The Devil, The Witch, and The Copperhead's Biz

Somewhere in the lost exiled world of Delirith, somewhere in the arid desert of Kaandur, our protagonists; Mako the little witch and Fyra the one-horned devil, were seen resting underneath the shades of a lone green-leaved-tree. Their hoverbike, Silverbolt, was currently connected to a spherical solar panel placed outside the shades through a battery cable, charging up the bike for fuel.

“Hey Fyra, my right leg feels funny.”

[ MAKO THE LITTLE WITCH ]
His right leg feels funny

“Funny? The hell you mean by that?”

[ FYRA THE ONE HORNED DEVIL ]
Confused by Mako’s statement

“I mean like- it feels weird. Like something’s painful about to happen- AH F@#$$!-”

Fyra was startled by Mako’s sudden cussing. She got up from her rest and attended the witch-boy, who’s currently lying on the ground with an agonized expression written all over his face.

“What’s gotten into you Mako? Does your right leg really hurt that bad?”

“Yes….” Mako replied softly, resisting the urge to cry.

Fyra got to her knees, took off Mako’s right boots and rolled up his trouser leg. Immediately, she saw the witch’s source of pain.

“What’s wrong Fyra? What’s down there?” Mako, still lying on the ground, noticed the cringing expression inside her helmet. He pushed his body up slightly to see what’s going on with his leg, only to let out a horrified shriek from the horror that greeted his sight.

The part beneath Mako’s knee was infected as hell, succumbed completely to gangrene.

“And that’s why I told ya; treat your bullet wounds properly!” Fyra remarked.

Apparently, Mako did not treat his wounds properly. After removing the bullet shot at his leg by a gunslinger in the previous chapter, the witch simply rubbed the blood off and covered the wound with whatever cloth he found laying on the ground that time. What’s left is well- a very f***ed up leg.

“Aughhhh… I can’t bear the pain…” Mako groaned. “Please chop it off.”

“Please what now?”

“You heard me, Fyra. Chop my leg. Then burn it, eat it, do whatever you want with it. I don’t want this leg anymore.”

And so, Fyra complied and grabbed some instruments from Mako’s backpack. She pulled out a shiny handsaw in front of Mako, much to his horror.

“Isn’t there anything sharper in there?”

“Nope. This is the best we’ve got.”

With no choice but to accept his painful fate, Mako asked another question, “Anaesthesia? Do we have that?”

Fyra searched in the bag once more and pulled out a femur bone. She passed the femur bone to Mako who stared at it for some time.

“Agh! Screw it!” Mako bit down the femur bone before lying down on his back and closing his eyes shut.

And so, Fyra proceeded to saw off Mako’s infected right leg. After minutes of metal scratching through flesh and bone and agonizing muffled scream, the femur bone bitten by Mako shattered in half as the witch underwent the DIY surgery.

“Alright, time to stitch your leg up with this-” Fyra activated an orange energy blade from her bracer, when she realized she could’ve used that instead to chop off Mako’s leg in a faster and less excruciating manner.

“Screw it-” Fyra pressed the hot blade against Mako’s amputated wound, closing it while inflicting great pain to the witch for the umpteenth time. Mako remained on the ground, half-conscious, and panting deeply in exhaustion.

“Well, that’s not so bad now is it?”

“Yeah yeah. Let’s not talk about this. Ever.” Mako remarked, putting his hand out as Fyra helped pull him back up.

Their hoverbike was fully charged at this point, thus they went on to ride it- this time with Fyra as the driver while Mako seated behind. They discarded Mako’s chopped leg for any creature to devour before taking off to find a new prosthetic for the little witch.

****

The Sun rose to its peak at noon when Mako and Fyra arrived at a town named ‘Honorbound’. The town was pretty big and orderly compared to most settlements in Kaandur; surrounded by guarded walls, dozens of buildings not exceeding three-storey high, and a central town hall big enough to fit Honorbound’s entire population one-and-a-half fold. Despite that though, the people there were no different compared to those outside, so always keep your guards up if you ever stop by the place.

Back to our protagonists, the reason for their visit to Honorbound was to find a prosthetic leg for Mako’s amputated right leg. News of an experienced local prosthetist was said to be around here somewhere, and the duo wished to grab a limb from him.

“Look!” Mako pointed, piggybacked by Fyra as they both stopped in front of a shop. The sign of the shop said ‘Sir Copperhead’s Prosthetics Workshop’.

“Hmmm. Place looks pretty sophisticated for a prosthetic shop,” Fyra commented.

“Doesn’t matter. As long as I get a new leg. Now giddy-up-” Mako kicked Fyra with his left heel much to her annoyance, but complied anyway as she carried him into the store.

Just as Fyra remarked, the store’s inside was as sophisticated as it was from the outside. Golden-brown prosthetic limbs were displayed neatly on the walls, leather cushioned seats available for customers to sit on, vintage clocks and furniture placed here and there as the whole place screamed Victorian steampunk-ish vibes for those who entered it.

Behind a polished wooden counter, the store owner greeted Mako and Fyra.

“Welcome to my workshop my young customers!”

[ SIR COPPERHEAD ]
Prosthetist, Scholar, Gentleman.

“I am Sir Copperhead, but you may disregard the honorific and just call me ‘Copper’. How can I help you two?”

Sir Copperfield’s appearance startled the duo momentarily. His clothing fit the ‘steampunk gentleman’ vibe perfectly with its leather brown jacket, red inner vest, white collared shirt, black pants and knee-high boots, but lacked the stereotypical top hat. Sir Copper’s face was very distinct; half was human with an awesome moustache, and the other half a mouthless copper robot face with a small clock as an eye and a copper wire moustache symmetrical with the human half’s. Both his arms are robotic, similar to the ones displayed in his shop.

“Hello sir- uh.. I’m Fyra, this is Mako, and we’d like to buy a leg for Mako here-” Fyra put down Mako who balanced himself with his remaining leg.

“Ah, I see. May I take a closer look at it?” Copper requested, as Mako nodded in approval.

The half-cyborg prosthetist kneeled down to examine the witch’s amputated leg. Mako rolled up his trouser while Copper took out a measuring tape to measure the dimensions required to find a fitting prosthetic for the witch.

“Judging from the wound, your leg was surgically removed not long ago. May I ask if it was done by a professional or not? And what led to the procedure in the first place, if you don’t mind?”

“Mako developed gangrene from a bullet wound. So I have to chop it off to prevent further infection.”

“Wise decision, but I take it you’re not exactly a pro in amputation.”

“Not in a killing sense, yes,” Fyra replied casually.

Copper got up from his knees after finishing his inspection. He went back to the counter and pulled out a thick book that listed all of his current stock, going through it as he compared the measurements taken from Mako to the ones listed in the book.

“Good news! I have just the limb that should fit perfectly to your friend’s leg here.”

Mako and Fyra looked at each other in delight.

“So, how much for it?” Mako asked.

“That’ll be 50 scraps.”

“50 scraps!? That’s kinda beyond our budget. Can’t you give us a children's discount or something?” Fyra tried haggling for a lower price.

“I’m sorry but that’s how it is. Unless, I charge you two less but in return, you have to find someone else to help attach it to his leg here. Half the price goes for putting on the prosthetic y’know?”

Mako and Fyra looked at each other before silently nodding in agreement. They ended up paying half the price in return for finding their own person to help attach the prosthetic leg. They left the store with the prosthetic carried in Mako’s hand, but not before asking some names recommended by the prosthetist.

“I suggest you two pay a visit to this one doctor I know. Him and I are business partners you could say, and I’d guarantee he’ll charge little. Just go out, turn right and you’ll see a clinic two stores across. That would be his place.”

And so, the duo followed Sir Copperhead’s direction and arrived at a small clinic bearing no sign except for a cross-shaped red neon light hanging above its entrance door. They both entered it and were immediately greeted by a half-cyborg-faced doctor.

“Hello Mako and Fyra. How can I help you both?”

[ “DOCTOR” SIR COPPERHEAD ]
Doctor, Prosthetist, Scholar, Gentleman.

“Wait, aren’t you-”

“Yes. Now, just hand me over the leg and I’ll have it attached to you real quick.”

Doctor Copper invited the duo into his consultation room where he skillfully screwed and stitched the prosthetic to Mako’s amputated leg. As promised, they were charged very little for his service. The witch was delighted as he could now walk normally once more.

“That’s great and all but honestly, it looks a little weird on you,” Copper commented, much to Mako’s confusion.

“What do you mean, doc?”

“I mean, you could use some footwear that could fit both your real leg and prosthetic. It’ll look far better than leaving the other bare.”

“Yeah, he’s got a point-” Fyra nodded in agreement- “your boot doesn't match with that robot foot.”

“And I know a shoemaker who could help you with that. Don’t worry, he’ll give you a major discount if he knows you both came from me.”

And so, Doctor Copperhead gave them both directions to the shoemaker’s store and they both went to pay him a visit. They arrived and entered the shoe store owned by the recommended shoemaker, and were greeted by a half-cyborg-faced shoemaker.

[ SIR COPPERHEAD ]
Shoemaker, Doctor, Prosthetist, Scholar, Gentleman.

“You again!?”

“Yes sir! Now come here so I could give it a look.”

They both went on and had Mako’s prosthetic inspected, and a new pair of boots was made that could fit both his real and brass foot. A reasonable price of scraps were paid and they both left the store, but were stopped right as they reached for the door.

“Wait-”

“Hm?”

“That shotgun of yours, I think it could use a little fixing- and probably a scope.”

Once more, a person was recommended, the duo head for the person’s store and was greeted by a half-cyborg-faced owner which turned out to be-

[ SIR COPPERHEAD ]
Gunsmith, Shoemaker, Doctor, Prosthetist, Scholar, Gentleman.

“And voila- good as new! You can easily snipe some unlucky rascals from afar! On the other hand, I can’t help but notice your blind right eye Fyra-”

[ SIR COPPERHEAD ]
Optician, Gunsmith, Shoemaker, Doctor, Prosthetist, Scholar, Gentleman.

“Wow! This contact lens is awesome! I could see things with my right eye again!”

“Y’know what else is awesome? An upgraded armour to go with that warrior sight of yours!”

[ SIR COPPERHEAD ]
Armorer, Optician, Gunsmith, Shoemaker, Doctor, Prosthetist, Scholar, Gentleman.

“Look at you! Badass as ever!” Copper complimented.

“No fair! I want an upgrade for my clothing too,” Mako complained. “But not armour, I want something that would maintain or upgrade my witch fashion.”

“Fashion eh? I know just the guy!”

[ SIR COPPERHEAD ]
Tailor, Armorer, Optician, Gunsmith, Shoemaker, Doctor, Prosthetist, Scholar, Gentleman.

“Not gonna lie Mako, you look dashing with that!” Fyra praised.

“I know right! And I could even tank some bullets with these!”

“You know what else could go well with those dashing clothes?” Copper interrupted.

[ SIR COPPERHEAD ]
Hatmaker, Tailor, Armorer, Optician, Gunsmith, Shoemaker, Doctor, Prosthetist, Scholar, Gentleman.

“Man, all this shopping is making me hungry,” Mako commented.

“Hungry huh? Luckily for you, I know just a place-”

[ SIR COPPERHEAD ]
Burger-flipper, Hatmaker, Tailor, Armorer, Optician, Gunsmith, Shoemaker, Doctor, Prosthetist, Scholar, Gentleman.

“How the hell *chew* *chew* do you keep all this business alive?” Mako asked with his mouth full.

“You see Mako, I don’t just own all those shops. I also own an enterprise which owns all of those shops. Thus, that makes me a-”

[ SIR COPPERHEAD ]
Entrepreneur, Burger-flipper, Hatmaker, Tailor, Armorer, Optician, Gunsmith, Shoemaker, Doctor, Prosthetist, Scholar, Gentleman.

“That’s neat,” Fyra remarked.

After spending the whole day shopping from the same guy, Mako and Fyra decided to spend the night in the town. They still had little to spare for a night’s stay in some cheap inn, thus they retreated to a nearby place recommended by Sir Copperhead.

“Welcome to Sir Copperhead’s Idyllic Inn.”

[ SIR COPPERHEAD ]
Innkeeper, Entrepreneur, Burger-flipper, Hatmaker, Tailor, Armorer, Optician, Gunsmith, Shoemaker, Doctor, Prosthetist, Scholar, Gentleman.

“Do enjoy your stay.”

****

The next morning, Mako and Fyra, who just finished having their breakfast, were seen idling around the inn’s lobby. The place was pretty empty as only our protagonists stayed at the inn that time, but it wasn’t long until an iron-helmed individual entered the premise with a rolled up poster in his hand.

The individual searched for a spot and noticed an empty notice board. He unrolled the poster and stapled it at the notice board for everyone to see before leaving the place while whistling rhythmically throughout the ordeal. Mako and Fyra approached the notice board to read the poster posted by him.

“Auction Fest at Junkyard Square, Honorbound. Guns, robots, cars, and other great and peculiar knick-knacks waiting to be sold to the highest bidder! Come and visit us there.”

Mako’s read aloud of the poster was heard by Sir Copperhead from behind the lobby’s counter.

“Auction fest you say-” Copper got up from his place and approached the notice board as well. He read back the poster in a whisper as a delighted expression formed on the human half of his face. “Well well, this is a great opportunity for a collector like me!”

“Wait, you’re a collector too?” Fyra asked.

“Yes Fyra I’m-”

[ SIR COPPERHEAD ]
Collector, Innkeeper, Entrepreneur, Burger-flipper, Hatmaker, Tailor, Armorer, Optician, Gunsmith, Shoemaker, Doctor, Prosthetist, Scholar, Gentleman.

“I collect high-valued works of art as a hobby, and yes, people like us do exist on this planet despite the sanely questionable society.”

“That’s good to hear, I guess-” Mako added. “Either way, me and Fyra are gonna hit the road soon since we’ve got what we came for here, so if you could hand us the bill-”

“Wait, you two do not wish to participate in this auction?”

“Even if we want to, it’s not like we have the money,” Fyra replied with a logical excuse. “Besides, we have no idea how auctions work, so it's best we just go on with our lives.”

“Makes sense. But what if I give you two an allowance, and then we partake in the auction together.”

Copperhead’s sudden offer surprised the duo. They had no intention of joining the auction since they had no money, but now since someone’s spending on their behalf-

“What’s in it for you?” Fyra asked, squinting her eyes at Copper giving him a suspicious look. “What will you get from all of this?”

“Well, I’ll get to purchase some good artistic works that’s for sure-” Copper gave them his excuse- “and as for you two, consider it as an act of gratitude for being patrons for all of my stores in this town the whole day yesterday. You two were the first to do so for my franchise here in Honorbound.”

“Hmmm… Okay then! I guess we know exactly what we’re gonna do for the next chapter!” Mako announced.

And just as the witch claimed, the next chapter for The Devil, The Witch, and The Wicked World of Delirith™ will be all about them participating in the Auction Fest buying who-knows-what for what-knows-who.

But until then, here’s a teaser for the next chapter:

*CRASH!* *BOOOOOOOOOOM!!!*

“I’M COMING FOR YOUR HEAD MISTER AUCTIONEER!!”

[ SANDKING ANUBRAX ]
What is he doing here?

~To Be Continued…~