Page 115 of Alpha Power

"I-"

"And you know what? Can you make me taller while you're at it? Like 6'5 or somethin'? Chuck in a bit more muscle too, can't be outta proportion otherwise I'd look like an idiot."

Thaddeus stared, flabbergasted as Void reclined all the way back and closed his eyes, wiggling until he got comfortable. After a few quiet seconds, Void peeked out of one eye and frowned. He clicked his fingers. "Move it along, Thad. You said we can't be late."

Thaddeus narrowed his eyes and called on his dark magic. "Oh no, we definitely can't be late."

* * *

"You did me dirty, Thad. You did me real fucking dirty," Void hissed as they walked down the quiet, empty street.

It was 11:30pm and they had been walking for about five minutes, Void complaining nonstop as per fucking usual. It was cold, goosebumps pebbled on Zamorra’s skin and she wished she'd brought a jacket to keep herself warm. There wasn't a soul around. The street was completely deserted, like they were the only people left on the entire planet. She half expected to see tumbleweeds rolling across the street.

"I asked for a mix between Johnny Depp and Ian Somerhalder. Instead you gave me Shaggy from Scooby-Doo and Lord Farquaad's illegitimate son!" Void blasted, catching a glimpse of his reflection through a glass window. Scowling, he turned left to right, studying his appearance with anger.

Instead of sharp, chiselled features and clear beautiful skin, he got a round jaw, long pointy nose, and acne ridden face. His hair was long, down to his waist and his build shrunk, his usual 6'2 stature replaced with a tiny 4'5, coming to a stand at Zamorra's stomach. He was thin, sickly thin, like he had been a drug user all his life and was wasting away.

"I-I think you look great. R-really, just t-top notch," she stuttered, barely able to contain the laughter. Her werewolf's roaring laughter inside her head wasn't really helping things either.

Void tried to shove her, but his little arms didn't have enough reach and she was able to avoid it, jumping effortlessly to the side.

"I don't know how that happened," Thaddeus said, avoiding eye contact. His lips quirked and he smiled. "Oh wait, I do."

"You'd better be faaaaaar away from me when I get my body back."

"Ifyou get it back," Thaddeus winked and Void narrowed his eyes.

"I better," he growled.

Zamorra felt the tingle of magic just before they rounded the corner, entering a new street. A Glamour spell for sure, and some pretty powerful ward spells. Whatever lay beyond was being concealed and protected by these powerful spells. There was so much magic circling the air, it was almost stifling.

She wasn't sure what she was expecting, but a street transformed into a giant marketplace certainly wasn't it.

Boisterous voices and loud, thumping music reached her ears. Stalls lined the street up and down, starting from the edge of the footpath and spilling out right onto the road, lit up by beautifully glowing white orbs dangling in the air. Supernatural’s bustled to-and-fro, running from stall to stall trying to get a look at who was selling the best goods.

Demons, vampires, mages and all different types of shifters. Bear, lion, centaur, eagle… werewolf. Her heckles rose at that last scent and she had to work fiercely to not turn around and bolt, to not run away to safety like she'd been taught all her life to do if she ever encountered another werewolf.

"It's like Carrara Markets," Zamorra whispered, moving down the street. "It's so awesome."

Her gaze wandered around all the different stalls, taking everything in. A demon with long black hair and soulless eyes caught her attention. Twirling a sharp blade in each hand, the steel glistening as it moved effortlessly through the air made him look completely terrifying. Curved blades and long, thick swords littered the table beside him, all shining brightly and sparkling against the light surrounding them.

"You want blade?" The red-skinned demon grunted to anyone that passed. "Only two human souls. Sharpest steel forged in demon kingdom."

Yes, demons had their own kingdom. They kinda needed it since they couldn't really fit into the human world like most of the other supernatural’s could. It was deep, deep, deep underground and rumour had it that no other supernatural had ever ventured there before.

In Zamorra's mind, she pictured hell. Pits of fire and damnation where demons tortured the souls they bartered for. Was that where the idea of 'hell' originally came from? Did some unlucky human happen to glance into that terrifying world?

Demon steel was highly coveted. It was forged in demon fire and was sharp enough to cut through anything in its path. She'd never owned a demon blade before and she desperately wanted one. Unfortunately Thaddeus ushered her on.

"I've never seen anything like this before. How often does it happen?" She asked, and Thaddeus flicked his gaze towards her.

"Once a month. They all come out to play when the Regent Meeting is on. Best chance to drum up sales."

A few stalls down was a light mage selling vials of potions and enchantments, spells and services. The next stall had a lone vampire sitting in a chair with a thin tube running from his wrist to a cup sitting on the table.

"What's going on there?" She whispered.

"He's selling a hit of his blood," Thaddeus replied. "Once they all become aware of Night Flare, he'll see a serious drop in customers."

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