11 The Black Market

[Warning: Sensitive Contents ahead, please be advised.]

*

Black Market, as the orthodox church suspected, was not a place, but most likely a name used for the secret auction and gathering of people who practiced dark magic. They used the term Black Market to mislead people.

Although it served as a secret gathering for people with an interest in occult and dark magics, several lunatics whose excessive inclination turned them into maniacs were present as well. They became the reason behind the dark rumor about the Black Market.

One incident caused by those lunatic participants of the Black Market sent terror to the residents of the slums. 

One night, a drunk civilian lost his way and accidentally stumbled into the most isolated part of the slums where a Black Market was happening.

Around fifteen people, more or less, were wearing dark brown robes. Their faces were shadowed, their heads covered by the hoods of their robes. They were circling three upside-down crosses that were stuck to the soil, eerily whispering chants in unison.

Three naked children were nailed upside down separately on the said crosses. The children were already on the verge of losing their lives. Their eyes opened and bore a gruesome expression of pain.

The drunk man gasped at the ghastly sight, as fears pierced through his heart, sending chilling horror down his spine.

Who could do such a diabolical thing? Those poor children!

One of the children's stomachs was ripped open, her intestines were hanging out. The other two children on the other hand had a whole embedded onto their chests, blood was dripping on their severe wounds.

Unexpectedly, the men in the robe burst into maniacal laughter, sending the drunk man trembling in apprehension, his drunk state immediately disappeared. His knees turned to jelly, causing him to stumble and make a rustling noise.

In his clumsiness, all the men in the robe turned to his direction simultaneously, as they all at once ceased their maniacal laughter and fell silent at the sudden noise from an intruder.

Their gazes, peering at him from the shadows of their hoods, sent a shiver down his spine even more. He could not even scream in horror as he stared at them in complete fear.

He quickly straightened his body, preparing to run. Suddenly, one of the men brought a mini didgeridoo in his mouth, and with one blow, a sharp material rapidly went out, straight for the man. And before the man could take a step, something sharp struck his throat.

The blow rendered the drunk man immobile. He collapsed to the ground, his eyes wide and dilated in apprehension as he felt his life gradually dissipating.

The next day, at the old church that stood at the heart of the town square, its stone walls were stained with blood.

Words, written in blood, were inscribed on it: "Great Atticus will come and prevail!"

In front of the old church, right at the entrance, the villagers were crowding in pure horror and confusion as they stood frozen in their feet.

A sickly stench of blood thickened the air that they could not ignore.

Four towering, inverted crosses stood in the broad daylight, each bearing a child and a grown man. Their limbs were twisted and their flesh was pale and lifeless. Their stomachs had been hollowed, their entrails spilling onto the ground. Their wide, unblinking eyes bulged in a haunting stare as if they had witnessed something far worse than death itself.

On the ground, human organs were arranged to spell out the chilling message: "Warning: No encroacher at the Black Market."

After such a scary incident that left the residents sick to their stomachs, the church was determined to identify those responsible.

However, the Black Market was never an organization, it was only formed through a common consensus between people like Nolan in secret means to hold their auction in different locations.

Mostly, they used the newspaper as a tool to communicate: cryptic headlines, embedded symbols or code, or even puzzles and anagrams. By weaving these elements into a newspaper or chapter, they created a tool that looked normal on the surface, but hidden within was the communication for heretics.

*

At the Loic estates, after dinner, Nolan brought Elwin into his hidden chamber in his room.

The small hidden chamber was tucked away behind a concealed door. Only he and Atticus knew of it and now, Elwin.

Nolan never had a friend, and during that time, he had risked revealing his dark secret to the stranger he had just met a few hours ago.

A thick, musky scent of incense and old parchment filled the room as they entered.

The dim light of a single flickering candle on the table filled with open books and parchment, cast long shadows on the stone walls, revealing shelves with books and strange, ancient artifacts and esoteric symbols carved into stone.

Elwin shuddered as he scanned the whole room. It was like he was transported into a different world, different from what he had been living. However, he couldn't deny the fascination that tugged in his heart.

"This is…amazing," he muttered, walking from one spot to another and checking each weird and creepy collection that Nolan stored in the room, "All of these are yours? How did you even manage to get all these?"

Nolan smiled and felt proud to show him his hidden chamber, "It was hard but through proper research and with the help of Atticus."

Somehow, he had the vague feeling that he and Elwin would be a good friend. Although he was scared, he seemed to be more in awe of his secret chamber and collections.

Elwin paused and glanced at him, his one eye covered in gauze, "Your butler?"

"Yeah. Although my parents are not against my interest in dark magic, they do not approve of helping me to acquire materials." Nolan answered, adding his slight frustration over his family, "All the stuff here was gathered by me and Atticus and a little help with my brother." He added as he strode towards the table and scanned through the papers and parchment that scattered on the table.

Elwin fell silent for a moment before he reluctantly walked near him, "I know that we just met, but, I have this feeling that your butler is…" Elwin fidgeted, reluctant to continue his words, and angered the person who offered help to him.

Nolan provided him with medical for his bruises and even gave him a change of clothes and fed him delicious food. He had never eaten such a delicious meal and wore warm and beautiful clothes.

"Weird? Strange? Or Scary?" Nolan guessed his next word and reached for the parchment with its edges torn and worn out on his table, "Everyone in the house thinks of him that way. A rumor circulated among the servants that he is not a human."

Elwin almost shuddered but he grew more assured about his suspicions on Nolan's butler.

"And his name is the same from that evil God that heretic people worshiped!" Elwin whispered, "A-are you not scared of him?"

Nolan paused and looked at him, wondering where he got an idea about the evil god that heretic people worship. He was a heretic himself for practicing dark magic and opposing the orthodox church's strict rule against it.

He flipped through the pages of the parchment that he was holding before handing it to Elwin.

Elwin reached for it with curiosity. He checked its contents but he was barely able to read what was written through the dim light from the candle.

"I-I'm sorry, I… I can't read…" He admitted, blushing in embarrassment, "Will you tell me what is written in here?"

Nolan gazed at him. Elwin had a fluffy, curly ginger hair. His big green eyes appeared to glimmer in innocence through the reflection of the candle.

"What's written there is how to concoct a potion that would instantly kill someone without leaving any trace of any evidence on their body. It would appear like they die from their sleep."

Elwin almost dropped the parchment in shocked as he gasped. His surprised face stared at Nolan in disbelief.

"Why…why are you giving me this?"

Nolan met his eyes, before he answered.

"You can live here with us after we kill your parents, what do you say about that?"