found that lips could be a bit loose when intoxication sets in. Still form what she had seen the Calamity gave a man who already had extraordinary girth body mass even more body mass and strength than she originally had heard.


Maelstrom had many skilled men and women under their command. Still they was lacking power. While she believed in tactics and subterfuge, sometimes raw force is nice to have on hand. Still she needed to win the auction 1st. Along with her she brought a vast amount of coins . She Also brought letters with the queen's seal with varies kinds of promises and favors. Most of which She herself would grant but having te queen's seal gives it a bit more weight she felt.


In the crowd she had 4 Men set up to look like your normal shamed or small time guys. They participated in the bidding reviews ly and some even won things for themselves. They was all armed with short swords daggers and smoke bombs. all completely concealed. ONe man sat in the very front, while one sat in the back and one sat in the same row as herself to protect her. Her last man had put himself near the Draconian Forces. Ready to stealthily take one out maybe even two before they realized it.


Now was the time to strike. She stood up from her chair allowing all to see her face. Loudly and proudly she addressed the men and the stage. "I Mayor of Maelstrom, would like to place bid behalf of the Queen."
She looked around to see the reactions of the group. Pleased that her presence was recognized and some were backing away from her. Some people she was ready to bid slowly put there hands down scared to get into direct confrontation with her. "I Offer as my 1st bid a full month's food supply." She pulled out the paper with the seal showing the amount and variety of preserved goods they would give to the slavers.

[ExplodingIce]

Rain was surprised by the turnout, but even more surprised by the high profile bidders. The Sovereign? Leader of his old house and of the Draconian forces? The Mayor? Servant of the Queen of Maelstrom? He knew he was quite the prize, but did he really warrant bids from leaders of three of the main houses? Well, at least he wouldnt be pulling plows through fields. At least...he hoped not.

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The auctioneers face was clammy with sweat and he felt his heart in his ears. First a bid from the Sovereign, and now the Mayor. He had expected a turnout from powerful families but this was beyond his dreams. He rubbed his hands together to try and get some of the moisture off but he failed spectacularly. "Well I have a bid of a full months worth of food from the wonderful Mayor Voth. Would anyone like to counter? House Draconian possibly?" He called, basically ignoring the rest of the crowd who at this point, knew they were outmatched, but stayed for the show. Whatever happened next was going to be some serious gossip and only a fool missed something this momentous.

[[NPC] Draconian Forces]

To be perfectly honest, the five soldiers hadn't expected anyone to want to try bidding once the Sovereign's name had been mentioned. So to hear that the Mayor of Maelstrom was here on behalf of the Queen, well. They were definitely shocked. The fear for the lives intensified and they glanced over the list of things that Arsenic had given them to offer up as bids. The current offer was a full month's supply of food. What was on this list that they could use as something to outbid with?

"The Sovereign is willing to part with enough quality food to last you two months, and supply you with bodyguards for the same amount of time." The leader of this small group of forces replied to the auctioneer. The other four nodded, going back to looking at the list of things they had been given permission to use. Would they have to go through the whole list? What if they ran out of things to bid? What were they going to do then? Man, sure would be nice if Arsenic had come to do this instead. Oh well. They were here and they were going to give it their best shot.

[Alverna Au Voth]

Alverna gave a small sigh. She pulled her cigarette from her jacket. She pointed it at one of the random people in the audience. With a piercing stare, the person knew all too well what to do and knew not to cross her. He pulled out a match and lit the cigarette for her. She put it to her inhaling deeply. She made a long exaggerated show of enjoying her smoke break. as if she was not even worried about this auction and was simply here having a smoke. She exhaled a long stream of smoke. She then settled her eyes at the auctioneers. 

"Are we really going to play this game?" Her voice was measured yet piercing. A small hint of annoyance could be heard in her tone. " can we even be sure that they represent the sovereign? Do you not think that he would send someone a bit higher up on the food chain if he were personally interested?" She placed her free hand to her mouth and gave a small laugh. "It is more likely that these fools are here on their accord, seeking to win the bull to gain favor. The problem with that is their promises are empty." She taped on her cigarette letting some of the ash fall off burning the person to her right. They made no move to attack her out of sheer fear. They simply let it happen. 

After letting that idea sink into the crowd, she spoke once more. "The things they offer or probably from their rations. We All know the sovereign does not treat his men particularly well. As for the protection, they probably will be doing it themselves." She gestured to them. "Look at them; they reek of fear at the fact that I am present. Same as the rest of this lot." She spread her arms, and a few members of the crowd looked down and away. To embarrassed to admit they wanted nothing to do with her. 

"I will match what they offer. I add in nothing more than the simple fact that my word is concrete. Backed and sealed by my authority. I can give you the things promised even without the queens backing if need be. Still, that will not be needed for I have hand written and sealed letters from the queen permission you whatever we agree on this day. "  She flashed a parchment and put it away so that no one can try and snatch it. It was a well-known fact that a letter sealed by the Queen was irreversible and guaranteed to the holder. They were not signed by a single person; this allowed for them to be traded and used as a kind of currency. Backed by the power of Her House. 

"Please do not waste my time by entertaining the low lives." She proceeded to smoke as she waited for a response.

[ExplodingIce]

The auctioneer was so surprised he was speechless for a moment. He hadnt considered what the Mayor had said until she mentioned it. If he made the mistake of snubbing the Mayor to her face, in favor of a bunch of no name soldiers paying for a prize like this with rations and empty promises. "Ummm well..." He sputtered and turned back and forth. "Do we have a rebuttal? The Mayor has a solid point. Can you prove your claims? If you cant, im going to have to ask you to either step down or play your aces." He said, his confidence coming back as his payday approached. With every back and forth they approached an end, and he could go back home with some serious reapings from a good day. 

-----------------

Rain was getting bored, and his body was starting to get cramped. His neck had a serious crick from being bound in a supplicating position, his arms were raw from the multiple sets of fetters, and his knees felt like they were bleeding from digging into the floor. At this point he didnt care who won as long as it ended soon. Maybe his new master would do him a favor and let him pay the auctioneer back after this was over. He loved to see that man smashed against a wall.

[[NPC] Draconian Forces]

This was not something that any of the five soldiers had foreseen happening and they all glanced back and forth at each other. The Sovereign, like always, had probably assumed his reputation would proceed him and they wouldn't be questioned. Someone would have to tell that boy that he was not feared as much as he thought he was. Perhaps were this still his Predecessor, they wouldn't have been so open to disagreement. They had a briefcase with them, maybe they should open that. Something told them that it had been important. After all, why else would the Butler have specifically handed this to them while saying, "Use this if things look grim." They had no idea what that meant at the time, but weren't things looking grim now? Better open the case.

And thank god they did. "We have a signed document right here that says we are here on behalf of the Sovereign!" The one that felt the most confident stepped forward, holding the paper. "Its got his signature and personally guarantees that he can fulfill each and every one of the promised goods and services. To prove its authenticity, his butler even signed it." It might not have been common knowledge among most normal people, but anyone who held any kind of power would know that any official document that the Sovereign signed always had his butler's attached to it. If that wasn't present, it was forged.

"So, not only do we have the authority to put forth the food and the protection from some of the Sovereign's own personal guardsmen, we can also offer you safe passage through our territories and a much better place to lay your head at night so you needn't have to worry about anything ever again."

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