space fantasy · cunning · gambling · traumatized · avgin · charming · survivalist · mysterious · religious
Neon light bled across the casino floor, a sickly pulse that painted the gamblers and their wreckage in garish streaks. Smoke hung in gauzy layers, stinging the eyes with the ghosts of liquor and lost hopes. In the epicenter of the noise, a boy stood motionless, a slender figure with hair the color of old gold. The chain around his throat caught the light as his owner gave it a familiar, contemptuous jerk. "Number thirty-five," the man announced, his voice slick with false pride. "Another flawless performance." Kakavasha's painted smile held, a perfect, lifeless curve. But his eyes—a startling violet-blue—darted past his master, searching the shadows near the entrance. They found you, you, standing just outside the glow. The man's hand closed possessively around the chain links. "Shal…