Koelian Tomb – V.

S’iug planted his feet over the regulator taking deep breaths of his mask and letting Koelian air surround him.

The bottle was half empty when S’iug heard it suddenly. A door closed stealthily, a furtive footfall from the rear of the house. He sat upright, alert with narrow eyes. The feet shuffled and advance along the immense hallway. Then miraculously, Brong Vrop, ray in his hand, was framed in the doorway.

S’iug calmly took a last sip from his drink before he spoke. He set the bottle down and said contemptuously, “Brong, you are a fool.”

“Maybe,” said Brong Vrop. “I’d rather be a fool than a corpse.”
“You’ll be that, too, if you kill me. Twice you’ve threaten me before Elias. Whom do you think he’ll look for when they found my body?”

Brong Vrop grinned. It wasn’t a pleasant grin. “When you are in hell,” he said, “maybe you’ll find out I’m not such a fool after all. But let’s not waste time. First I want you to come down to the cellar with me.”

S’iug shrugged.
He poured another drink and made no move to get out of his chair. Brong’s face became did brown with anger. He crossed the room with three long strides. He thrust the maze of his ray against S’iug chest.

“Damn you!” He shouted. “I’ll shut all three of your damn hearts here and now damn purple worm. Get up now. Lead the way to the cellar.”

Elias in the meantime was working the late morning shift. It was few minutes after earth-ten when he arrived at headquarters. He was greeted grumpily by Keln, his chief.

We got a murder,” said Keln. “Guy named R’iun. Photographer for the Blade Blog. That means the media and the social media will raise hell with us.”

Elias seated himself on the edge of his desk.
“Any details?”
“Not many. Holdup apparently. His credits gone and his kPhone. Stuck up in his own home very early this morning. Body was just found by a friend of his. You think it was Brong Vrop’s gang?”

Elias shook his head. “Not enough dough in it. Sounds more like an amateur. Vrop’s not crazy enough to commit a murder for a few credits. He doesn’t fool around with…”
Elias broke as he noted Keln’s gaze travel beyond him and register astonishment. He turned his head around, slid off his desk, sharing Keln’s surprise.

For walking past the desk sergeant towards them was a grinning and bowing Brong Vrop. Vrop’s presence in a flat station was at once an amazing and unprecedented occurrence. Since he had been thirteen years old, Brong Vrop’s chief purpose in life had been to avoid anyone remotely concerning with the forces of law and justice.

“Well,” said Keln heavily as Vron approached his desk. “Have you come to give yourself up?” Brong Vrop threw back his head, all eyes looking at the ceiling, and laughed as if something deeply funny had been said or happened.

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Read all the Koelian tomb chapters in order, HERE!

A flat kill – Part 07.

The old creature’s hand entered inside his jacket and brought out a very old vape. “Those two troubles are going to knock a lot of walls before they get to their cell. A lot of walls.”

Two flats elbowed their way through the outside crowd and into the diner. They looked down at the gray haired man silently and then one of them went out to the squad drone.

I tried to pick up my cup of black from the counter but my fingers didn’t obey and I was spilling so much o it that I set it back again. Instead I pulled my vape and took a deep drag.

A couple of minutes later more flat drones arrived and in the end two more serious flats entered the in. They took me to one of the booths.

“I’m Officer Sr’ydd,” one of the flats said. He was as tall as I am and deep purple. The combination of his very erect antennas and the fact that he was much thinner than me in the end made him look taller. He cocked a thumb at the other flat. “And this is my partner, Officer Skyyyzd. Your name, please.”
“Mug,” I said. “Princess Quad Mug.” I added shyly.
“Address?” I gave them the one in Typhon III. As he wrote it down, I added “I’m here for my birthday. Shopping and all that. I have a ship to catch at ten.”

“Miss Princess,” Officer Sr’ydd said looking up. “A flat’s been killed. Your ship can wait.”
“Tell us about it,” Officer Skyyyzd said. “From the beginning.”

I gave the story and described the two troubles.
“You recognize any of them if you saw them again?” Officer Sr’ydd asked.
I hesitated. “Well I don’t know. You understand I was pretty scared….” I left my sentence intentionally unfinished and I tried to look scared.

“You gave a pretty good description of the events, Princess,” Officer Sr’ydd said. “I bet you will.” He got up. “You and grandpa here, better come down to the headquarters with us. We’d like to have you look at some holograms.
Panic was boiling inside but I was keeping it under control. Or at least I thought so.

At headquarters they took old creature and me into a small room and began uploading holograms of troubles.
“Put your bag in the corner if it bothers you,” Officer Sr’ydd said. 
“It doesn’t bother me a bit,” I aid irritably.

After two earth hours my liquid had gone and Officer Skyyyzd loaded more holograms. I was pulling off the red strip when the next hologram appeared to be the tall kid who did the killing. I vaped nothing slowly and I thought it over.
Finally I looked up. “This is one of them,” I said.

Officer Sr’ydd go to his feet and came over. He studded the hologram and scrolled the record that came with it. “All right,” he said. He send the hologram to the other corner where the old creature was sitting and moved over.

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Read all A Flat kill chapters in order, HERE!

A flat kill – Part 06.

The short trouble hit some buttons and obviously moved the ten credits to his account and then moved out from behind the metal. “Empty your pockets on the floor,” he ordered.
I took my wallet out of pocket careful and tossed it down. I watched the gray hair ,am get to his feet. Oh earthmen, the galaxy’s heroes.

He liked his lips for a few seconds and then seemed to take a deep breath. The air wasn’t very clean with the skinners’ smell and all that. Then his hand went to the button of his jacket.

He didn’t get his ray out of his belt holster. The tall trouble’s ray spit yellow beams twice. The earthman in the booth crumpled and he slid between the table and the bench.
The trouble’s eyes turned to me glowing with killer madness.

I dove under the counter as beams came and sprayed hard against the self with the mugs and glasses. I lay there hugging the floor, my heart pounding wildly.

After a couple of shots, I heard the sound of a hard slap. “Snap out of it, you damn duneworm,” I heard the chunky trouble say. “Let’s get the Skriizs out of here.”

I heard their footsteps moving fast forward the door and then I heard the door slam. I lay there unable to get up right away and marvelling in a detached way at my trembling and weakness.

Finally, the old creature strained up. He looked at me over the counter and picked his kPhone out of his pocket.

I came to my senses. It was time to get out. I couldn’t get mixed up in anything like this. I got shakily to my feet.

Then I saw the faces pressed against the windows and far away I heard the sirens of the flat drones reaching. Old man hadn’t still press the buttons, I realized suddenly. Somebody had heard the shots and done it for him.

I picked up my bag and looked at the glass door. My stomach tighten around fear. It was getting too late to get out.

There were about twenty people, all colours, heights and shapes out there and keep coming. Their fascinated eyes travelled a thrill circuit from the body of the gray haired man, to the green creature with four arms shaking uncontrollably to me.

I put down my bag and wiped my palms on my trousers. I looked at the old creature with a weary indignation.
“Why did he do that?” I asked hoarsely. “Why did the damn fool go for his ray?”

The old green creature glanced at the body and then looked way. “Gromlyz Fjerd, he said. “Just a new flat. Off duty and all he wanted was quiet and something to eat.” Old creature’s eyes harden. “Flats ain’t all perfume and flowers,” he said, “but there is one thing that gets every flat mad. You don’t kill a flat, Miss.”

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Read all A Flat kill chapters in order, HERE!

A flat kill – Part 05.

Sure, she could identify me if she ever saw me again. But she never would. Officer Brevity Dorv’s body most likely wouldn’t be found until somebody came to find out why he hasn’t reported for work, and by that time I’d be back in New Bayou. She could look through all the holograms at the headquarters until she need new visors or a laser operation to her eyes. My hologram wasn’t in anybody’s files.
I am a ghost.

In my room I packed away including my five grand in credits. I glanced at my kPhone and saw that I had about an earth hour to kill before catching my ship.

I picked up my bag and checked out o the place. About a block down the street I found a skin place. I got some vape liquid out of one of the machines and sat down on a stool.

“Two skinners with duneonions,” I said. “And plenty of black.”
An old little green very floppy creature with four arms, splayed out two balls of skin on the hot metal. He drew my black and slid the sweetener to me.
“Kind of chilly tonight,” he said.
“Yeah,” I said. “A bit nippy.” I looked idly around and saw that the other customer was a gray hair human man working on a piece of pie in one of the booths.

The floppy creature put the skinners on a plate and he was just setting them in front of me when the door opened and two troubles walked in. I picked one of my skinners as I took a look and a prickling came to the back of my head. Both troubles were obviously high on some kind of vape and the tiny pupils of their eyes glowed. Late teens, thin faces with thin shelled bravado of the perpetual delinquent.

I chewed slowly and wondered if they were going to go through with it. They hesitated for a moment as they looked around and then the taller of them moved to the far corner and turned his back to it. He brought out a very old version of a ray and swept the room with it.

“Two things work,” he said his voice high. “Everybody behave and you’ll live to tell your grandkids about it.”
The other kid had a better looking ray. “Move away from the metal old man. I’m going to take a look at your screen.”

I noticed the man in the booth lay down his chopsticks. His head went slowly back and forth as he alternately watched one and then the other. The shorter kid, a chunky one went behind the metal and hit the screen pulling up  kPhone from his inner pocket. His pressed some batons then looked at the screen and twisted his mouth in disgust. “A lousy ten credits.”
“What did you expect?” the old green man said dryly. “This ain’t a bank.”

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Read all A Flat kill chapters in order, HERE!

A flat kill – Part 04.

“Do you think you could be bought now?” I asked, interested.
He almost smiled again. “I’m considering it.”
I shifted my weight to make myself more comfortable. “Can you guess why I’m here?”
He did smile thinly this time. “If it’s to scare me, you won’t go away disappointed.”
“no,” I said. “it’s more serious than that.”

His eyes sifted softly to his right side. I knew what he was looking for and I also knew that he knew. He wasn’t faster than me.

Still I could see that he would try it even though he wasn’t sure yet. We were still talking and in his mind that was not normal.

I didn’t mind but he missed the point. I didn’t mind some talking. I’m always interest on how alive beings meet death. I had so many questions but still, I couldn’t take the chance and even smart people do stupid things.

Plus the problem with VI-32 is that they are good for one use. Then they need time to recharge.

I might get him as he makes his dive, I thought. But the chances were that I’d need more than one shot to put him away and I dint like the idea with a damn VI-32.

I wouldn’t have mind some more talking as well. I was really interest to what he had to say about his work and about not having a family or a hobby. Somehow I felt that I could identify. But my luck, was always the same. They dived.
And I could see it in his eyes that he was thinking about it, just right now.
Regretfully I squeezed the trigger.

The flat grunted slowly as the ray bored into his flesh and he flopped out on the side of his chair, actually n his hidden gun side, with the un-coordination of instant death.

Slowly I put the VI-32 back in the briefcase and stood up. Then with a new cleaning mat I went through the comfortable chair’s arms and the floor where sequences of my DNA might have fallen.

I was going through the pad at the door when I noticed the green skin, brown hair girl at the door of the apartment next to flat’s.

She had four large mistral market bags in two of her four arms and she was having difficulty using her pad to get into her apartment.

She smiled at me. “I hope you don’t mind,” she said. “But would you mind holding at least one of those while I get my door open?”
“Not at all,” I said. I took one of them while she typed her code into the pad and her door unlocked. “Thank you so much,” she said as I returned the bag.

Aside from her elfin accent she had a nice smile so I smiled too. I touched the edge line of hoodie in an old earthly attitude. “No trouble at all,” I said and left. Outside and walking slowly on the sidewalk, I checked my palm. More curiosity than interest. Not even moist, I thought in  a satisfied way. Oh I’m a cold son of a bitch.

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Read all A Flat kill chapters in order, HERE!

A flat kill – Part 03.

Took the outside gravity life to the thirty-second floor, I walked the soundproof carpet and I found the door of apartment 326 I was looking for and pressed the communication pod. With any luck the flat was in his between-shifts break.
I was lucky.

The flat that stood by the open door was a medium size humanoid in some kind of strange pyjamas covering his hairy chest holding a pad on one hand. His sharp blue eyes – Jed was right about the eyes, flicked over my face.

“Officer Brevity Dorv?” I asked.
He nodded his head still no suspicious.
“I’d like to talk to you about something very important for your health,” I said. “By the way, Jed figures in it.”

Oddly he smiled. A reaction I was not expecting and usually I’m prepared for everything. Always prepared and all these space-scouts shit.

Still I could see the clever, Jed had mentioned.
“Can’t wait for a couple more years?” He asked with a smile on his face. “I’m full of Jeds right now.”
I thought a bit.
“It could wait,” I said finally. “But regarding this Jed you should be interest right now.”

His eyes went over me once again and then he stepped back letting me see what his other hand, the one without the pad, was holding. No surprise there, after all he was a clever man, as Jed had pointed out.

I walked onto the apartment, straight to a wide sitting room and sat down on one of the two comfortable chairs in front a very comfortable sofa with a nice pseudo-wooden table in between. It was a cosy place in nice earth colours and I could see a bedroom, a bathroom and a kitchenette full automatic. Minimalistic would have been the best way to describe it or the place of a man with minimum needs and definitely no woman around. I put my briefcase on my knees.

The flat stood watching me checking the room and sitting down and then after a few minutes in silence he decided to take the other comfortable chair opposite me. “I never saw you before,” he said.

“I certainly hope so,” I said and he smiled again. Clever with humour. I could see why Jed was so scared of him.
“So?” He said.
“so, I hope you will never see me again” I answered smiling. My turn to show sense of humour. “That’s why right now is so important to both of us.” I continued in a more serious tone but without losing my smile.

“If it’s information I’m full of ears for you. If it’s money, you are wasting your time and you know it.”

Using my fingerprint I open the case and put my hand in it. “No, you are guessing bad.” I brought out the VI-32 and pointed it at his hairy chest. He sat without the slightest movement, his eyes travelling from the green battery to my face. He didn’t try to pull his pistol from under the side of the chair where his hand was resting.

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Read all A Flat kill chapters in order, HERE!

A flat kill – Part 02.

Jed eyes met mine. “How you gonna do it?”
“The simple way,” I said. “Things don’t go wrong that way.”
“You have to tell me day and time. I got to arrange a party.” He wasn’t joking. Jeds of this universe don’t have humour.
I pretended to think about it.

“This flat, is he married?”
“No. No complications. He lives alone in a small apartment near the headquarters.”
“Other relatives?”
“Different parts of different solar systems.” He as still looking at my eyes.

“Then I pick the day you pick the time,” I nodded.
“Any day around four before dinner. Everybody will be there but still sober to remember that I was there welcoming them.”
“Do you need my account numbers?” He didn’t.

I thought the fastest possible would be the best also leaving very little time for any kind of leaks. Never to trust Jed’s entourage.

I used a public pod to book a ticket for Senel 6 under one of my false identities, paid credits  under a different one but the clue here was that I wasn’t going to use that ticket, I had my own ship, something my employees should never know. They could look for me in this or other planet under this or other name and that was good for my health and everybody else’s involved.

Using public transportation and changing often means I arrived in one of the out-of-the-city privet harbours on time to check that my tank was full, the food storage filled and the manifest complete with all the information about a professional gambler from Moonshine IV on his way home with his new bride.
Life is short but good stories have to be long.

Mechanical evolution is merciful and six hours later I was in orbit waiting for clearance. Princess Mug of farming planet Typhon III on a visit for shopping and mild recreation. While waiting I checked my VI-32 and added some extra array batteries to my belt. Always prepared and all these space-scouts shit.
Good time to have some breakfast and wait for the day to turn noon and lunch. I wrote a mail to Jed. “Today is the day. Hope you have enough time to call your guests.” I stop to think if I should add, “love, mate” but I decided against it, Jed doesn’t have sense of humour.

To honour princess’ Mug birth planet I decided to have a traditional Typhon III breakfast not including alive worms but definitely a glass of Ercadian rye rummy. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. That’s what they say.

While finishing with my last egg and my second glass of Ercadian rye rummy clearance arrived and I slowly led my ship to a small harbour outside the capital where I registered under the name Jedeth, a minor mine stockholder from asteroid Rendell in business meetings. With all these identities and the often change I often forget my name.

A drone took me to the capital’s centre and twenty to four, before dinner time at Jed’s home; I was walking slowly towards Emerald building number 25. I stopped in the entrance and checked the pod. Flat had apartment 326.
My lucky number.

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Read all A Flat kill chapters in order, HERE!

A flat kill – Part 01.

“Killing a flat is never a bright idea,” I said. “It actually makes everybody – literally everybody… mad.”
“You know, I don’t give a damn what you think, Jed said. “You are getting paid good to do it and not think of it.”

I shrugged my shoulders. “Fine. I won’t worry about it. I’ll be back in Cosmos on the first ship out, but you will still be here and you are liable to get squeezed rough. They will know who called for the job.”

“No worries there,” Jed said. “they won’t squeeze me hard if they are smart. The might pull me in for a talk but that’s all is going to be, a talk.”

I sat there with my orange drink and considered Jed. He was a big florid man with purple hair that strangled wetly to remain in order over his forehead. He ran everything in this corner of the universe that operated best in the silence of the vacuum. Jed used to take care of these short of jobs himself but now things had changed and Jed enjoyed an evening jacket and shining dancing boots. And dancing boots live without feeling the liquid dirt under, they like comfort, so Jed et others do the jobs for him.

“How come this flat can bother you so?” I asked. “I had the illusion that you are connected, I thought you own the force.”
“You think again.” Jed said. “But to answer, I control pieces of t it. You can’t buy the whole federal force.” He paused for a moment to have a quick jip of his purple drink. “It’s a simple matter of human stubbornness on the part of some people and also basic economics. You just buy the key pieces, the ones can be bought, and hope for the best.”

He got up to refill his glass. “I don’t mind an honest flat here and there, as long he’s honest and stupid. But this flat’s got brains and this is bad.”

He chucked some icing marbles into his glass. “Nobody can control a star system all the time. Every ten years or so citizens turn off their screens and decide to pick up the cleaning broom. They even bother to vote.”

He measured his Karelian whiskey by ear. “I don’t mind taking a break for a while. I need the rest anyway. But I like to do my resting in a nice hot place next to an ocean without any skin eating plants and blood thirsty bugs guilty of murder and rape.” He probably meant prisons but I wasn’t in the mood for any clarification.

“An honest flat,” he continued, “a real honest smart flat, for Buddachrist sake, stands out like a monk in a convent.” He looked at me, “I’ll tell you what’s going to happen, mate. These amateur boys will win the election, no matter what we do about it. And as soon as they do they will take a look into the clear blue eyes of this flat and hand him the gold badge.” Now he was pointing a finger at me. A fat finger.

“This flat has been around for too long and he knows what’s going on. And what makes it worse is the fact that he knows exactly what to do about it.” He came closer. “I could just pack up right now and go to Andromera or Calcus 3 and let them have their fun trying to get me but… But I don’t ant to stay out there for the next twenty years until they forget my name. I want to go on holidays and come back without the flats waiting for me outside my house.” He literally screamed the last words.

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Read all A Flat kill chapters in order, HERE!

Koelian Tomb – IV.

Elias herded Brong from the room. As he left the house he heard the gurgling sound of bourbon spilling into S’iug’s credenza.

As they walked down the recycled elastic pathway, Brong Vrop exploded.
“Imagine that guy? Who the hell he thinks he is? The dirty drunken purple blood worm. I got more dough than he will ever see again in his life. I can buy and sell him ten times…”

“You didn’t though, did you?” Said Elias quietly.

Brong bit his lips and cursed. “Gimme my rays and my knives, flat,” he said. “I got permit. I got…”
Elias thrust the rays and the knives in his open hands. He climbed wearily into the squad one-sitter drone. He flew back to headquarters considering his prime institute-mates. One was drunkard, one was a racketeer, one sat in a cold cell waiting of a jury of his peers to condemn him to a mine colony forever.

A few days later the three of them came out of the courtroom together. The fourth would never emerge; save from the side door which lf to the cells. S’iug strode with a slight weave. His breath was like a frozen breeze through his mask. He carried his head high and glanced neither to the right nor to left as he walked.

Brong Vrop strode along at his side. Brong’s face was dark and his lips contorted. Elias, a pace ahead of them turned his head and watched Brong carefully.

“I told you what would happen,” said Brong in a serpentine whisper. “I’ll take care of you personally S’iug. Welng’s going to burn. You going to burn. I warn you that would happen. I…”
Elias shouldered Brong aside. “Shut up and beat it,” he ordered. “Get going Brong.”

Brong shuffled away, tentacles moving fast, eyes fixed on S’iug. S’iug gave no indication that anything had been said or done around him.

“We could send a flat up to your place,” suggested Elias. “Station a flat there to see that Brong doesn’t try anything…”

“Brong is a fool,” said S’iug. “A fool and a coward. Why don’t you leave me alone.”

He walked out into the burning hot street, marched away regally into the lowering double sun twilight.  Elias watched him go. He was aware of an unreasonable apprehension at the pit of his stomach as he stood there silent.

Next morning, S’iug T’rid dressed up slowly and shiveringly. A wracking ache assailed his temples and made his antennas vibrate. The dry bitterness that came every morning to his mouth was there gain. He made his way downstairs. He took a Galorian Rum bottle for the freezer. He did not bother himself with the formality of a glass. I a few moment alcohol brought warmth and circulation to his taxed body. He sighed heavily, made his way to the drawing room, where he placed the bottle on the small table at the side of his armchair and sat down.

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Read all the Koelian tomb chapters in order, HERE!

Koelian Tomb – III.

Brong Vrop, his eyes never leaving S’iug’s face, said “I want to speak to you. Alone.”
Elias said, “I have an idea of what you want to say Brong. I’m here to protect the Union’s witness while you are trespassing.”
Vrop’s eyes shrewd even more. “I didn’t come here to hurt him, flat. But what I have to say is private and I have this right.”
There was silence.

S’iug glanced at Elias who shrugged slightly. “Suppose you search him, take rays and anything else, Elias, and wait out in the hall. If I need you, I’ll call if you hear something you don’t like you enter.”

“Sure,” said Brong eagerly. “That’s fair enough. I can’t do much unarmed and with a flat fully armed right outside.”
Elias hoped that this was not ironic.

With faint reluctance, Elias stood up search extremely carefully Brong paying special attention to his tentacles and took hold of a ray and a couple of weird knives. Elias already knew from his file that Brong had permit for the rays stowed way in his wallet. In this planet the hands of the kotoworld reached into high places.

And then Elias walked into the chilled empty hall, closing the door of the drawing room behind him.

Now Elias knew clearly what Brong Vrop was about to say. Since he obviously would not try violence nor threat with a flat in the hall and aware to S’iug situation, the only other proposition he could make would be financial. Elias sighed; he was not worried about the Union losing a witness.

He knew S’iug better than that. True, the Koelian had become a psychopathic drunkard, a bum in his own unique way. But he had never last his strong sense of superiority. S’iug could not be bribed. Above all by Brong Vrop. S’iug would starve to death before he would accept credits from a gutter-bred reptile like Brong.

Elias shivered in the hall. The friendship between a ruthless thug like Brong and Welng, who was locked in the planet’s high security unit, was an odd thing. Even in institute they had been bosom companions.  Brong supplied the ideas and the plans and Elephine-strong Welng carried them to execution. So had it happened this time. Only S’iug had been an accidental witness to the killing Brong had order his henchman to perform and with all coincidences and the institute S’iug knew who is who.

All of a sudden, Elias hard Brong’s voice raised and beating violently through the heavy door into his ears. Elias span around swiftly and re-entered the room.

S’iug mockingly and more insufferable than ever, casually sipped another drink. Brong’s dark face was flushed and his many eyes glittered with anger. S’iug’s refusal of Brong’s credit offer must have been larded with an insult.

Vrop paid no attention to Elias entrance. He stood legs apart and tentacles folded, glaring with all his eyes at S’iug.
He said with hot, exploding bitterness, “S’iug, if Welng burns, you’ll die. I shall see it to it personally. With my own… I…”

“Shut up,” snapped Elias. “That’s a threat Brong. I can take him in for that, S’iug.” S’iug eyes were contemptuous above the rim of his glass. “Don’t bother,” he said. “Get out of here. Both of you.”

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Read all the Koelian tomb chapters in order, HERE!