The guard had his wonner raised at Stormbristle. The animals all watched with lively anticipation.

  “You gonna do me in, pig?”

  Stormbristle thought of the mission. He thought of Kip. He thought of Sal and all the enchanteds that were counting on him. The guard pointed the wonner at Stormbristle and clicked.

  Stormbristle kicked his right foot up, and barrelled up into the air. The guard pointed his wonner at the buoyant pig and clicked. And clicked. And clicked again. Each time hitting the place the Stormbristle was but not where he would be. Storm spun around the room as the guard continued, until he clicked the wonner and nothing came out. Storm’s feet touched the wall and he kicked upward.

  “Zip Zap Slop!”

  He positioned his body toward the guard, stuck his hind legs out and conjured lightning from his legs, charging forward at a heightened speed and ramming the guard directly in the stomach. The guard lost his breath as well as some blood and phlegm.

  The animals cheered in satisfaction. Storm picked up the key with his cloud puff and walked it over to Sal’s cage.

  “Let’s get out of there.”

  Sal smirked. He worked his way through all of the cages, starting with the fire beasts first, then the wind beasts, then the water beasts. Then they all helped open up cages for the enchanteds, checking on the rats that were tossed by the guard to make sure they were okay.

  The menacing menagerie stormed out of the secret room. The guards’ mouths fell open as they saw the secret captives pour out into the back halls of the auction house. One of the guards blew a whistle that alerted the other guards of the escape. Sal inhaled, his throat reddening and he burst out a flame ball that smacked the guard with the whistle square in the chest. The guard fell on his back. He stamped his chest as the flames ate up his shirt.

  A troop of guards made their way to the entrance, where they placed themselves between the entrance and the animals. The fiery turtle walked up and squeezed something internally. The top cap on his shell rattled and the noise of a hot kettle rang out as steam overtook the room. The guards stuck up their batons and swung wildly, unable to see in the dense fog.

  The frog with a suit jumped up and kicked the guard in the face, then used his tongue to whip the other guard. The floating ball shot out her spores, causing a sneezing fit from the guards. Then, the storm of dogs and cats and rats attacked all of them. Biting and clawing and working them as the humans threw fits of coughing, sneezing and could not see as clearly as the nocturnal animals. The wave of enchanteds left the auction hall into the orange night, but just as Stormbristle was about to go out, Sal stopped him.

  Stormbristle turned around, “We have to get all the animals, Storm. Not just the ones who can fend for themselves.”

  Stormbristle harrumph but told Sal that they were already this far. The two raced to behind the auction hall curtain. Most of the animals had yet to be sold. Sal used the skeleton key to start opening cages and letting the animals out.

  One by one they let out a howling rabbit here, or a striped giraffe there. Each one grateful in its own limited capacity. They knew what escape meant for them. They burst out with speed.

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  “Doing something dastard?” The voice caused Stormbristle to turn behind him. It was Keesee, the pink horned monkey.

  “We’re getting everyone out,” Storm said, “You can come if you’d like.”

  “You’s an idiot. Ain’t you?” The monkey said, “You’s coming for me bag.”

  “What?” Storm asked, “Your bag?! The auctioneer lets you have some of the profits?!”

  “You stupid pig,” Said the monkey, “The auctioneer works for me! I own the auction hall! And you’re messing with my bag!”

  “Easy as,” Mocked Stormbristle.

  The monkey leapt off the tower of cages, howled and landed on Stormbristle, scratching at his face. Storm caused a surge of electricity to circulate through his body, stinging the monkey. Keesee fell off Storm, rolling on his back. He reached out and kicked Stormbristle in the leg, felling him. The monkey reached out and scratched him in the face with the claws on his foot.

  “You can join us!” Stormbristle said, “There is a life outside of slave-trading. There is a life outside of evil! You don’t have to live in this world that makes you do this.”

  “I like living in this world,” the monkey jumped on Storm’s face and pulled Storm’s ears. Storm tried to react but the quickness with which the monkey was operating discombobulated Storm, “I’m really good at it! Ahh!”

  Sal had shot a ball of fire at the monkey's back, knocking him off Storm. Storm pushed up and floated in the sky, kicking around and bobbing, he pivoted his body so that his head and tusks pointed right at Keesee. Storm charged the monkey, but he jumped up and Storm crashed into a mountain of empty cages. The monkey gripped a bird cage hanging from the ceiling and escaped upward, dodging Sal’s fire blasts.

  “I’ve got this guy!” Sal ran up the wall, getting level with the monkey and leaping after him. Keesee had already leapt to the next bird cage. Sal swung awkwardly from the birdcage trying to rebalance himself.

  The hog turned toward the birdcage that the Keesee was perched on. “Boar Blast!” He sent a streak of lighting to connect with the cage.

  The monkey shrieked as the bolt shocked him and he fell to the ground. Storm did not hesitate; While the monkey was immobilized, Storm kicked himself into the air, turned and yelled, “Zip Zap Slop!” This time, Keesee did not escape. Stormbristle rammed his entire body into the monkey, driving the critter into the floorboards. The monkey, weakened, reached for something.

  “You may have strength, but I got something you don’t have,” The monkey said.

  “What’s that?” Storm asked as he dug his tusks further into the pink furry body.

  “Opposable thumbs.” Then the monkey took a butterfly knife and stabbed Stormbristle in the eye. A storm boar’s blood is gaseous. A red mist exited Stormbristle’s upper eyebrow.

  “Outa the way, Storm! Let me handle this punk”

  Storm backed up and Sal hit Keesee with a fire ball. The blast sent the monkey rolling backward. The monkey jumped up and hid in a chest, closing the chest door on himself.

  “Let’s get him!” Sal asked.

  “No,” Storm said, “Leave him be.”

  “If we leave him, he’ll let more people suffer. We take him in as a prisoner,” Sal said.

  The pig shook his head, the . He used a puff of cloud from his main body to apply pressure on his body onto the eyebrow cut, “We take an enchanted beast as a prisoner, we’re not better than he is.”

  Sal shook his head, “Come on, Storm. He’ll get up to his old tricks if we leave him alone.”

  Storm sighed and said, “Fine. We’ll take him in and decide what to do with him via tribunal. Let’s take the chest with us, “Did you hear that, monkey? You’re going to get a fairer trail than you’ve given the other animals you’ve sold.”

  Stormbristle wrapped his tail around the chest’s handle, Sal grabbed the other end. Sal stepped forward and was almost immediately struck off balance.

  The false bottom of the trunk immediately gave out. The monkey squeaked and rolled out, leaping up from the cages into a small air duct.

  “Hey!” Sal dropped the trunk and ran up the wall, peering into the air duct.

  “Leave him,” Storm said, “Retribution is not the task at hand.”

  Sal slammed his slimy fist against the wall, and with a glare dropped downward. Storm and Sal both left the auction house, guards defeated, to join the other enchanted animals on their escape into the burning night ahead.

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