Xaul stood in the shadows, watching the waiting Lagu. The cops had been there for at least an hour, and showed no signs of leaving. He sighed, reached into his pocket, and took out a small sphere, which he rolled into the midst of the cops. Shaking his head sorrowfully, he walked to his ship, being careful to hold his breath when he passed the Lagu; who were now curled up on the ground, laughing their humanity away.

He stepped into his ship, pausing to roll a pair of dice into the midst of the Lagu. They bounced to a stop, coming up to show a set of two ones. “Snake eyes,” muttered Xaul as the hatch of the Cyllan slid shut.

He sighed as he saw that his Todan station was blinking, telling him that there was a call. He flipped the switch to open the line, the screen before him lighting up to reveal the bulbous face of Erytheros Hnac, Xaul’s contact with the crime boss Goroth Obarskyr.

“I gots another job fer ya, Xaul. Word just came down from de boss. Yer sposed ta find this ship, called the Pirate, or sumptin like dat. It’s painted all gold. Find it. Follow it. Don’t get caught.”

“Fine. Where is it docked now?”

“Dat would be de part of de job called ‘find it’, Xaul. I can’t do all yer work for ya, can I? Do good, the boss might let ya see yer sister…”

Xaul leaned forward, his entire body quivering. “Where is she?”

“Ah-ah-ah… we mustn’t be getting too ahead of ourselves. First, go to Weorc in the Erjon system, and find Opfa Empleo, head of the Svret Company. Kill him.”

“Wait!” Xaul screamed, as Hnac leaned forward to end the connection. “What about my sister?”

Hnac paused, then grinned evilly. “Well, tonight she’s gonna have de pleasure o’ my company…” he paused to lick his lips, “and I’m gonna enjoy it.”

Xaul sobbed in despair as the screen went black before him. Later, much later, the Cyllan left its docking slip and turned its nose towards Weorc.

The Cler Houbit grinned nastily, and unwrapped the chain from around his waist, revealing that it was tipped with long serrated blades. A growl burst from his throat, and he charged forward, sweeping the ends of the chain forward in short, savage arcs. Cade’s lips drew together in a vicious grin, and he slid forward to meet his foe. As the rusted chain swung toward him, Cade leapt back, parrying with his staff. He landed lightly on his feet, only to be dragged across the ground as the Cler Houbit yanked on his chain, now wrapped around Cade’s staff. With a mental shrug, Cade twisted a special section of his staff, and the section that had been snared by the chain slid off, leaving a wicked spear tip. Spinning, Cade feinted a stab at the Houbit’s head, turning it into a slash that left the Houbit’s shirt in tatters. Snarling, the Houbit whipped his chain around Cade’s legs, trapping him. Kicking away Cade’s staff, the Houbit rushed forward, aiming a wickedly serrated blade at Cade’s throat. Leif gathered himself to dive at the Houbit, knowing that he couldn’t make it in time. Resigning himself to having revenge, he reached inside his vest, when a cold, harsh, metallic voice rang out.

“Freeze! Anybody moves and I’ll blow their frotting head off!” Carefully keeping his hands in plain sight, Leif turned around, looking to see who had saved the life of his oath-brother. Standing there was a woman who looked normal, until you realized that she was simply larger then anybody else in the alley. She stepped forward into the light, revealing her face. She was beautiful, or half beautiful – the left half of her face had been replaced with plastic and metal the same cold color as the very large, and highly illegal, scattergun that she had trained on the group. “Drop your weapons on the ground. I am a member of the Lagu, and I could kill each and every one of you and get away with it. Cooperate with my men, and you might survive.”

As she spoke, dozens of Lagu swarmed into the alley, quickly and efficiently relieving the occupants of their weapons. The Blood Skulls who had possessed guns were herded into a cluster, the others, including the group from the Pyrite, were left where they were, their outfits now accessorized with a pair of silver shackles. The Lagu looked to their leader, the woman, who nodded. “Thank you, gentlemen. Did any of them have a permit for their weapons?” Seeing one of the Lagu shake his head, she nodded to herself, continuing in that metallic buzz. “I thought not. Proceed.”

Cade felt his knees go weak as he watches the Lagu coldly and efficiently slaughter those who had carried guns. He and Leif had heard of the powers of the Lagu, but for one person to be able to order someone killed? Thoughts were still ricocheting through his mind when the Lagu leader turned to the group that was still alive. “Albhar,” she snapped, “take these persons into custody. I’ll deal with them at the station.”