Thoss World
Standard Orbit
Thrynn Frigate Jussru

Colonel Venn'Bk peered out the window at the murky world below. A senator named HvHuss was missing. Quiet rumors within the Directorate held that he had been kidnapped by renegades, though no one had suggested what it was renegades could possibly gain by kidnapping. The risk of exposure outweighed any benefit. Venn'Bk was sure it was something else. HvHuss was himself a renegade. A black cloak.

An empty crimson trunk sat on the black steel deck. Nussgj's squad had found it on the final sweep before returning to Jussru. Its existence was a disturbing new factor. Winding through legend was a story about a blooded trunk holding the seeds of evil. The Marines had found it empty, whatever it held, gone. There was a connection to this missing senator, Venn'Bk was sure. The heretics must be stopped. Venn'Bk set fire to the trunk and watched it burn to nothing.

Deep Space
Windward Passage
SS Yardbird

The Windward Passage sat in the no-man's-land between the Earth sector star empires. It was subject to nobody's political rule and it bustled with activity from commerce and piracy to science and colonization. "There it is," said Boz. The Vega Rillius system had just come into the range of the deep sensor array. "Easy as she goes, Nexbo. Let's get this unspaceworthy chunk of modern art to Loman's Moon in one piece." The Veloxi ran a hull integrity check to make Boz feel better.

Leghk Sector
Nid Berry World

The six remaining ambush groups slashed at the dark lightning, attacking it with seething brain waves channeled through implanted snouts. Dozelord Gannuzo was dizzy with energy as his plan fell into place. "Attack the beast!" he shouted. On the tactical screen, two more groups went off the air as the dark lightning ravaged their puny G'Nunk minds. "She/It senses your weakness," Gannuzo growled into the transmitter. "Do not fail her!" It was then that things turned around.

The dark lightning panicked. The sharp mental barbs emanating from the sentient parasites were terrifying in a way it had never experienced. It was alone now, no longer supported by the Great Uhl that had ruled the Cloud. The constant pricking confused the beast and it started to edge backwards, trying to escape over the low hills. "Dozelord, the Regepple awaits your signal," said the command rover's driver.

"Tell Binolio to bring her down," shouted Gannuzo. The dark lightning was immediately aware of the Regepple descending directly overhead—there were several implanted G'Nunk lobbing mental bombs from the lowered cargo ramp. Surrounded by its tormentors, the dark lightning began to contract in fear, retreating inward. "There!" barked the Dozelord. "Our quarry feels the G'Nunk sting!" He threw open the hatch and peered through his binoculars over the waves of blue grass. The dark lightning's vast layers were pulling back toward its glowing white core as it sought to escape from the advancing G'Nunk. Regepple dropped down just above the terrified monster, the pilot angling the aft boarding ramp to scoop up the beast. The ambush teams prodded it up the warship's ramp and into the waiting cell. Fifteen minutes later the Regepple was rising through the sky on a column of hot exhaust.

DZ160,48
Aboard ISS Belfast Windfall

"Those storms aren't going to get any less intense, Commander," said Grix. Solar storms were kicking up all across the photosphere of the star at 160,48. "The next flare wave is due to hit in three hours." Biggs kicked his legs up onto his industrial grade steel desk in the corner of the bridge. It was fairly certain they'd found their world—an airless rock orbiting a fairly old main sequence star on the downspin range. This was the fourth system they'd investigated in the quad cluster coreward of Elowan space. "Biggs, we've got to get in there now or pull away from the system altogether. Windfall can't handle that kind of pulse for any period of time."

"Let's do it, sir," said Arella. She was relishing the thought of getting in close to what promised to be a rich archaeological find. "We can do timed hops to stay on the night side of the planet until the storm waves pass by—we could save a fortnight of waiting." No problem there. Biggs gave a thumbs up, pointed to Grix at the nav console and then at the dead world magnified on the view screen. He would've given a spoken order, but he was chewing on a bite of Danish.

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Next: "Dave's Hoop"

Around the Galaxy Our utterly reliable sources place none other than Interstel Academy honor graduate Ty'lyrr on a cocktail table in the Bozzocto Tiki-mau in VBN City. Should we mention he was dancing? Who knows, but we'll definitely mention the reclusive Lieu Vadish tribe that seems to worship Habby Loman as some form of minor deity. Ceremonies honoring the shifty speculator place uncanny emphasis on Chinese Food. Note to Lieuvads: lay off MSG. Lusox Rix has installed a 50.1 cubic meter cargo hold in his terrain vehicle. AG promises not to laugh while Rix tries to remember where he wrote down the planetary coordinates.

Hilsfar & Company: Our News Isn't Fit to Print
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