A few days went by and it was the night of the auction. The Predators had injected both Prey animals with some drug. They were still naked and also had their wrists tied behind their backs and a chain collar around their necks. The predators pulled the two forward with chain leashes.
The two were pulled upstairs and forced to wait off to the side of a large stage. Will groggily wondered if they were in some sort of old theater building or music hall that these criminals were now using for human trafficking. Will tried to pay attention to what the Predator on stage was saying, but the drugs they’d given him made it hard. He kept his eyes closed as much as he could. When they were open, everything was blurry and objects seemed to move about. The room kept shifting and moving as well. Everything he heard was doubled as he tried his best to listen.
“Welc-Welcome ladi-ladies an-and gent-gentlemen to-to our-our…”
Will felt sick. He was nauseous and his double hearing wasn’t helping. He looked over to the zebra sitting next to him. She was crying again and her hands were pressed tight to her ears. She must have had the double hearing too.
Will wished he could see more of the room, all he could see was the small bit of stage beyond the curtains. He tried craning his head to get a look, but the dog pulled sharply on his leash. “It ain’t your turn yet,” he said, chuckling.
After what seemed like an hour, but was probably only a few minutes, the brown bear pulled on the zebra’s leash and off she went. She was on stage now and Will couldn’t see her. He heard the announcer speak. Heard the crowd cheer and laugh, then he heard the announcer spit out numbers. Eventually he stopped. Will heard the man shout, “Sol-Sold!”
A little while later and the bear was back. Now he was pulling on Will’s leash. Will got up and walked on stage, trying not to trip. The floor looked uneven in his drugged state, and he was very much afraid of falling. Will was forced to kneel on stage, which was good for him because he kept feeling like he’d fall if he stood much longer. Will looked out toward the crowd, but the bright lights that were aimed at him blinded him from seeing anyone’s faces.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
The snow leopard sipped his wine as he watched the illegal auction from one of the back tables. He’d only ever been to a few of such auctions and never purchased any meat. The woman he had come with, a snake, had asked him to accompany her. Him being here at all was a favor to her. She said she really wanted to try fresh meat from the Land of Prey, not the customary meat that is bred and sold at the grocery. She’d heard of this place from a man she worked with who couldn’t help but brag about the fresh rabbit he ate. He told her that the meat had been alive when he bought it. She was skeptical, as one would be at hearing about ‘living meat’. The only live meats are in the meat factories or the Land of Prey. And one couldn’t simply go to the land of Prey for a hunting trip. That was highly illegal. If you were caught you’d easily get life imprisonment.
The snake, Amelia, was a patient of his. She had come to him for counseling after she’d killed her husband. The boar had apparently cheated on her. When she asked the snow leopard if he could accompany her he’d told her that indulging in a bit of distraction was good for her and agreed.
Now the snow leopard sat, drink in hand, as he watched as the overweight zebra was sold to a panther. Once the zebra was offstage, the announcer addressed the audience once more.
“Ladies and Gentlemen, my men have tried for weeks to supply what you’ve asked for. I’m proud to say that we’ve got one!”
Hannibal had no idea what the man was talking about. He hadn’t been to an auction in a long time. He knew that some animals were regulars to the illegal establishment because he heard cheers from the crowd. The snow leopard watched as a sheep was dragged on stage. The boy, no man, Hannibal corrected, he could see an age to his eyes. The snow leopard could also see the sheep’s penis and balls. They were small and hairless, as was the vagina of the zebra. He guessed they must have shaved them before they brought them onstage. Hannibal could not see the sheep’s horns. He wondered if the poachers had sawed them off for profit, or to make the sheep, who was really a ram, look younger, more feminine. It worked. The ram looked like a ram lamb or an ewe lamb even. Hannibal sat amused as the ram was introduced as female.
“Our next product up for auction is what you’ve all been waiting for. You asked for lamb and we’ve supplied. Meet Will Graham, a special agent apparently. Watch out fellow predators he’s with the Prey FBI!”
The crowd laughed as the drugged agent blinked against the bright lights, swaying a bit as he knelt on the wooden stage. The leopard’s ear twitched when he heard that the ram had been with the Prey FBI. The sheep suddenly interested him.
“Yes sir, as you can see by his ears and wool color our young agent here is also a black sheep! We were very fortunate to find meat so rare.”
Hannibal knew that the color of a sheep’s wool had nothing at all to do with its taste, but the rarity was hard to ignore. It gave the animal an exotic look. Not that any live prey animal didn’t look exceptional. The only way to see one was in a book. So to see one actually presented before you, moving about, was a treat in and of itself. Even for those with no means to purchase such a prize, just being here and able to see a live prey animal was quite an experience. On top of that, to see a sheep, or ram, with dark wool…Hannibal did not regret coming tonight.
“Now don’t be fooled by this creature’s genitalia, it is most definitely a sheep, or should I say a lamb.”
The leopard watched as the announced leaned down and twisted the ram’s left nipple. The ram yelped and blushed deliciously. The announcer then turned the ram around and spread its ass cheeks.
“My suppliers have confirmed that this animal is virginal in every sense of the word. Look at its tight pucker, or should I say pussy. Watch as it twitches for you. She’s a horny little lamb slut. Even brought her own handcuffs. ”
More cheers could be heard from the audience. It was clear that the ram was being advertised more for sexual gratification than food. Most Predators who bought live Prey from illegal auctions fucked their meat before they ate it. It was a big selling point.
Hannibal watched as the auctioneer turned the ram back around. Then forced it to stand up. The ram was so drugged up that it fell back to the floor. The auctioneer pulled the ram back up by the wool on its head. The ram shrieked and the crowd cheered some more. The auctioneer pulled the ram to the edge of the stage by its wool, and forced it to stand right before the crowd. The predator placed its hand on the ram’s small member and pulled down its foreskin.
“Get a good look ladies and gentlemen,” he said, then he pulled the ram’s foreskin back up. He slapped the ram’s small round ass. “This here is high quality meat. This isn’t something you can find in a grocery store,” he paused, “or in a brothel.”
A few whistles were heard from the crowd. Hannibal’s mouth watered at the sight of the ram on stage, but he did not engage in such uncouth cheering or whistling. Then he saw the ram’s mouth move. The auctioneer must have heard the ram say something because he asked, “What?” and put the microphone in front of him. The drugged ram looked up at the auctioneer and slurred the words, “You’re under arrest.” The crowd, and the auctioneer himself laughed at the animal who’s eyes were glazed over and so far gone that he couldn’t grasp his situation anymore.
“Oh? And how are you going to arrest me little lamb?” The auctioneer asked. He placed the microphone in front of the ram again.
“My department is on the case. They already know about the trafficking,” he slurred. “They suspect predator animals.”
“Yeah? And do they know their own special agent is a lamb slut?” The crowd laughed again.
“They know about the flamingo twins from years ago.”
“Wait, the ones who star in pornos? They weren’t trafficked by us,” he laughed. “The Prey FBI is as useless as we thought.” Everyone laughed.
“I know they weren’t trafficked by you guys. They weren’t sloppy with their kidnappings. We only found out about them a few days ago even though they’ve been missing for years.” The ram shook his head slowly, trying to think through the drugs in his system. “But you guys, we have tons of disappearances on record. We have witnesses. My department will find you.”
The auctioneer wasn’t laughing anymore. “You think some weak little prey animals could do anything to us? Nobody gives a shit about the Prey FBI. It’s a meaningless job. Prey are food, nothing else. You should feel lucky that the predators have let you live so long in your peaceful little Land of Prey cage that we’ve put you in.”
Hannibal could tell that the ram was confused. Prey animals didn’t know about anything outside their little utopia after all.
“Who’s really in the cage here, me or you?” The ram asked, looking up at the auctioneer’s face. “I bet you’re not wealthy enough to be a customer here, but that’s what you want, isn’t it? I know it. You wish you were there,” he pointed into the audience. He unknowingly pointed directly at Hannibal. “You wish you were in the crowd instead of on stage with me. I bet that’s why you started working this job. You thought you’d someday be able to have a taste too didn’t you? You thought this job would get you somewhere, but so far it hasn’t. And now you’re stuck here, without wealth and fearing that one day you might be caught and arrested. I know. I’ve already figured you out.”
Hannibal felt his cock come to life. He wanted to know more about the prey animal who had just stared down a predator and seen so effortlessly inside his soul. He wanted to have the ram on his couch…and in his bed. He also wanted to eat him of course. What had been his name again? Graham? Will? Hannibal smirked as he watched the powerless creature.
“As you can see, he’s a little chatty, but I’m sure you can find a better use for that mouth of his,” he winked, coming back to himself. He didn’t put the microphone in front of the ram again. “Alright, let’s start the bidding at ten thousand!”
Hannibal watched as hands went up. He heard the announcer bring the bid up from fifteen thousand to twenty thousand, and again and again until it was already at fifty thousand, already more than the zebra was sold for. He heard the snake ask him if he thought the ‘lamb’ was even worth that much. For some reason the comment offended him. He turned to her and whispered in her ear “He’s worth far more.” She looked skeptically at him, then went back to watching the stage.
Eventually the bid was at a hundred thousand. “Do I see a hundred fifteen?” Ah there we are. A hundred twenty?” Only a few hands remained up. Hannibal had yet to raise his. When there were only two hands left, Hannibal finally joined. He was bidding against a tiger and a grizzly bear. The tiger looked like new money. He was young and there was a certain light to his eyes. The bear was a fat politician. He knew the man as a rude criminal. The man had sat on his couch as his patient some time ago. This wasn’t the man’s first bidding war. He’d told Hannibal that he’d been it six others and had won them all. He was filthy rich and buying live Prey was his secret hobby. He told Hannibal all the nefarious things he did to the Prey animals be bought. He’d torture them before and while he fucked them. He’d eat their limbs during sex. He’d keep them conscious through the whole thing. When he was finally done, he’d eat the animal, without cooking it, while it was still alive. Hannibal wasn’t disturbed by the thought. The prey were just food after all, but Will Graham…Hannibal didn’t want the man to have him. It would be a waste.
When the bid got to a hundred fifty thousand, the tiger’s hand went down. When the bid got to two hundred fifty thousand, the grizzly bear’s hand went down.
“Sold, to the snow leopard in the back!”
As everyone sipped on their drinks and spoke among themselves, the bear looked over at him. When he recognized him, he smiled and waved. Hannibal had a feeling he’d be hearing from the man tonight. The snake he’d come here with was staring, open-mouthed at him.
“Really? Two hundred and fifty thousand dollars?”
“He’s worth more,” he simply replied. Once the animals started filing out of the room, he gave the snake money for cab fare and told her he couldn’t drive her home tonight. She nodded, took the money, and left. Hannibal made his way backstage.
The auctioneer led him downstairs to a basement where he saw his prize in a small cage.
“This is the stuff he came with,” said a dog, handing him a bag with some clothes, handcuffs, a gun, and a badge.
“Thank you,” he said, taking the bag. “Then he took out his wallet. He’d brought money to this auction, just in case. He handed the dog the money he owed and a bear unlocked the cage.
The bear then took the chain collar off the ram while the dog put a cloth of clorophorm to his nose. The ram was out quickly. “To make it easier for you to take it home,” the dog explained.
Hannibal took off his large coat and wrapped the naked ram up in it, hiding him. Then he picked him up and carried him up the stairs, out the exit, and to his car. He placed the bundled-up ram in the trunk and drove off.
Finnian Siog 