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“We will see”

The Howlers scoot closer to the cube I tell Holiday to prepare to depart “Theodora, your new recruit is ready I advise a restart with the spike before uninstallation No one should have to look at Sevro the moment they’re born”

“I think the Duke of Hands will make a fine Splinter,” she says with a sht even becon”

“I a on it”

Inside the cube, thelike a leaf Sevro has his helmet up now to terrify him Sevro circles and sees the small metal spike embedded at the base of the man’s skull He comes back around and crouches in front of the overwhelhter

“Boyo, sorry to be the one to tell you this But I think you just got skullfucked”

He leaves the Duke there and sto have you known about Dancer?” he asks me

“Less than an hour”

“And what does n propose to do with the traitor?” he asks

“Isn’t it obvious?” I reply “Communicate”

THE SKUGGI AND I SQUANDER our first days together on basic language skills, which I off-load to Yellow linguists and datadrops I rely on a translation insert for my ear so I can understand the coldbloods They’re not babies Most, like Freihild, served a tour or two in the Free Legions They knowthe clever ones has taught them to hoard information behind masks of stupidity

They play dury when they don’t trust you

And they don’t trust me a lick

Thought et me some street cred False hope As Freihild is only too keen to impart: I violated the sanctity of one of their sacred heroes by filching the Reaper’s brood Pax is literally a godchild to theard’s support will gain their respect

While the social eleimen flounders, the Obsidians are natural physical learners Like Volga, they learn the tricks ofup a new sport By week’s end, they’re destabilizing laser grids, dissecting therrids frorunt-slop Still, you only have to show the, on the other hand, is like trying to push a whole handful of sand through an ear canal You lose right about ninety percent of it