7 Deadly Instincts (The Sinfire Chronicles Book 1)

It was Blonko that actually helped them find her.

The next day, after breakfast, they went out into the cold day. A freezing wind had come from the south, probably from the Weeping Well, or that’s how it felt.

Lilian had come down the steps with good news. Her mana mark on her face was nearly filled in with ink. She was only a few days from becoming a fully marked neophyte. Her mood was better, but she wasn’t ready to leave the house. She said she wanted to sleep for a week, but of course they couldn’t let her. They only had about six weeks until the Reckoning, and she needed to perfect her neophyte ability, if she had one.

So the princess stayed home with Yellow while the rest of them went into the Dice Market of Pity City to look for her. It took all day, and they eventually split up after dinner to cover more ground.

Gray was alone, near the far western part of the Dice Markets, when he ran into the orcs. Blonko was with Kabe and the rest of the Wrath City Raiders. They pointed and laughed.

Blonko blustered up to him, weaving a little. His prism core was as bright as ever. “Your fae girl hasn’t slept in two days and it shows. We might’ve helped her find a bed but Hama Hama Avarica was there at the chaos house. She’s either winning big or about to lose everything. Kinda hard to tell with drunks, isn’t it?”

Gray went to push him out of the way but Blonko threw himself backward. “Oh, no, you little fucker. I know about your pain touch. You just go. You’ll be dealt with. Oh, yes, you’ll be dealt with. Between you and me and the rest of Pit City, me and Kabe were kinda surprised when you came strolling into the coliseum. Real surprised, if you want to know the truth.”

Kabe pulled Blonko away and Ishnash and the rest of the Raiders followed.

Gray sighed. He hadn’t been inside the chaos house yet. He was a bit surprised by two things. One was that Pinch was at the chaos house, and the other was that Hama Hama was with her. From the little he knew of Belly politics, Hama Hama Avarica was the head of the entire Avarica family. She might as well be a queen.

If only Rynn was with him. Her father thought that getting a shop in Greed City would let them expand their business into the Belly of the World. But her mother insisted on trying to get in good with the elves in Envy City. Really, they wanted shops in both. It was just which city was the best option.

Gray hurried to the front of the chaos house. It was a rambling one-story structure with extra rooms tacked on here and there. Lanterns hung from various hooks, eaves, and stands, all glowing a different color. Out front, two rough looking dog men were going at each other with knives while a circle of onlookers took bets. At least they had plenty of light.

Gray pushed his way through the crowd. More than once, he slapped a hand out of his pocket. Good thing he had his stick with him. If any of the pickpockets got a little too handsy, he could teach them manners.

Two big orcs encased in hardened black leather gave him a nasty look. “You come in here?”

“That was my plan.”

The other orc grunted. “No killing. Only rule. Don’t fuck with us.”

Gray laughed. “Only one rule? No murder? Where have I heard that before? I’ll be on my best behavior.”

They allowed him into the main room, which at one point might have been nice, but now it was packed with people drinking and smoking a variety of substances. It was hard to see. One couple was kissing, and their cores were sparking off one another. They weren’t bonded, but they might be at any moment.

Room after room had various sins from lust to wrath to greed. There were scantily clad women and half-naked men serving drinks behind scorched and scarred bartops. One room had two naked goblin women wrestling each other in what by the smell would only be described as cookie dough—butter, sugar, and vanilla. Every so often, a she-orc would throw a bucket of milk on them.

One had a gold collar and the other had a silver one.

A fat she-orc came up to him. “Wanna bet on the gobbies, cutie? It’s gold versus silver. If you win, you get some of the cookie we’ll bake up after they get done wrestling. Well, if one of them doesn’t puke or piss in it.”

“It’s appealing,” Gray said, “but I think I’ll pass. I’m looking for the dice tables.”

She pointed to a corridor off to the side.

Gray made his way over. Near the entrance, two men were cutting on their arms for some type of game. Gray didn’t understand the rules, but money exchanged hands as one man gashed his arm and let the blood drain into a bucket.

Through the corridor, he past alcoves where men and women were on filthy couches, touching themselves all in a group.

He’d heard stories of chaos houses, and he hadn’t believed them, but the stories he’d heard undersold the experience.

Finally, he reached a back room, which was little more than cheap sheets of bad wood hammered to what looked like driftwood. Above him, a bare wood ceiling rattled every time the bad wind hit it in a certain way.

The only furniture were stools with nails hammered haphazardly into the legs, so they were not only uncomfortable but dangerous.

Pinch sat on one at the table, dice in her hands. Next to her, was the fattest, oldest dwarven women that Gray had ever seen. She had her own divan, obviously brought in. Around her were sullen dwarves with battle axes, dressed in gold and red velvet. A few had enormous cores which were swollen with mana.

No, it wasn’t just their cores that had mana—their axes were glowing with enchantments. As his eyes adjusted, he saw magic rings, magic belts, magic boots. Those dwarves had any number of magical items on them.

One red-bearded dwarf shoved him. “Private game, ya pasty-faced arsehole. Get the fuck out.”

“Pamalee!” he called out.

Pinch was about to throw, but she stopped herself. When she saw him, her eyes lit up. “Hold on.” She handed the dice to the fat dwarfess next to her.

She came and threw her arms around him and gave him a big hug. Then she kissed his cheek. “You didn’t fucking die! Well, now it’s a party. Let me introduce you to Hama Hama. She’s trying to get me back to Avarica’s, but no, no, no. I’m having so much luck. I’ve won so much money.”

“Have you slept since the egg cook-off?” he asked.

She slapped his chest. “Fucking idiot. I told you. I’m on a roll. I can’t lose. When you can’t lose, you don’t stop. You don’t change. You ride it. You ride it because this is all that matters. It’s all that fucking matters. Fucking. Idiot.”

She would’ve fallen, but he caught her.

Last night he had dealt with a drunken dragon, and now, he was dealing with a drunken fae.

He went with her back to his stool. Of course, he cut his uniform pants and his legs on a spike sticking out.

“Hama!” Pinch said drunkenly. “This is Grayson Fade. If you want to know why Squad 23 is fucking tits, he’s the fucker. He’s the idiot. He’s the god of our squad. Grayson Fade, this is the richest woman in the Belly. Don’t fuck with her. Everything she has is enchanted. And that idiot?” She pointed at the red-beard. “That’s Gumli Greedway, her nephew, and the lead of the Collector Brigade. Not the best name, but what can I say? He’s a fucking idiot!”

Grumli only laughed. “Anyone else call me that, love, and I’d tickle them with Skullcraver here.” He shook his ax at her. “But you. Missy Miss Hama loves you.”

The fat dwarfess smiled and chuckled. “Loves is not strong enough word for how I feel about my Pammie. But you broke my heart, dearest. You broke it in two, coming to the chaos house and not spending your time at Avarica’s. While I don’t own it, my favorite niece does. Why do you want to break Hama’s heart?”

Pinch laughed and gulped wine from one of the many glasses in front of her, resting on the edge of the dice table. “Because like I told my favorite idiot, you do not alter a thing when you are sucking on the goddess of greed’s sweet pussy. Wanna see another seven, bitch?”

“It’s why I’m here, bitch,.” Hama Hama said with a laugh.

And Pinch rolled a five and a two.

The players—all dwarves and all most likely related to the queenly dwarfess in some way cheered.

Pinch laughed and laughed. And drank more wine.

“Have you eaten anything?” he asked the fae girl.

“Only your cock!” Pinch guffawed and guffawed.

He’d never seen her like this.

Hama, though, was sober as judge and slightly amused by the hijinks of the normally foul-tempered Pinch. “You only won two out of the three events at Redemption Midnight. And yet, you still managed to get the two women back on your team. The captain certainly does like her females. It’s surprising you caught her fancy.”

“I’m special in all kinds of ways. I have to ask, are you really the head of the Avarica family?”

She nodded and patted her stomach. “And I have the belly to prove it. Or have you heard I was a great beauty?”

“Who needs beauty when you have money?” Gray was ready for them all to laugh, and he wasn’t disappointed.

The queenly dwarfess wiped tears from her face even as the priceless diamonds in her ears twinkled. Her hair was an iron gray. Her core was massive, powerful, and hungry in the same way that Pinch’s core was hungry.

“What are you doing here?” Gray asked.

“Keeping our Pamalee Thornpinch safe. And trying to coax her back to my nieces establishment. And, maybe, just maybe, I was here for Redemption Midnight. Didn’t you notice me in my boxed seat?”

“I was a tad busy, your highness.”

That made Hama Hama laugh. “Oh, poo. I’m not a queen, Grayson. I’m just a rich woman who cares deeply about my city. Have you talked to anyone yet about which kill squad you want?”

“You’re the first,” he said.

Pinch watched them talk for several long seconds. What was she thinking?

The dwarfess seemed surprised. Or was it a trick? “The first? Really. You’re all anyone can talk about in all the six civilized cities. Squad 23, no frills, no color pallete, no song. But Pinch says you have a motto. Insufferable? Unstable?”

“Yes, yes, that’s it.” Gray laughed harder than he thought he would in the fucking insanity that was the chaos house. “Insufferable and unstable. After that last few days, that’s exactly what it feels like. Tonight is no different.”

He locked eyes with Pinch, but she just threw back more wine.

“Fucking idiot,” she snapped and tossed the dice.

A six and one.

More screams of triumph.

The dwarfess had lost a good portion of her winnings, but she didn’t seem to care one bit. No, because she owned a city. “My family is interested in you and your squad,” Hama Hama said. “But what do you want?”

Pinch raised a fist. “Self-masturbation!”

Hama Hama smiled. “Is there any other kind.”

Right then a cambion orc with his face and head black with tattoos—not mana marks, those he had on his hands. The ink covering his skull was all there on purpose. He set a basket filled with fried potatoes, shrimp, and chicken strips down in front of Hama.

The minute the shrimp hit her mouth, her golden mana swirled up from inside of her. So she had multiple resonances. That explained a great deal. Her fingers were covered in magical rings. Gray was very curious to know what each of them did, but it would probably remain a mystery forever.

One of the dwarves at the table reeled away and started spewing up. Luckily, another dwarf had a bucket for him.

Hama took it all in stride. “Nothing like a chaos house, am I right, Grayson?” She chuckled, her lips and fingers greasy from her meal. “Or maybe you’ve not been here before. There’s no chaos houses in Cradleport. There’s no need for them there. Everyone fucks and fucks and fucks.”

Pinch made a face. “Bumbor. I told you not to eat that fish thing. Idiot. Get back so I can keep rolling.”

Hama gave the fae a patient smile. “And I’ll bet you everything on the table as well as your entire future you don’t have one more seven in you.”

“I’ll take that bet,” Pinch said. “I might not have two sevens left, but I definitely have one. And just the money. I like your niece, Hama. And you’re growing on me. You’re not a fucking idiot.”

“No, I’m not,” the dwarfess said. She turned to Gray. “What do you want? And I doubt it’s masturbation, since that is literally within arm’s reach.”

“Self-mastery,” Pinch said, and she took one of Hama’s shrimp and popped it into her mouth.

The dwarfess chuckled. “Anyone else did that, I’d pull their core out of their body and play a little Sixblood with it. Well, I wouldn’t, but I have kill squads who would do it for me. What do you mean by self-mastery?”

Pinch laughed. “He thinks he can be happy if he can control himself. He thinks that his instincts need to be tamed, and in taming them, he can live happily ever after with his two wives.”

Hama didn’t seem at all surprised by his multiple bonds. No. she’d probably done her research on him. “Our desires are what drive us. The trick is to life is blissful dissatisfaction. We find satisfaction in each victory but we’re never satisfied. Ever. Which is why I’m here. I have the best skill squads in the Belly, and I love my squads and all the mana they bring me. Don’t I love you, Gumli? Tell the auntie the truth.”

“You love us, Miss Hama,” he agreed. “But you’re always slooking for someone better. Don’t blame you a bit for that.”

“Quite,” Hama Hama said. “But I like this self-mastery idea. You might want to practice that before you throw the dice next, duchess.”

Pinch laughed but her voice came out jagged. “Not royalty any more, ma’am. My father disowned me when I quite the Winners to join Squad 23. It was the best decision I’ll ever make. Except betting my nut on the next roll.”

“How much is your nut?” the dwarfess asked.

“A hundred thousand shekels. Give or take,” the fae girl said.

Gray felt the world tilt a little at the number.

Hama Hama didn’t seem too concerned at what she would be risking on the next roll. “Other than self-mastery, what do you want?”

“To survive the Testing. People are trying to kill us.”

The dwarfess grunted. “Yes, they are. You’d think it was because of your sponsor, and maybe it is. Everyone hates Captain Sette Sevanya, older than dirt and about as pleasant. That’s the likely bet, which I’d take if someone would make it with me. A better bet, though, is you and your squad. You won Culling Day with only five recruits. No one can do that. Now that you have seven? You’ll sweep the Reckoning. Then, you’ll come and talk to me. If you’re still alive.”

“Because all is the Testing?” Gray asked, suddenly not liking this woman much.

Hama Hama chuckled. “First Field is bloodsport. Always has been. Always will be. Just know that my money is on you living. I want you and your squad alive and working for me one day. As long as you win.”

Pinch finished off more wine. “Bumbor, are you fucking betting?”

“Yes!” he came back, wiping puke off his beard. Well, he tried and failed, but Gray appreciated the attempt event ough it didn’t help with the smell.

“Roll it, girl,” Hama Hama said, her core spinning with mana.

Gray knew he didn’t have much time. “Miss Hama, are those rings on your fingers enchanted?”

Why, yes, they are , young man.”

“What do they do?”

The chuckled. “All kinds of things. Roll it, girlie.”

Pinch rolled two ones. Not a seven.

The fae girl stared at the dice, blinked, and then reached for more of Hama Hama’s food.

This time, the dwarfess smacked her hand. “Sorry, bitch, but I fucking hate losers like you hate idiots. Better luck next time.”

Pinch went to hit the dwarven woman but one of her rings flashed. The blast sent Pinch reeling back. Shen whe hit the floor, she was out cold.

Hama Hama turned to him, a smile on her face but a snake in her eyes. “I got you both a room at the Lust Goddess’s Loft. You don’t want to walk back to First Field in that wind, not if you don’t want to lose a toe or two. It’s deadly tonight.”

“In all kinds of ways,” Gray whispered.

That made the head of the Avarica family laugh. “I like a cute boy with a quick wit. It’s a rare combination. Enjoy the room and don’t die, Grayson Fade. I think we could have a very fruitful relationship as long as you don’t lose and don’t die.”

Gray was going to do his best, and though the already rich woman was now a hundred thousand shekels richer, he found that there was a least one person outside of Pit City he could trust.

As long as he didn’t lose or didn’t die.

Because it was clear that Hama Hama Avarica had very little patience for losers.