3 Blood Hound

Ruzen tried not to tremble as a sudden weight suppressed his attempts at fleeing. A weight he was unfamiliar with, it was more like pressure in the air, a pressure kept him submissive.

Looks like the big boss was here, Ruzen thought in amusement, his mind a bit staggering under the intense pain of bruising cuts and stabs he had received from the spears. But in the current situation, he wondered if that pain mattered any, since his life was on the line.

His head was facing the marbled flooring, so he couldn't readily face up to see who it was that had so much control over him… and the ghosts.

Was it the owner of this Trade Hub? Ruzen thought he couldn't be that far with his guess work, because who would have such a daunting presence if not someone of influence.

"For dirtying this ground with your impudence, you will receive Black Call," a cold voice boomed in the silent hall, "tell your owner to not let his pets distract me the next time he is here."

Still not being able to move, Ruzen couldn't watch the drama unfold, but his rattling heart not only made him fearful of moving but also left him unsettled. Despite the brush with death he wasn't someone whose heart would beat so loudly in fear, he had a strong inner strength and resistance against such abrupt obstacles.

In his previous lifetime since young age he had been tormented with nightmares, although his daily life was normal, but his nightmares weren't. He had lost his younger brother in an accident, and himself had fought to survive the intense pains that wrecked his head after his short coma. That had been the start of his bad luck but overall since then he hadn't feared… death.

He feared angering God, his parents were religious and so was he, but since his brother's demise, he, the sole heir to his family heirloom had been pampered and kept behind closed doors. More often than not, he remained indoors and only went out to attend classes or later, college.

For someone like him, whose life had been a roller coaster but 'normal' enough compared to other humans, this sudden rattling heart made him anxious.

He was sweating and his eyes were turning bleary with tears. He felt nauseous even.

What was going on?!

Such changes made him feel detached, like his conscience and body were two different elements and he was not used to such show of eerie reactions.

Maybe he was in shock, because many people didn't know they were in shock until after a while. And he was 100% sure he could be suffering from that.

Still, it made him tensed, and his lack of strength made him even more susceptible to weakness both in mind and body, there was an apparent lack of clarity.

However, rather than shivering like a dead man, he tried peeking at the strange owner who had somewhat 'saved' him, although it could also be a worse situation for him since Ruzen suddenly remembered he was inside the walls of a Ghost Trade Hub, and from Al'Bae's memories, he recalled how cruel these centers were, they even sold human slaves, which was not something he was looking forward to.

"Please forgive our master Zi Blood Hound," one of the Ghosts that had previously stabbed Ruzen stepped in front as the rest of the ghosts shifted a step back, lining up linearly. "We beg for forgiveness."

"A Black Call, no more no less."

"Our master is not a native of this place, we again beg for forgiveness!"

Ruzen was rather shocked to see these fearsome pale ghosts begging for forgiveness, and that too with such show of respect… just who was the owner of this Hub?

Didn't they say Zi Blood Hound? Was that the name? Even Al'Bae hadn't heard of it. So Ruzen couldn't tell his own outcome. He hoped to stay alive in this world for now.

"Black Call."

The words were not even making a sentence, but they were enough to scoop out any sort of resistance, it was an order, the words sounding like a curse.

Watching the Ghosts bowing in respect again and leaving hurriedly out the door, Ruzen snapped out of his musings. The next one to be trialed was him, of course he would feel the obvious anticipation, would his fate turn for the worse?

"A cursed child, what is your name?"

That pressure which had been pressing him down was finally removed and Ruzen could feel the breath coming in easier, his heart going back to its calm badum badum.

Still a bit out of it, Ruzen did not try to look at the person he was talking to, keeping his eyes lowered, so that he could only see the glaring red robes dragging along the floor as the owner of the robes – and most probably the hub - stood still assessing him.

Ruzen cleared his dry throat, "A-" he paused, not too sure if he should give away his name for free, didn't many horror films revolved around stories where the ghost could remember your name and would haunt you until death?

So being a bit cautious he said, "Al'Zen."

It was neither Ruzen, nor Al'Bae, but a perfect combo to make up his identity. Who knows which name would turn into his shackle, so for now he would go with Al'Zen.

"Good choice." The cold voice whispered, and Ruzen dreadfully shivered, it seemed to him as if his plan had been seen through and his opponent was not just a name that had to be feared.

Plus, there was this 'Black Call' he had spoken of previously, whatever it was, it was nothing good.

"You can look at me, I do not fear your curse."

So looking at him would unleash a curse? Ruzen found it funny. Didn't the man know Ruzen hadn't looked at him because he feared the man? What wasn't clear?

Taking the opportunity, Ruzen took a glance and… a sense of inferiority was born in his heart. For the man was obviously a Ghost, his pupil-less eyes gave that away, but a sharp cheekbone, tall stature, silky red robes and pale skin with dark hair, made him no less a God. Someone so frosty, a beauty unparalleled he was.

Ruzen couldn't believe a Ghost could be born with such good looks, it just wasn't possible.

"Take what you need from here and leave," said the man with a frown tugging his lips, snapping out Ruzen of his daze, "This is all the help I can give you."

Blinking in surprise, Ruzen looked around a bit since the Ghost had simply vanished into thin air right after he spoke, in a spooky ghostly manner often shown in films.

The Ghosts that he had seen before in the hall had also left their posts and all that remained was a furnished room, with cold white marbles and white walls, decorated with old dark wooden desks and cushions. The hall did not have many furniture but a set of sitting spaces and beddings were given to accommodate visitors and dining hours.

The delicious smell of food had Ruzen salivating as he rushed to the table and hurriedly grabbed whatever he could with his shaky hands.

While he ate he noticed how similar the food tasted with the same salt, sweet and herbal tampering, and was edible enough to ingest. If he wasn't certain of where he was, he would have thought he was eating in some 5-Star Middle eastern restaurant which practiced traditional culinary recipes to serve fine gentlemen and black card holders.

Maybe his hunger and thirst made him eat like a pig, but he was too careless to bother with that, for now he was more invested in learning of the reason why a Ghost would help him if other hated his kind. Al'Bae's memories were unreliable since he often did not notice smaller details, but if Ruzen was asked, he would say the Ghosts had never really shown that much resistance to his previous self as the others did.

But one couldn't say the Ghosts loved him, they were also always wary of him. However they weren't as cruel as the humans.

Well, after he was done eating, he would have to leave, for staying more than his invite would only cause unwanted problems for him, he must avoid that.

Of course, he would look for Zi Blood Hound to thank him and ask for directions to some safer people friendly places, but for now his focus was on eating the food, which he believed that Ghosts had no need of, so who was it prepared for? The buyers maybe?

And strangely enough, this hall he was sitting in did not look like a trading hub, more like a temporary shelter for tired travelers, even the taste of colors and interior wasn't something a dessert structure would have…