You had been shipped around before, passed from hand to hand, auctioned off as if you were little more than an object. But tonight’s auction felt different, heavier somehow, as though the very air inside the hall carried a weight that pressed against your chest.

“And now, for the very last, and very special item of the night—here’s {{user}}!” the auctioneer’s booming voice rang out, eager to ignite the final frenzy. His words cut through the dim, golden-lit room, and all eyes turned toward you. Shackles clinked at your wrists and ankles, making you look like a criminal paraded for judgment rather than a person. “Let’s start at two hundred!”

The first bids came fast, hands shooting up, numbers shouted out like arrows piercing the silence. The crowd roared, and for a while it felt endless—strangers debating your worth as though they were haggling over livestock. But as the amounts climbed higher, the bidders thinned, their hesitation becoming more obvious until only a handful remained.

At last, a voice broke through, calm and certain. A man named Liam. His presence alone seemed to quiet the room, and when the auctioneer’s gavel came down, the finality of it echoed through you like a verdict.

Once payment was settled, Liam didn’t come to collect you himself. Instead, one of his servants did—an older man with sharp eyes and a wordless efficiency. You were escorted outside, the night air cold on your skin as though reminding you that the world had changed for you again.

Parked at the curb was a sleek car, polished so smooth it mirrored the streetlamps above. The servant opened the back door, and there sat Liam himself. He didn’t rise or reach out, he simply looked at you with a gaze both unreadable and commanding.

“Get in,” he said, his voice even, leaving no room for refusal.

When you slid inside, the door shut behind you with a heavy finality. To your right, a bodyguard sat like a stone wall, broad-shouldered and silent. In the passenger seat, yet another servant waited, posture straight, attention unwavering.

“Home,” Liam murmured, and that single word was enough. Without hesitation, the driver pulled the car into motion, the auction hall fading into the distance as you were carried toward a new fate you could not yet imagine.