The Nomination

The whole ballroom stood up with respect. Only the rustling of clothes was audible in the room otherwise the whole room was silent. All looked at the other end of the room where a tall chair was kept. It was like a throne for the Supreme Boss. It was built on a high platform so that the Supreme leader could have a visual of the whole room.

A tall man walked in with two women on either side. The man had a certain aura about him. His one look was enough to grab the attention of the people. The black suit he was wearing was about to burst due to muscles. Even though he was old, his handlebar moustache and his hair were black.

He never asked for it, but everyone bowed at him the moment he stepped in. He commanded the love and respect of all. After all, he was the man who made SMS, what it is now. He started the auction ring and made all the money for SMS and made it the most ruthless gang in the world.

Tikhon Kuznetsova, the ruthless boss of Siago Mafia Syndicate, SMS, was extremely cunning, a rule follower to a fault and exceptionally business-oriented. He had a smile on his face, yet that smile was fear-inducing.

On his right side was the extremely beautiful and sophisticated lady, Nika Kuznetsova, his wife. Her anorexic body was somehow carrying her clothes. Even though she had a teenage daughter, Yekaterina Kuznetsova, she didn’t look like a mother or even married. Only the fine lines on her face would tell anyone that she was getting old.

On the left side of Tikhon was a beautiful brunette, Aurora Anya who kept her head low and was not looking at everyone. She was the first ever slave, Odalisque, Tikhon ever bought. She was the one with whom the tradition of auction started.

Tikhon could leave Nika at home for once, but he never left Aurora alone. She was supposed to accompany him wherever he went. She was his property. She had to be with him, always.

He smiled and gestured everyone to sit down. After everyone settled down, a man entered the arena. The rat-faced man, Stephan Borisov, was the leader of the consigliere of every Cosca. It was years since he had been serving under Tikhon. Everyone respected him for his intelligence but at the same time hated him as he was extremely racist and misogynist. The combination of his average height and his bulky body made him look like a fat rat.

“Hello and welcome all! Supreme Boss is so happy to see you all. We all know why we are here and don’t worry I won’t bore you with my words for long. We all want to see the samples, our hero for the night, Severino Moretti, brought for us all. He was attacked by vigilantes, but he fought tooth and nail and brought the shipment safely and securely to us. THE AUCTION WILL HAPPEN TONIGHT!!” announced Stephan with a grin on his face.

The whole arena roared with applause. Michel was the only one who kept his hands lowered and didn’t even make a gesture to clap. He just looked at Severino as he was being praised and smiled at him.

“I will now let the Boss talk,” said Stephan and stood behind Tikhon. Tikhon stood up and with him, Aurora. Nika made no gesture of the sort. She kept sipping her bubbly champagne and smiled at everyone. Aurora stood up as she was not allowed to sit in presence of her master.

“Ahem…” Tikhon cleared his throat. Everyone looked at him with awe. His presence was a commanding one. The only thing making him look weak was the plain presence of Aurora. Her fearful look and her shivering body told a different story, cast a different aura against the commanding aura of Tikhon.

“Good evening, everyone. Thank you all for coming. I have been working for SMS for, I don’t even remember, how many years. In my mind, this is the only work I have been doing. But now, I too need rest. These old, brittle bones need rest and peace. I want to retire to Siago Slandna and live my life reaping the benefits of the seeds that I sowed. And as you all know, yes, I am looking for the next Supreme Boss,” said Tikhon and again there was applause. Some even hooted at the mention of the next supreme boss.

“Calm down! Calm down! Don’t get too excited. In order to become the new boss, you all have to follow some rules:

1) You must be a male.” Aurelie Babineux, from Frenwan Cosca, scowled at the first rule. She knew she was very well capable of handling the business singlehandedly, but Tikhon was a patriarch. He always thought that elder son must be the heir. Fate had a funny way of teaching people things, Tikhon never had a son. Even though he raised his elder daughter, Afanasiia as a boy, he himself gave the order to kill her.

Tikhon continued, “2) I will nominate the nominees, if you want you can back out but that would mean that your Cosca will forfeit the chance forever.

3) The nominee must bring more money to the SMS than other nominees, starting today till the announcement of the winner.

4) The nominee must have more social and professional connections.

5) The nominee must buy an Odalisque in Auction. No prior Odal will be considered. You will have to buy a new one.

6) The nominee must have a high kill count. The higher the number, the higher the chances of becoming the Boss.

7) The nominee must know some form of combat skill, it can be any martial arts form, hand-to-hand combat, or expert in any weapons, except guns. Even a fool can wield a gun. I want an all-rounder.

8) The nominee must never do drugs and I would like to thank Ishida Masayuki, from Limiri Cosca for that. His strict rule that no one must have drugs greatly influenced me.

9) The nominee must not be married or in love with anyone.

10) The nominee must not fall in love with their Odal.

11) The most important rule is to eliminate the vigilante that has been trying to put a stop to the auction ring all these years.

People who can follow these rules are eligible for the nomination. Now I will take the name of the nominee and you must stand up to show your face so that others can see their competition.

First nominee, Renart Babineaux,” announced Tikhon. Renart, the spoilt brat of Frenwan Cosca stood up. Aurelie grimaced again.

“Second nominee, Marcellus Carter,” The whole Caspian Cosca applauded and hooted for him.

“Third nominee, Treyton Carter,” announced Tikhon. Again, the Caspian Cosca applauded.

“Fourth Nominee, Ishida Yoshiro, I like you, son,” said Tikhon. All other nominees look at him with jealousy. “Fifth nominee, Zhao Xiaojian, sixth nominee, Zhao Changming, seventh nominee, Zhao Guang, eighth nominee, Narciso Venturi and last but not the least, Michelangelo Venturi.”

Severino patted Michel’s arms after hearing his name. “Stop it!” snapped Michel.

“Let the race begin. And let’s start the AUCTION!!” shouted Tikhon, happily. Again, the arena exploded with applause.  

“Wow! My both sons are nominated. I am so glad,” said Vittore Venturi, his chest swelled up with pride. Narciso was grinning from ear to ear but Michel pointed out, “every male heir is nominated, Dad, or did you just not see it? Everyone knows that Aurelie is far better than us, but no one is ever talking about her."

“Shh! Don’t let anyone hear that. One of my sons will be the new boss, I can feel it in my bones,” smiled Vittore.

“Yeah, maybe Narciso. This job is suited for him. I don’t want any part in it,” snapped Michel.

“Michel! Stop it!” scolded Vittore.

“Dad! I am here so that Tikhon could see me and not wage a war against you. I am here because I care about you and my stupid people. That does not mean I am going to buy a poor person being displayed in front of us or going to kill innocent people. I want no part in this game of blood, money and drugs. I have my own business and I am happy. Please don’t expect me to get in your ugly world,” explained Michel.

Michel! Please, don’t say that! You are the best for this job. You have made your construction brand a global one. You can do that for SMS too,” said Vittore.

“You want this chaos, this ugliness, this slavery to happen all around the world?” snapped Michel.

“It is happening all around the world, wake up! If you won’t buy an Odal, that does not mean no one else will buy it. People are being abducted every day so that our auction ring can run at its pace. The auction ring brings more than anything. See all these rich people? They have their own jet, their own luxurious cars, their own yacht, their own bungalows, they are still here because they love owning people too. You cannot change their mind. There is demand so we supply,” educated Vittore.

“No, we supply, that’s why there is demand. If we stop, they too will shift their attention to other things, Dad. Don’t you realise that?” chided Michel.

While they were chatting with each other, the auction started. Girls clad in bikini and boys clad in tiny underwear were being displayed for all to see. Not only see, but they were also testing, prodding, tasting the girls and boys like they were going to buy a product, not human beings.

Their clothes were getting ripped off, people were touching them everywhere, fingering them, licking them, kissing them and the people they liked were getting sold like livestock. And after being sold, they were branded with hot iron that had the word “Odal” imprinted on it. The sounds of cries were being muffled by the sounds of laughter, money, and bidding.

Michel was unable to see their plight any more. “I can’t… I just can’t anymore,” he said and stood up. Severino and his other bodyguards followed his suit and stood up. Without saying another word, Michelangelo walked out of the club.

“I need a drink,” sighed Michel.

“I know of a place,” smiled Severino and took everyone to a hidden bar in the thick of the city. It was there, that they all met with the five girls.