Not wanting to shove his way through the crowd, Rori decided to circle around it to the right. In that way he ended up to the right and behind the auction block that sat on the front of a stage. The auction block was exactly that, a solid block of wood that was about the size of a decent table. The auctioneer stood directly behind it with a wooden hammer in one hand. The stage was only two feet higher than the ground. But it was enough to give the auctioneer a good view of the crowd and the bidding. There was a long ramp extending straight out from either side of the stage and at the back of the stage was a wooden pen containing yet another impressively large bull. Even from this distance it was clear to Rori that Bernie the bull would never fit between the wooden railings on either side of the ramps, and it was doubtful the pen was large enough to hold him either.
By the time Rori got close enough to hear what was going on, the auctioneer had just slammed his hammer onto the block and shouted, “Sold!”
Rori was standing near a pair of palindri who had their heads together talking. The cat men looked like ranchers, but if they were bidding on this particular bull, they hadn’t won it.
“Sorry,” Rori said interrupting, “I couldn’t hear the final price. What did it sell for?”
“Eight hundred,” said one of the cat men. His almond shaped eyes looked over Rori for a moment as if trying to decide if Rori was a competitor or a spectator. Having decided the latter, he immediately went back to his quiet discussions with the other palindri.
There was a pause in the activity as the just sold bull was moved away. The crowd on the left side of the stage moved out of the way as three large men began to move the animal down the ramp on the far side. There was a discussion going on between several men, including the auctioneer, at the front of stage. Though he didn’t see any money changing hands, Rori supposed it was the buyer and seller working out how payment was being made.
Eventually the small group separated and as nobody looked upset, Rori assumed the deal had gotten resolved successfully. The auctioneer moved back up the block and spoke to the people on Rori’s side of the stage.
“Alright, make way for the next one. Day’s almost spent and so am I.”
The crowd chuckled, but it sounded more like a polite chuckle at an oft told joke than honest mirth. Nevertheless, the men around Rori all begin to shift apart to make a lane for the next bull to go up the ramp onto the stage. Rori moved with the people near him and ended up in the line of people clustered up by the buildings that the rear of the stage sat against.
There were three men bringing the next bull up as well. An enormous man was walking backward leading the bull by a rope tied to the ring in its nose. A second smaller man was walking beside the bull and appeared to be whispering in its ear. And on the opposite side towards the rear there was a third large fellow holding another rope that went around the bull’s neck. At the moment neither the lead rope nor the one around the bull’s neck were taut, because the bull seemed content to go the direction that they wanted.
“C’mon bull,” the large man in the front grunted and gave the rope a gentle tug. The bull snorted in annoyance but continued its forward progress. As the procession passed, the bull was only a few feet away, but Rori had stopped paying attention to it.
Though he hadn’t recognized the man who nearly ran into him earlier, there was no mistaking this one. It was Rud. The mountain of a man that Nolan had thrown dumplings at in Willowsbrook. He was a hard person to forget. He was probably the tallest person Rori had every met and he was also likely the ugliest. His face looked like it had seen one too many fist fights. Rori tried to casually turn away hoping Rud wouldn’t see or recognize him, but it was too late.
“Hey!” shouted Rud. “I knows you! You insult Ma!”
Rori was about to try and convince Rud he was simply mistaken. Which, given Rud’s less than monumental brain power would probably not be terribly hard to do, when the man who’d run into them earlier stepped out of the crowd behind Rud.
“See there, Rud. I told you I saw him.”
“Good finding, Nick. I see too,” said Rud. “Now let’s pulp him.”
Rud dropped the lead he was holding and took a step towards Rori smacking one of his massive fists into his open palm.
The man holding onto the other rope standing beside the bull was evidently not one of Rud’s friends because instead of looking like he wanted to murder Rori, he looked quite panicked at the fact that he was now the sole controller of the bull. The man whispering in the bull’s ear began to talk quicker and louder and it was clear he was trying to keep the animal calm.
“Surely, you don’t still bear a grudge about a simple barroom fight?” said Rori.
“Normally, no,” said Nick. “Personally, I say after a bar fight is over let bygones be bygones, but we can’t do that in this case. You disappeared and we ended up having to foot the bill for all the damage. On top of that, one or two of the other people at the bar ended up dead somehow. With nobody else to blame, they pinned it all on us. We ended up doing six months in jail. So, we’re gonna make a special exception for you.”
“Rud don’t like jail,” said Rud.
Rori tried to take two steps back along the edge of the building, but he was boxed in by the building, the bull, the crowd and Rud. Which meant that there wasn’t enough room for him to get moving enough to jump over anything.
So instead, he stepped forward and said, “I can’t believe you’d be a part of this auction, Rud. I’d think there would be laws against selling your mother.”
For one moment he thought the insult was too wordy for Rud to follow, but then the confusion in Rud’s eyes disappeared as Rud managed to puzzle it out. He roared, “You callin’ Ma a bull! You callin’ Ma a man cow!”
Rud stepped forward with a huge right hook towards Rori’s head. As Rori had been counting on, Rud’s attacks were still not fast at all. Though the haymaker would likely knock Rori unconscious if it connected, it moved slow enough to easily avoid.
Rori waited as long as he could and then dodge down under the fist, turning his movement into a roll that took him under the bull. Though he didn’t have time to see what Rud had hit, there was definitely a loud smacking thud from Rud’s fist connecting with something.
Rori immediately stood up on the opposite side of the bull directly beside the man who had been talking to the bull. As he turned to make his escape into the crowd a dagger came flying towards him. Behind the first row of people was a man Rori recognized as another of Rud’s crew from the bar fight in Willowsbrook. Rori mentally chided himself for not realizing all of Rud’s friends would likely be nearby.
Fortunately, because of the people between them, the thrower’s aim was off, and the blade flew by, wide and high, well off its mark. Not willing to make the same mistake again, Rori quickly scanned the crowd for any other attackers. Sure enough, while there were quite a few people between them, Rori spotted another. He couldn’t identify this one though, because the person’s face was hidden by their hands and the blowgun they were firing at Rori.
Acting on instinct, Rori dropped to the ground again. He rolled to the back of the bull and sprang up only enough to get his legs under him and allow him to start weaving through the crowd in a crouching run. But he made it only one step before his feet departed from the ground.
This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.
While he had been dealing with the attackers on this side of the bull, Rud had moved to the back of the bull and had simply picked Rori up by the back of his collar. Rori’s feet now hung half a foot above the ground.
“Where you going?” Rud said with a smile that did nothing to improve his face.
Before Rori could answer a terrible bellowing sound came from the bull. Tilting his head to the side in order to see around Rud, Rori could see that the blowgun dart he’d dodged now sat imbedded into the side of the bull. Rori’s glance was enough to get Rud to turn and look as well.
The bull evidently enraged by the blowgun dart in its hindquarters struck out at the biggest target it could find. It kicked out and planted both of its rear hooves into Rud’s side. The kick would have sent a normal sized person flying, but at his great size it merely toppled Rud into the surrounding crowd. Fortunately, it also freed Rori of Rud’s grasp. Rori landed on his backside facing the bull. Which was now kicking and goring everything in sight in a fantastic whirlwind of rage. The rope around its neck and the one tied to the ring in its nose whipping around frantically.
Rori scrambled backward until he bumped into a pair of legs. Looking up he saw the man who had thrown the dagger standing over him. The dagger might have been gone, but he’d replaced it with a short sword.
“Where are you going?” the man said stabbing down at Rori.
Rori’s right hand shot up and slapped against the side of the blade redirecting its downward angle. Instead of stabbing Rori the man ended up stabbing himself in the foot. He began howling in pain.
Rori rolled over and sprang to his feet and took two steps away trying to increase the distance between him and the raging bull. He also glanced into the crowd to see if he needed to dodge another dart, but he didn’t see anyone with a blowgun.
Several feet away, Rud also regained his feet. He shook his head, clearly dazed by the bull’s kick.
“I kill you now,” Rud said turning to face Rori.
“That’s pretty direct,” said Rori, “but I think I’ll pass.”
The crowd reacting to the rampaging bull were all fleeing as fast as they could. This meant Rori, his attackers and the bull were now sharing the empty space of a quickly expanding circle.
Rori scanned to the left looking for Nick, but he didn’t see him. It was probably too much to hope that he had either fled or been knocked out of the fight by the bull.
The man with the sword pulled it from his foot with a grimace and took a limping step towards Rori.
Rori assessed his options. Behind him was a fleeing crowd containing someone who had a blowgun, almost assuredly other weapons and the benefit of surprise as Rori had no idea what they actually looked like. To his left was a massive raging bull. Ahead of him was Rud and to his right was the man with the sword.
Rori smiled.
“I’d like to thank you,” he said.
“For killing you?” the man with the sword replied.
“No, for making this the best day I’ve had in eight months. I could stay and play, but you two aren’t worth the effort and I’m not keen on your friend hitting me in the back with one of those darts. So, I guess this is goodbye.”
Rori turned and took three steps towards the retreating crowd keeping his eyes peeled for an attacker with a blowgun. With the crowd moving away from the bull, movement back towards the bull on his right quickly caught his eye. There he saw a woman step away from the crowd with her hands reaching out in the direction of the bull, a look of panic on her face. Halfway between her and the animal was a small child. The boy was toddling towards the bull, one chubby finger pointing forward.
“Moo, Mama! Moo!” the little boy said emphatically.
“Oggie, no!” screamed the woman.
“Great,” sighed Rori, immediately turning his path away from the crowd and towards the boy.
Fortunately, the bull was currently focused on a man it had pinned in the corner created by the stage and building. The bull stomped its hoof on the ground twice and bellowed again.
“Moo!” the small boy shouted in glee, stopping three steps short of the bull, clearly oblivious to the danger he was in.
The bull turned at the cry and was now refocused on the child.
Rori put all his effort into running straight at the bull.
He crossed the remaining distance and snatched up the boy at the exact same time the bull started moving forward, its head lowered to toss the child with its horns.
Instead of the bull’s horns connecting with the boy, Rori’s foot planted firmly between its eyes. Rori continued running up the bull’s neck and then leapt off the back of the bull, over the railing and onto the stage.
Though Rori wouldn’t have thought it possible the bull got even more enraged.
It turned to pursue Rori with its head lowered. When it reached the stage, it reared up with all of its might. The power of the monstrous bull was no match for the railing surrounding the stage. It exploded in a shower of wooden chunks and splinters.
The bull’s momentum carried its front half up onto the stage. And after a short scrabbling of legs and hooves, the bull was standing completely on the stage with Rori.
Rori took two steps forward and jumped up onto the railing at the back corner of the stage. He turned in the air as he did so that he ended up straddling the corner of the railing, facing the bull. He looked down at Oggie hoping the child wasn’t too upset by the circumstances, but surprisingly Oggie looked like he was having a fine time.
From this height Rori could see that Rud and the fellow with the sword had advanced towards the stage but were still far enough back to avoid the bull if it should change directions again. He could also see that Nick had not left after all but was crouched behind the auction block hiding from the bull. Oggie’s mother stood hands clasped together crying for her baby just in front of the edge of the crowd, many of whom had stopped to watch from what they felt was a safe enough distance.
“Ready for some fun, Ogg?” Rori asked the boy.
“Yes!” the boy replied with a clap of his hands. Then pointing again at the bull, Oggie said, “Moo.”
“Moo indeed,” said Rori. “Hold tight.”
Tucking Oggie under his arm and high on his right hip Rori began running along the top of the railing around the stage. Without slowing Rori jumped over the empty spot where the other ramp began. Then when he’d reached the front of the stage, he took a few steps and leapt onto the top of the auction block.
The bull turned to face them with a snort and a stomp of its hoof.
“What do you think, Nick?” Rori asked the man hiding behind the block. “Gonna bid on this one?”
“Shut up, fool,” hissed Nick. “That thing will kill us all.”
“It’s gonna try anyway,” agreed Rori. “Let’s see what it thinks about this.”
Using the toe of his shoe, Rori flicked the auctioneer’s hammer at the bull. It spun through the air and bounced off of the bull’s head.
“Did you think that would hurt it?!” hissed Nick.
“Not at all. If I had, I would have probably missed. I was just hoping to get it to charge,” answered Rori with a smile. “And here we go.”
With a shake of its head, the bull went from standing still to full speed in an instant. Once again, the head lowered, and the massive animal slammed into the auction block with a resounding crack. The block was knocked forward off of the stage, but before the bull had connected, Rori had once again darted forward and ran straight along the animal’s back.
The bull bucked and kicked and Rori tried to jump free. With a bit of twisting Rori managed to land in a crouch and keep Oggie from any damage. But they were dangerously close to the bull’s flailing legs. As the animal was turning around, it caught Nick in his side with one of its horns and flung him off the stage. It then immediately refocused on Rori. It finished turning and charged.
Rori started sprinting for the back of the stage. As he neared the far side, he could practically feel the animal’s breath on his back. He leapt up at the last instant and used the top of the railing to change his direction so that he was essentially now running up the wall at the back of the stage. Before his momentum slowed, Rori kicked off of the wall and spun in a tumble so that he landed behind the bull racing back towards the front of the stage. Behind him there was a thunderous crash as the bull slammed full speed into the wall.
Rori turned preparing to leap again, but there was no need. The bull stood for a moment with its head pressed against the wall and then it simply fell over.
Rori walked back to the front of the stage and jumped down to hand the still happy Oggie back to his mother.
“Moo?” asked the boy with a concerned voice.
“I think he’s taking a nap,” said Rori.
“Thank you. Thank you so much,” said the boy’s mother pulling the boy into an embrace.
“It was nothing,” said Rori as she turned to go, smothering the boy in kisses.
“You’ll be nothing,” said the man with the sword as he and Rud stepped up to Rori.
“Are you kidding me?” asked Rori. “Did you just see what happened? Do you think you’ll fare better?”
“We aren’t a bull,” said the man poking his sword towards Rori.
“Not bull,” echoed Rud his massive fist rising up to once again strike at Rori.
“Yes, but you are under arrest,” said a new voice as Rud’s arm was abruptly stopped from behind. The big man grunted trying to pull his arm free, but to no avail.
“I kill you too,” said Rud turning to face his new attacker.
“Doubtful, but you’re welcome to try” said the man in the black breastplate with a falcon emblazoned on its chest. He had short brown hair styled in a typical military haircut and a scar that ran up his cheek, over his ear and into his hair.
The man took two steps back and drew a massive great sword from off of his back.
“Or you can surrender before I remove your head from your shoulders.”
Rud took only twice as long as Rori thought he would to finally say, “Okay. Rud, give up.”
Rori took the short sword from his other attacker and said, “Dade. I am truly glad to see you.”
“Likewise, Rori. Likewise,” said Dade.
