Hunter

"The spices are way too strong-" In the ship's upper dining room, Neph pushed the local Desi Pie aside in disgust and took a huge gulp of Sweet Iced Tea.

Klein glanced helplessly at the pie Neph was probably never going to touch again and couldn't help saying, "Wasting food isn't a good habit-"

"..." Neph gave him a silent look, stood up with the pie, and casually handed it to a child passing by.

"Is that good enough?" she asked expressionlessly.

Klein accepted this. "Well, that works-so, can you tell me what you're here for now? Surely you didn't come all this way just to make me buy you a meal? Not that eating here costs anything-"

"About that-" Neph looked as though her teeth ached. "Has Mr. Azik written to you recently?"

"No-" Klein was shaking his head when the skeletal spirit appeared soundlessly, lowering its enormous body to offer him a letter.

"All right." Klein accepted the letter without opening it immediately. The skeletal spirit, however, left at once. "Now he has."

He paused, then looked back at Neph. "What does that have to do with what you want to tell me?"

"I think..." Neph hesitated. "They must have reached an agreement."

Neph had realized her dream had been invaded when she smelled blood.

Amid the sweet, bloody scent mingled with rust, Neph saw an Inverted Cross as tall as a mountain, with a naked man hanging upside down upon it. Before she could make out the mottled bloodstains, she hurriedly lowered her head.

But it made little difference.

Having had ample contact with Mythical Creatures, Neph knew there were two ways they communicated with humans. In the first, they restrained themselves, sitting across from you and chatting like ordinary people, without you feeling anything unusual. In