The Preying City

10 P.M.

Unnamed alley, somewhere in the slums.

Vincent reached the place earlier to explore the sewer passageways down below. You never knew when the authorities would try to crack down on supernaturals. Since Mr. Collector's home was reached through an artifact, there wasn't much danger there. The place he would have to be careful about would be this alley where everyone met before midnight.

Donning his mask, he descended through a manhole and placed the cover back where it belonged. The place smelled horrible. He tried his best not to look at the murky 'river' and walked around. Rats had made the sewers their home and one could hear their squeaks every now and then.

Vincent got a general understanding of the network down below. With proper mapping and knowledge, one could move about the entire city through the sewers. Vincent was planning on heading back up when two people descended from the manhole. Vincent quickly hid in a dark corner and held his breath. With the mask on, it was extremely unlikely for him to be noticed unless the other party had a supernatural with special eyesight. That itself was rare as well.

A bearded man got down first and moved back to make space for his companion. The companion was a lean man with patchy facial hair and long nose. Looking around, he spoke to the bearded man. "Are you sure this is the place Bardo? I can't imagine a rich naive girl walking through this sewer to get to the gathering you talked about. Surely she isn't so dumb to keep on using this passage."

"Shut up will you, Smith. Even if the girl doesn't come here, I am willing to wait. If I get lucky, I will get rich overnight." Bardo spoke in a condescending tone and continued. "You can go if you want to. I wouldn't have invited you if other people didn't have the same idea as me."

"You know I was just joking. It's just that I usually spend this time drinking. I feel a bit out of place. You need me to scare off others anyways. Specially the girl. Don't get mad."

Vincent listened to the duo with much interest. He had previously surmised that Miss Mystique had only joined the gathering a week before him. It looked like the other members were trying to make a move on her. It was only natural. A normal girl with lots of wealth presenting herself like that obviously attracted a lot of attention.

'Do I stay and see if I can get anything out of this? There might be more parties coming though. It could turn dangerous. It would be good if I can bluff my way out of it if things get messy. I did put on a good show using Mr. Collector last time.'

Vincent remained motionless and let the two men pass. The duo hid in a corner waiting patiently. They were checking to see if any other parties would make any appearance. They still had about half an hour before midnight and the girl could appear anytime. Same for the other people with same objective as them.

The manhole cover was removed once again and it was Big Joe who descended. No one would mistake him for anyone else because of his abnormally large build. He was easily over two meters tall and his extra large clothes stuck closely to his body exposing his bulging muscles. The impressive size and mass wasn't just the potion at play but years of training and perseverance.

Bardo and Smith looked at the guy and remained in the dark corner without moving. It was a good hiding spot and Big Joe wouldn't be able to notice them. Bardo was sure that the guy had boasted about his combat prowess and that he was a grade 2 supernatural. A supernatural that focused strictly on combat generally lacked the capability to detect camouflage and Smith was a ghost. He could use his powers to hide their presence.

Joe didn't seem to have any intention of hiding like the others. He just stood there and crossed his arms against his c.h.e.s.t. Sweeping the passageways with his eyes briefly, he moved away from the ladder after hearing someone moving the cover.

A man and a woman came down and stood on attention after looking at the big man. The man moved between the woman and Joe. He stared up at the giant man and spoke with animosity in his voice, "Big Joe. Why are you here?"

"No reason. I think I might find a job here." Big Joe didn't take offense at the man's tone and smiled showcasing his white teeth. Unlike last time, he wasn't even bothering to hide his face. His voice was still as boisterous and coupled with his imposing figure, it seemed as if he was looking down on the man.

"Don't pick a fight eagle. We didn't come for him." The woman had a cold voice. She looked at Big Joe briefly before heading to a place further from him.

Eagle followed after the woman and stood by her side. They had been planning on hiding as well but Big Joe's appearance forced them to make changes. There would be no point in hiding when the guy was standing there like a display mannequin. Eagle looked around to see if there were any other parties besides them. Having failed to notice anything out of order, he went back to looking at the giant man.

*****

Amelia walked slowly with a lantern in her hand. The same masquerade mask covered half her face and she was thinking of yesterday's event. Luna had warned her against coming here today. She didn't give it much thought until a little while ago but she began feeling a bit uneasy after reaching here. The spirit did seem much more knowledgeable and experienced.

'Should I return? I am getting a bad feeling about this. I was too agitated and didn't even ask about the warning any further. What am I doing? I need to get a hold of myself. Mr. Collector should have a potion ready today. I can't afford to miss it. A brand new world is just within reach. Pull yourself together.'

Resolving herself, she took a turn. She was a little surprised by what she saw. Big Joe was having a standoff with a man and a woman. She had seen both the man and the woman in the gathering. The situation seemed tense and she didn't know what to do.

Then, it suddenly dawned on her. Luna's warning replayed in her mind and the reason for other's presence underground made sense to her. Amelia backtracked swiftly. She was nervous. It was a first time for her to be targeted by people with malicious intentions and her head went blank. She didn't know what to do.

'They must have seen me right? I clearly took the turn with the lantern still lit. There's no way that they didn't notice me. What do I do?'

She was pulled out of her thoughts by Big Joe's loud voice. "We can still see the lantern shedding light on the wall opposite to you. Why don't you come out, Miss Mystique?"

Waiting for her racing heart to calm down, she brushed her hair back and stepped out the corner. "Quite the surprise to find you down here. Is there something you want from me?"

Listening to her nervous voice, Eagle put on a menacing look and spoke, "Getting involved with supernaturals when you are a normal human is ......"

"Miss Mystique, I will ensure your safety. 50 pounds per night. How about it? It's a great price that I am offering." Eagle's words were instantly drowned by Big Joe's loud voice. Joe put on a smile and continued. "You don't have to be skeptical. I can take care of these two without any problem. I can demonstrate my might to you if you don't feel so sure about my proposal. These two would make a good target as well."

"C.o.c.ky bastard. I am gonna make you eat your words." Eagle charged at Joe while the latter prepared to receive the attack head on.

Eagle was fast. He was already in front of the big man when his words had left his mouth. He balled his hand into a fist and punched out. He wasn't a big dude but was built well. Adding the insane speed on top of it, the power behind the attack was anything but ordinary. A normal person would have suffered from at least a broken bone or two but Joe stood there as if nothing had happened.

Amelia blinked her eyes in confusion. She was surprised by the hostile exchange of words between the two guys at the beginning but she had never expected the situation to escalate to quickly. What was even more shocking was the fact that Big Joe wasn't hurt at all. The corners of his lips lifted revealing a wide smile. He reached out with his hand and grabbed Eagle's head and made a fist with his free hand.

"Now, now. Let's settle this peacefully like civilized people. Mr. Bardo and Mr. Smith, why don't you two come out as well. It's almost midnight, we should get going or we will miss the gathering." Big Joe stopped in his tracks. He followed the source of the voice and saw Mr. Secret. Following his appearance, two other men came out of a corner. No one dared make any move and waited for the mysterious man to continue.

Vincent gestured the people to leave and spoke. "Well then ladies and gentlemen, please get going. I will be following you shortly. But first, I would like to share a few words with Miss Mystique and Big Joe."