Cold.

Jovan wrapped his jacket tightly around him and zipped it up in an attempt to ward off Nostramo's cold.

Obviously, he didn't succeed; his move did nothing but get his jaw caught in the zipper.

"So damn cold," Yovan grunted, rubbing his chin."How long do we have to wait?"

His companion, a man with a big belly, shook his head."It depends on when the adults are ready to come."

"Are you serious?!" shouted Jovan, "If they never come, will we have to wait forever?"

"Shut up, Jovan, and keep your voice down....If the rest of the group hears the two of us complaining here, do you think they'll tell Mr. Marais afterwards?"

Nodding reluctantly, Jovan knelt down and lit a cigarette in the attic of the not-so-long-ago inhabited house before taking a deep drag.

The thrill of burning the potent chemical caused him to blink quickly with a satisfied look on his face.

"The Old Town stuff is just fine......"......"

Jovan whispered, "There's literally no downside to it, except that it's too damn expensive."

"Expensive?They raised the price again?"

"Yes."Jovan nodded.

"I went to buy it three days ago with Old Hammerhead, and the boy in charge of the sale did us no favors.Old Hammerhead told him to get it cheaper, and the bastard went so far as to say to get out if you don't buy it."

He hemmed and hawed, his tawny teeth showing, "Do you dare believe he even talked to Old Hammerhead like that?"

The obese man nodded and said thoughtfully, "I say, why does Old Hammerhead have a swollen nose....He got his ass kicked, didn't he?"

"Yeah, the bastard got punched by old Hammerhead right after he said that.I was going to do the same thing, but it turned out..."

Jovan shrugged and smiled a little gloatingly.

"Six guys showed up in the damn alley at once, all with guns, so I went to see what happened, then old Hammerhead got beat up by them, and if I hadn't stopped them, he'd have been dragged to Dr. Pogrev by now."

"Pogrev died six months ago, you idiot."

The obese man said gently. "The whole thing was dismantled, and some say it was the work of that vengeful murderous spirit or whatever it is, but I don't think it's likely, Pogrev offended so many people that anyone could have killed him."

"Really?"

Jovan raised an eyebrow in shock, but quickly recovered."He's eaten so many people who came to heal him, it's normal for him to get caught."

"He deserved it."The man snorted coldly."There's ready-made ones in the meat store that don't go to buy them, and every day he eats the injured who come to him for stitches..................................................................................."

He added a sneer as he said this, "But whoever killed him, that guy treated us like idiots.Everyone knows that vengeful murderous spirit is just made up stuff to fool kids......".

"Indeed."

Jovan also laughed softly. "But on the other hand, I don't think old Hammerhead got that beating for nothing."

He grinned, picked up the cigarette in his hand and waved it at the man.

The obese man bristled, not really wanting to pay much attention to Jovan.

He knew very well that the "stopped a bit" in Jovan's mouth would probably have to be discounted by eighty percent, and also the way he bought the goods......I'm afraid it was the same..

Jovan wanted the goods, but after hearing the price, he certainly did not want to buy them.

At that thought, he couldn't help but look down at Jovan, whose carelessness at the moment suddenly irritated the man.

"Bang!"

"Hey-Barry, why are you kicking me?!"

"Get up, you idiot."

Barry cursed under his breath as he kicked him again."Do you have any idea who might be coming today?"

"I'll get up, I'll just get up, stop kicking....Who's coming? It's not just those ladies and gentlemen who like to come down for a good time."

Jovan patted the dust on his buttocks from Barry's kicks, "At most they're a little more noble, otherwise we wouldn't be standing guard here all night....But what do they have to do with us?".

The more he talked, the more energetic he became, going so far as to wave his arms in excitement, "We're just fucking dogs they keep anyway!"

"You better watch your mouth Jovan."

Barry's face fell and he looked incredibly grim. "Everyone knows about this, but not everyone screams like you do, want to guess why?"

"......"

"And put that fucking cigarette out......The smell of old city goods can travel a long way, so if you don't want to be approached by those old assholes who smell it later and ask for a cigarette, put it out."

This time Jovan really did what he was told.

He still obeyed Barry's words; after all, Barry was the only one of the people he knew fairly well who had ever experienced a Great Purge.

Besides, he clearly understood exactly what he had just said.

"I'll tell you what, Jovan......"

Barry spoke again after a brief silence, taking a step forward so that his fat belly touched the sill of the attic window.He raised his hand and pointed to a spire not far into the night.

"See our quarters?Listen, Mr. Marais would normally call it Honor.Do you know why he calls it that?"

Jovan shook his head.

"Because the Skolewalkers gave it to us!"

Barry turned his head and glared menacingly as he continued his lecture to Jovan, missing the two fleeting dark shadows outside the window.

"In the last Great Purge, we traded our lives for a third of Quintus Newtown for the Skolewalkers....And that twenty-five-story spire is what they gave us in return!".

"Also, our guns, our cars....Our relationship, and the reason you haven't been killed yet for taking that stupid old hammerhead to Oldtown and letting people give you free stuff, is because of the Skolewalkers!"

He turned and stepped closer to Jovan, pinning him against the wall and punching him hard, looking at Jovan who fell to the ground in pain, Barry sneered and spoke again.

"So you better be quiet and serious for the rest of the night, understand? it's not just some common gentry that's here tonight, it's the fucking heir of the Skolewalker family!"

Jovan gasped in pain and nodded.Satisfied, Barry returned to the ledge and continued his watch.Somewhere beyond the impalpable reach of his sight, a huge dark vehicle sped by.

-----------------

"Vengeful Fierce Spirit......"

A young man with a pale face and powdered lips laughed softly, wearing a tight lace top and long hair that fell over his shoulders.

"You don't think the name is ridiculous, do you?" he asked cheerfully.

The subjects of his question, the two young women sitting across from him, responded in different ways.

The woman on the left with the long scar on her face sneered, "If I were you, I'd keep quiet until I see what's going on, Jando. The Lower Nest is full of all kinds of stuff."

"Oh, oh, the Lower Nest is full of all kinds of stuff!"

The young man known as Jandor pinched his throat to mimic the woman's voice for a moment before he let out a loud laugh, "So that includes a vengeful ghost?"

The woman sitting on the right shook her head, dressed smartly in breeches and a lavender blouse with a dark print, and though simple, she did not lose her aristocratic demeanor.

She said majestically, "Don't be so indiscreet, Jandor, you have not yet been given the Black Stripe by Father....You must respect your sister."

"Well, Eirene Skolewalker, my honored sister......"Jandor grinned."But I just find this whole thing so ridiculous, downright laughable."

"Ridiculous?"

The woman with the scarred face sneered again, "One of the family's forensic experts is dead, and you actually find this ridiculous?Jando Skolewalker, you pathetic ghoul."

"Hey, I don't eat corpses, Lena Skolewalk."

Jando frowned. "You can scold me, but you cannot question my taste; how can a corpse taste as good as a living person?"

"You are simply dishonoring the family," Lena said coldly. "There has never been a direct descendant of the Skolewalkers who craved the flesh and blood of these lowly creatures as much as you do."

"Come on, Lena."

Jando spread his hands helplessly."Aren't the people of the Lower Nest human?They don't look much different from us, and their body structure is too.If you don't believe me, you can come to my basement later.I'll show you around for free."

"Get down to business."

The smartly dressed Irene interrupted majestically."Coroner Manelli is dead and we will find justice for her.But there is another matter on this trip."

"What is it?" asked Jando, the smile disappearing from his face at that moment.

"The death of the priest of the Sabbath Church, Lazarus Lohals."

Lena Skolewalker frowned, "The traitor of the Lohals?"

"Yes, Lena...Coroner Manelli's tour this time, in addition to collecting taxes, is investigating the matter of his death....She died shortly after Lazarus."

Eirene shook her head slowly, "Obviously something is not right."

Jandor narrowed his eyes, "With something like this happening on the eve of the Great Purge, it's hard for me not to think in that direction..."

Eirene nodded noncommittally, "Maybe the other clans are behind this, but we don't have any proof right now, everything has to be seen to be believed and investigated on the ground."

"You're making me look forward to it....

Jandor put on that flippant smile again.

"And, my esteemed sister Eirene, after I gain the favor of Blackstripe and Father......I will be sure to taste you, and I imagine your taste will be quite sweet."

He took a deep breath, a look of satisfaction on his face.Lena frowned in disgust, while Eirene Skolewalker......

was completely indifferent.