Cost of Trade

“Who the hell are you?!” Zduhach tried to reach for his bow, but his hand closed on empty air. “What?! Where’s my gear?!”

“I made sure you had nothing dangerous on you here in my domain, little archer, in case you felt like trying something funny again.”

“So you’re Veles? You look different.”

***

Milena spun around. Zduhach and Dragomir were gone. Only mist and a heavy silence remained.

Veles usually hid beneath a hood, his appearance far more human. But here, he had no reason to disguise his true form. His skin was corpse-like, a sickly shade of gray. Royal-blue hair fell toward his golden eyes. Beneath each one, a straight scar cut down his pale cheek toward his jaw.

“So you came for me again.” Milena clutched her skirt.

“Relax, young lady. I am here to let you enter Prav. I just want something valuable in return.”

Milena’s hand moved instinctively toward the pocket watch.

***

“What did you buy from Baba Yaga that turned her into such a monster, you sicko?” Dragomir looked around the endless gray, searching for the door.

“A god’s secret.” He pressed a finger to his lips. “So what will you lose this time, Drago?” He lowered his voice.

“This time, I’m not going to lose anything. Because I will take it back in the end.”

***

“You don’t even have to be here,” Veles replied, waving his hand dismissively. “You can move on.”

A door materialized behind him from the mist. It creaked open onto darkness, a wave of cold spilling through.

“Why’s that?” Zduhach frowned suspiciously.

“Because you’re one of us. Kinda.”

***

“Are you referring to this?” Milena held up the pocket watch. “Is this the price to be paid for entering Prav?”

“Oh, god no. I don’t think I want that thing anywhere near me.” Veles pointed at it, yet couldn’t tear his gaze away. “I’d like something more… personal.”

***

“Personal, eh? What more can you take from me?” Dragomir asked.

“I remember that day quite vividly. It was sooo pathetic.” Veles mocked a crying face. “‘My girlfriend is angry with me, boo-hoo, make her forget, boo-hoo, I’ll sell you my place in other people’s minds if you let me prove myself as a bohatier, boo-hoo-hooo!!’” Veles burst into a fit of cackling laughter.

A vein throbbed on Dragomir’s forehead. His nose. The corner of his mouth. His eye. Everything twitched. “I did it to spare her the grief in case I died and you know it!”

***

Zduhach approached the chilling door but then halted and glanced back.

“Can I still make a deal with you?”

Veles’ golden eyes suddenly flashed. A sharp smile played on his lips. “I’m afraid I’m not strong enough to make a deal with a god yet.”

“Then how about a deal with a human archer from a family of weavers?”

***

“I don’t care about your family. I didn’t kill them.”

Milena finally let go of her skirt. “Then what do you care about? Are you interested in my body?” Milena stepped forward. “Do you want me to sell you my dignity?” Another step. “Are you going to use it against me for the rest of my life as I try to bring up my future children into decent human beings?” She stopped a mere breath away from Veles’ face.

“I’m beginning to see the pattern here.” His smile froze.

***

“What pattern, you ask?” Dragomir crossed his arms and took a slow breath. “I always wondered why you would buy useless things from people. What do you gain?”

“Don’t try to analyze me, Drago.” Veles suddenly closed the distance between them.

***

“So do we have a deal?” Zduhach extended his hand to Veles.

“You have to state the details of the transaction first, you moron.”

“Oh, right! Well, for some reason, I can never sleep, even if I sometimes feel like my body needs to rest. But my mother said that if I want to get stronger, I have to sleep a lot. So…”

***

“So you think I am interested in foolish human desires?”

“Are you not?” Milena squeezed the pocket watch as if seeking comfort. “I don’t think I have something valuable then.”

“Careful, it almost sounded as if you wanted me to take your body.”

Milena crouched, instinctively reaching for her weapon of choice.

“Aa-ah-ah.” Veles wagged his finger. “I made sure you don’t get to wear your shoes in this dimension.”

***

“I’m not as naïve as I was back then.”

“I already told you.” Veles purred, circling Dragomir like a predator. “You could have it back.”

“I don’t regret selling it to you. I regret being weak back then.”

“Tell me. Which version of Milena did you fall in love with? The first?” Veles whispered in his ear, then seamlessly switched sides, his voice slithering into the other ear. “Or the hundredth?”

***

“It doesn’t matter how. I just want to get stronger! The other gods want your head. And I want all of their heads, so this can be mutually beneficial!”

“But that would mean slaying me as well.”

“Oh, right, haha. I guess so. But my mom did say I should slay all except one. Maybe you can be the one I spare! But that would probably mean I have to off myself, right? Damn. You gods truly work in mysterious ways.”

“I’m not mentally strong for this.” Veles sighed, rubbing his temples. “Let’s try again. You want me to sell you an ability to sleep. What should I get in return?”

***

“My weakness. You wanted it, didn’t you?”

Veles smirked. “Yeah. But I changed my mind. I want you to sell me your right to rewrite the rules.”

“But I don’t have such a right, do I?”

“Oh but you do. Once you confront the gods at Buyan, you can be an author of the Twelfth Commandment.”

***

“We already made that mistake. You’re not getting it from me.” Dragomir pushed Veles away.

The Negotiator licked his dry lips. “Then I guess I won’t let you pass. You know that you have to give up something valuable to me. And since this is your second journey to Prav, it must be of at least equal value to what you sold me the last time.”

***

“You can buy your immunity from me.” Zduhach grinned, pointing a thumb at himself.

“Immunity?”

“Yeah, I’ll get stronger but in return, I won’t be able to kill you. But no promises that Debilmir won’t. Man, he hates you pretty badly, you wouldn’t believe.”

Veles rubbed his chin. “Yeah, I’d never have guessed.”

***

“No. I get the feeling you’re trying to play me.” Milena crossed her arms, tapping her bare toes against whatever passed for the ground in this void. “I’ll sell you my weakness. Take it, or leave it.”

“This woman…” Veles grumbled. “You truly are much smarter than a certain failed hero.”

“So do we have a deal?”

***

“Your love cannot remember you.” Veles counted on his fingers. “Your father thinks you’re dead. Or lost. The gods made humans their playthings. The price of bread went rapidly up. Can it be any worse?”

“You annoy me so much.”

“I don’t see much room for you to sell me something funnier than that.”

“Alright. In that case…” Dragomir cracked his fingers. “Let’s make this second journey to Prav the last one.”

“Oh?”

“I’ll sell you my chance to return to Yav. But only if I fail again.”

Veles grinned. “Now that’s more like it! You’re saying there’s no turning back now, huh? You either rewrite the rules or wander in Prav forever.” He then stumbled slightly, as if he was about to fall.

“Dropping dead on me now?” Dragomir chuckled.

Veles touched his forehead. “It’s just pretty exhausting. Holding three conversations simultaneously. Especially after five years of no training.”

The mist before Milena and Dragomir condensed into a door as well.

Zduhach extended his hand. “I offer you immunity against my attacks. And you shall sell me an ability to sleep!”

Milena extended her trembling hand as well. “I shall sell you my weakness in exchange for allowing me to enter Prav.”

“Okay, you ugly bastard.” Dragomir spat into his palm and extended it. “I’ll sell you my chance to return to Yav should I fail. You let me go through.”

Veles raised his right hand in front of his face.

He bit the tip of his white glove and pulled it off with his teeth, revealing a black tattoo on the back of his hand. A simple ring sat at its center, split by two intertwined lines - one entering, one leaving. From it, five thin veins of ink crawled toward his fingers, disappearing beneath his pitch-black nails.

Veles then shook the hand of every one of them.

“Spoken and bound!” he proclaimed.

With the tattoo glowing in a brilliant blue, he vanished.

And so, the trio walked through the door.

Chapter 20: END