Chapter 76: In the Dagerstanteen Palace.

Chapter 76: In the Dagerstanteen Palace.

NIGEL FELT LIKE he drowned in a thick, dense fog, his senses muffled, his limbs heavy. He forced his breathing to remain calm, even and shallow, resisting the urge to jerk awake. Such sudden movements were suicidal on Umicore Prime, as Nightmen had always drilled into him.

Dagerstanteens got eaten that way.

He listened, assessed. A whisper-light touch grazed his skin. A slide. A glide. Something repeatedly stroked his waist. He wasn’t wearing his shorts. Where were his daks? His knives?

Nigel held himself rigid, frozen, his heartbeat a slow, steady drum against his ribs. He was prone on a surface incredibly smooth and flat.

He’d never felt a rock like this.

All his life, Nightmen had hammered it into him to evaluate first. Nigel’s creator wasn’t against quick, decisive action, but Nigel knew he needed this moment to ensure he wasn’t stumbling headfirst into a bog of mega sludge or charging directly into a centroid’s gaping mouth.