Of all the rimworlds, Pluvios was one of the oldest. By all accounts, it should have been absorbed by the Imperium decades ago, yet it remained staunchly defiant. In fact, over the years, it had many times attempted to gain independence, but the Emperor would hear none of it.

Because of this, Impies were everywhere. To maintain the peace, they claimed.

The world was wet. It rained six days out of ten. The air was humid, the seas vast, the lakes and rivers plenty. Lush jungles spread across its three continents, with many cities and small towns going about their daily routines.

Starrider landed in the wild, two miles from Agradash.

“Is it such a small place they don’t have a spaceport?” asked Kaine.

“They do have one, but I bet it’s crawling with Impies. So unless you want to give yourself up...”

He shook his hands in front of him.

“No, no. I’m good.”

“That’s what I thought.” Val left the bridge and headed toward the exit. “We’ll have to walk the rest of the way. Shouldn’t take more than an hour.”

Kaine followed her with a frown on his face.

“Wouldn’t they have picked up our signal coming down?”

She shrugged. “They’re more concerned with the locals than with traffic coming in or out, to be honest. Either way, Nim shielded us—”

“You mean that same shield the Impies saw through last time?”

Val clicked her tongue. “They were looking for us. This is different. You can’t find something if you don’t know it’s there to begin with.”

They stepped out of the ship, into the jungle, and started their trek.

“Feels like a strange place for a scavenger to hide out,” remarked Kaine.

“It’s not like the Impies are everywhere. Places like this are a bit out of the way and only get weekly controls. It’s easy enough to keep a low profile if you know how to go about it.”

An hour later, they reached the outskirts of Agradash.

It was very different from Uthyn. Where the Rimzanian capital had been modern and sprawling with activity, this much smaller town had large empty streets and old-fashioned constructions. A few gliders drifted through the sky, but most of the people here seemed to prefer walking.

There was no checkpoint going in. The road just led straight into the city. After a few minutes, they crossed some locals who glanced at them before turning a corner.

They finally stopped in front of a large, looming structure and Val pressed her hand against the door. When she pulled away, a red mark in the shape of her fingers glowed where she had touched the surface. It faded after a few seconds. Then the door slid open and a small woman appeared. She considered them with a bland expression.

“Yes?” she asked. “How may I help you?”

“Is Aj’uhl in? I need to speak with him.”

“And you are?”

“Tell him it’s Val. He knows me.”

The woman seemed dubious, but she nodded.

“Very well. Please wait in the foyer.”

She opened the door and pointed to some nearby chairs.

The two visitors stepped in while the servant closed the door and walked off, though they did not sit.

Kaine examined the carpeted hall and the luxurious paintings that hung on the walls.

“Looks like scavenging can be a lucrative business.”

Val snorted. “Don’t let appearances fool you. Aj’uhl inherited a fortune from his family. Scavenging is more like a hobby for him.”

Kaine quirked a brow, but the straight-faced woman returned before he could dig deeper.

“My master will receive you now. Please follow me.”

She took them down the hall and through a door, arriving at a small office where they found a large man with a large grin sitting at a desk.

Aj'uhl was not exactly human. He was what the Imperium called—with some contempt—a fractal. Meaning he had mixed blood, for the most part Dexhxori. To earn the disdainful epithet, your human origins had to be at least two generations removed.

Large and boisterous, the man had light blue skin with four antlers popping out of his orange hair.

He jumped to his feet and hurried toward Val. She disappeared in his arms as he hugged her tight.

“Valentina Corenth! My favorite woman in the entire universe—and beyond! Be still my beating heart. I never thought I’d see you again.”

Kaine blinked. Had he heard that right?

She managed to pull away, though he could see she was smiling.

“Hello, my friend. Glad to see you too. Oh, by the way, I brought someone with me. This is Kaine.” She turned to look at him and noticed his startled expression. “What’s wrong?”

“Corenth? Are you related to the Scourge of Abrax?”

Val grunted as she gave a short nod. “Peter was my brother.”

“Oh, wow. I’m so sorry for your loss. He was such a great man...”

Before she could respond, Aj’uhl threw his arms in the air and let out a cry of pure joy.

“That saint is an inspiration to all Pluvians! May the stars guard his soul. The way he constantly outwitted the Imperium was a thing of pure beauty.”

“Don’t let the Impies hear you,” said Val.

The big man roared with laughter. “They can roast in the sun and melt in the fiery pits of hell, for all I care.”

“Don’t worry, your love for the Imperium is well known throughout the rim.”

Aj’uhl laughed even louder as he moved back to his desk.

“As much as seeing you always brings joy to my fat heart, I’m guessing you are not here for pleasure?”

“Sadly, you are correct. I’m here because of him.” She pointed over her shoulder at Kaine.

“Hey!”

She ignored him. “But before we get to the main issue, we need to make sure he doesn’t have a bug on him.”

Aj’uhl squinted.

“You think he’s a spy?”

“Nothing like that. More like someone’s after him and we don’t know how they keep catching up. We’ve already thrown out all his belongings, which might have solved the problem. But I want to make sure it’s not something inside him.”

The big man nodded. “Yes, I can help with that.”

He got up again and stepped toward one of the walls. After pressing his hand against the surface, an opening appeared. He motioned for them to go through first.

On the other side, they found another room with white walls and what looked like medical equipment. There was a table in the middle, and Aj’uhl pointed toward it.

“Please lie down,” he said.

Kaine looked at him, then at Val.

“Well, go ahead, you baby!”

He grunted, then did as instructed.

Meanwhile, Aj’uhl was bringing instruments closer. He leaned over and strapped cables to both Kaine’s forearms, then turned to a display.

“I will inject a serum inside you—”

“What?” asked Kaine with some dismay.

“—that will spread through your body. It will pick up on anything that shouldn’t be there. Don’t worry, it’s mostly harmless.”

“Mostly?” he glanced at Val.

Aj’uhl chuckled. “You might feel a tingling sensation, but it’s perfectly normal. In some rare cases, the tingling can be more intense, but it is unlikely. You are in good health, yes?”

Kaine thought the question should have been asked before he was strapped to the table.

He nodded with a grunt.

“Perfect! Then lie back, close your eyes, relax, and we’ll be done before you have time to say ‘ouch’.”

He wasn’t sure he liked this man’s sense of humor, but he kept quiet and waited.

After a few seconds, he felt the tingling sensation spreading through his limbs, but it remained bearable.

Finally, the straps were removed, and Aj’uhl helped him sit up on the table.

“Well?” asked Val.

Aj’uhl tapped on the screen.

“You were right,” he said. “Your friend is bugged!”