? - Chapter 33

There was a collective and complete silence in the sound-proof meeting room, followed by the singular sound of a cricket chirping rhythmically.
'What, the hell, is that?' Mr. Wolf said. The heads all turned to Mr. Panther, a very tanned man with long and curled black hair who looked to be half asleep in his chair. He head was tilted sideways and his mouth was open and drooling onto his tux.
'Panther! Did you come here stoned, again!?' Miss. Scorpion threw up her arms in frustration.
Mr. Panther was jolted awake by the sudden call of his name, he raised his head and blinked. When he realized what was happening, he shrugged and said, 'Hey man, I grow this stuff, I can't be not smoking my own crop, can't I?'
'This is a formal gathering made just more formal by Dragon's delivery of the most important captive we have probably ever gotten our hand on, and as of right now you are acting as informal as the pettiest crook in the alleys of the worst slums on this planet, and yet now you still have the indecency to defend yourself of your imprudent actions?' Mr. Shark said, leaning forward in his chair to stare vehemently at Mr. Panther.
'That still doesn't explain the cricket. Where's the cricket sound coming from?' Mr. Serpent, the bespectacled, clean shaven man sitting next to him asked.
'Oh that, that's my new pet, see.' Mr. Panther raised his right arm and in his hand held a tiny plastic cage with a small insect chirping away inside. 'I found it in the hemp fields just this morning-'
BOOM! There was a crack of gunfire. When everyone regained their bearings, all that remained of the tiny cage in Mr. Panther's hand was the lid, the rest of the cage was shattered into the wall behind Mr. Panther's seat and on the floor. Mr. Panther looked shell-shocked, or maybe he was still under the influence of his hemp, whichever it may have been, he did not get a chance to speak again. The cricket chirp ceased and the cricket was surely presumed dead.
The source of the gunshot was from Mr. Cougar, a gruff, slightly bearded man in his early sixties with coarse, rough skin and a shaved head. His arm was raised and the large pistol in that hand was still aimed at the spot Mr. Panther's cricket cage once dangled. 'Enough is enough! I've had it with the motherfuckin' cricket in the motherfuckin' cage! Are we getting down to business or are we?'
'Shit, Cougar! Did you absolutely have to blow that cage in here? By the devil, you almost gave me a heart attack!' Mr. Alligator shouted, but Mr. Cougar did not apologize.
Mr. Vulture, the bearded man with the turban spoke up, 'If I remember correctly, Mr. Alligator, blowing stuff up is my specialty, not Mr. Cougar's.' 
Mr. Wolf snickered, 'Ha, I still can't get over the Alligator part, you just kill me every time. Speaking of which, say Alligator old boy, mind if I call you Killer Croc from now on?'
'YES I DO MIND!' Mr. Alligator said with dignity.
'It's a compliment for Pete's Sakes, you're truly killer, you know.' Mr. Wolf replied teasingly.
Mr. Alligator was about to respond when Mr. Dragon slammed his fist down on the table with tremendous force that the ground shook and everyone's attention was focused on him again. 'I will have silence in this chamber, or I will silence you all, either way, our guest is waiting.' Mr. Dragon whispered softly and turned to face Mr. Damien North.
During the arguments, Mr. North had been struggling and squirming in his seat. He could not speak for his mouth was duct taped shut. His face was extremely red and the look in his eyes was prepared to kill.
The ten people in the room set their sights upon Mr. North for several moments, and at last Mr. Shark said, 'He's much more in shape than I anticipated.'
'Yes, I was pleasantly surprised also,' Mr. Dragon said, 'I had a fine duel with him, hand-to-hand, before I brought him here. It was quite nice to stretch those  muscles with my dear old colleague, and now it's time for us all to formally greet the man who has thus far made all our lives so very difficult on this world. We'll discuss what to do with our distinguished guest, and what credit I shall receive for his deliverance in a while, for now, I want you all to control yourselves and keep the welcome strictly introductory.' Mr. North shook his head even more furiously.
'And what you are saying is?' Miss. Scorpion raised an eyebrow.
Mr. Dragon smiled cunningly, he said, 'For the price of a ten dollar, you will get the opportunity to come up here and say or do what ever you wish to Mr. North, whether it be a punch in the face or a spit in the eye, one act of your choosing. Let us do this in an orderly fashion and line up-'
'Woah, woah, woah, wait just a minute, so we gotta pay admission to punch this old man?' Mr. Wolf exclaimed incredulously.
'Nothing is free in this world, least of all human beings. You should know that, Mr. Wolf, considering your profession in the slave trade.' Mr. Dragon said.
Mr. Wolf's reply was sidelined by Mr. Serpent, he said, 'Ten's not worth it, make it two and I'll pay.'
'It's not a bargain, Serpent.' Mr. Dragon said.
'This is the eastern hemisphere, the land of bargaining. You heard me, make it a two dollar and I'll accept.' Mr. Serpent replied.
'Very well, eight dollars, not a penny less.'
'Three fifty, not a penny more.'
'Six, and later a bonus in addition to the pay for my work.'
'Five, no bonuses.'
'Six, I name my final price.'
Several more exchanges later, Mr. Serpent and Mr. Dragon came to the agreement of the admission price of five dollars and thirty-seven cents for greeting Mr. Damien North in whichever way they desire, and the others thought highly of the reduced price and Mr. Serpent's professional bargaining skills.
'He's really good,' Miss. Scorpion whispered of Mr. Serpent to Mr. Panther, who asked, 'In what?' and got the reply, 'You really are high.' from Miss. Scorpion, shaking her head.
Mr. Wolf went first, after paying Mr. Dragon in coins, he inched his face up against Mr. North and said, 'I'd do something much worse, but I only got one good shot, this five dollars thirty-seven cents better be worth the satisfaction.' He swung his fist way back, and threw his punch.