May's anthology

Black Market King-A Bard's Tale: Magic Contests and Challenges

"What would it be, my friend?" I ask the scrawny guy at the end of the bar.

It is clear that he is what we call fresh meat, new to the black market, and I am ready to take advantage of that.

"Can I get In Love cocktail, please?" He asks.

We rarely get the polite ones, so that makes me pause for a fraction of a second, but then I think of the world we live in and what I have been through to get to where I am now, and I am back in the game.

"Absolutely!" I say with a huge grin.

What I've noticed about newcomers is that they are the only ones who appreciate me showing off my bartender skills, their curiosity being overwhelming as it is.

"Let us see," I say as I arrange a lot of different ingredients on the bar.

After all, this is showtime, my time to shine. I need to do this perfectly, to pull him in. Money is short, so I can't afford to lose such an easy prey.

"Let us see. A few drops of joy, a splash of happiness..." I say as I twirl the bottles expertly.

"A drop of love..." I say before I am rudely interrupted by the curious customer.

"Just a drop of love?" He asks.

"Ah, my friend, I am afraid so. Being in love is much more than just love, there is least of it there. It's more about the mixture of other emotions such as fear, anxiety, excitement, and so on." I say, as I expertly add the black liquid of pure terror.

What he doesn't know can't kill him. Well, at least I hope not. The fear I can sell, but terror doesn't sell so well, so when I see my chance, I have to take it. This poor guy will never know the difference.

He has never experienced any emotions, so whatever I give him will be an absolute treat for him. Besides, being in love does entail some terror, doesn't it?

"Is that what pure love feels like?" He asks.

"Who knows, my man? We haven't been allowed to sell pure emotions for years. Besides, In Love is one of the best cocktails we can offer. It's as close as we can get to the real deal." I say.

"I thought you are not allowed to sell any emotions?" He whispers.

"Well, technically, all the bottled emotions are under strict government surveillance, but the government doesn't mind us having a few cocktails to remind us of the good all days. As long as we don't overdo it and become emotional. That my friend would be a problem." I say as I keep mixing and stirring his cocktail.

Honestly, I have no idea what I've put in it since I am trying to use my least popular emotions into this guy's cocktail. I will be overcharging him after all.

Luckily for me, the labels are so worn out that the hapless guy has no idea what I am mixing up in his drink. He is sure to have a hell of a headache in the morning.

But hey, they don't call me the Black Market King for nothing. Well, no one calls me that, but they should.

I am one of the rare few people in this town who was able not only to acquire almost all bottled emotions but also to keep my business from being raided by the Feel Police.

The secret is knowing how to deal with each person as an individual, one small misstep can cost you everything. Luckily for me, I am a very good judge of character.

Take for example the chief police, offer him money and you'll go to jail never to come out again. However, if you offer him just the perfect cocktail of joy and ecstasy from time to time, he is willing to let you get away with murder, even literally.

Anyway, not everyone is the same, so I have to be a very good judge of character and work fast. So far, it has paid off more than I ever hoped it would when I started up my little black market business.

Ever since the emotions were drained from people and bottled up in the factory people have been badly influenced one way or the other but not me. The bottling of emotions turned out to be the best thing that had ever happened to me. I was finally able to excel at something.

"This tastes great!" The guy interrupts my musings.

Knowing what I've mixed up in there, I am pretty sure that it doesn't, but it's good for me that he can't tell the difference. After all, he has never felt anything, so I guess anything is good enough for him.

"Glad you like it, mate. Will there be anything else?" I ask trying to keep my smile although I have worn it out for these naive guys over the years.

"No, I am okay, thanks." He says.

I walk away from him and towards the storage room.

"I'll take my break now, Mike," I yell over my shoulder.

Mike nods his head, and that's the only acknowledgment I get, as usual.

Once in the back, I lock the storage room and finally sit down for my daily dose of emotions. Bliss sounds good right about now.

A glass of bliss and maybe a bottle of joy.

Yeah, yeah, pure emotions are not allowed, but what they don't know can't hurt me, right?