Contents
CHAPTER 57: Emergencies
Overview
Hilo learns Ayt Mada has executed Ven Sando’s faction, consolidating power by elevating Koben Ato and rewarding the Iwe family. A household crisis erupts when Ru swallows jade; doctors remove it and reveal he is stone-eye. Meanwhile, Zapunyo forces a venue change, prompting Hilo to cancel the assassination to safeguard Anden.
Summary
Hilo waits at home for Anden’s confirmation that Zapunyo has arrived in Port Massy, watching news of the Refugee Act and Chancellor Guim’s speech mourning Son Tomarho. Juen calls with stunning updates: Ayt Mada has executed Ven Sandolan and his sons, massacred conspirators including Ven Haku at Sin 8, taken Koben Ato as her ward, and quieted dissent by granting the Iwe family a large share of K‑Star Freight.
A domestic emergency interrupts. Niko reports that Ru swallowed jade buttons they found in Hilo’s desk. Hilo rushes both boys to Janloon General Hospital, where doctors prepare a non-surgical extraction. As Ru is anesthetized, Hilo tries to reach Wen and then calls Shae to coordinate the Zapunyo operation’s status.
Shae relays a critical complication: Zapunyo refuses the planned interview site and insists on his guarded hotel room. Hilo rejects risky improvisations, deciding to abort rather than send Anden, jadeless and exposed, into a likely trap. He orders the operation called off despite the months of preparation.
Doctors return Ru safely and present the retrieved jade. They reveal Ru is nonreactive to jade—a stone-eye. Hilo, stunned but resolute, accepts the diagnosis, focusing on Ru’s health and worth beyond jade. He reassures Niko, assigns him the role of protector, and re-centers on family over vengeance as the night’s crises abate.
Who Appears
- Kaul HiloPillar; manages a family emergency, cancels the Zapunyo hit to protect Anden, and accepts Ru’s stone-eye diagnosis.
- Kaul RuHilo’s young son; swallows jade, undergoes extraction, and is revealed to be stone-eye (nonreactive to jade).
- Kaul NikoHilo’s nephew; involved in the jade incident, deeply worried, pledges to protect Ru afterward.
- Kaul ShaeWeather Man; informs Hilo that Zapunyo changed the venue, discusses risky alternatives; accepts Hilo’s abort order.
- JuenFirst Fist; reports Ayt Mada’s purge, Ven executions, Koben Ato’s elevation, and Iwe gains.
- White-haired doctorER physician; oversees Ru’s endoscopic removal of jade and diagnoses him as nonreactive (stone-eye).
- KyanlaHousehold caretaker; tends to Jaya and supports Hilo during the emergency.
- Anden (Kaul Anden)In Port Massy; would conduct the Zapunyo interview but is pulled back when the plan becomes too risky.
- ZapunyoBarukan boss; forces a last-minute interview move to his hotel room, foiling No Peak’s assassination setup.
- Ayt MadaMountain Pillar; executes Ven Sando and conspirators, secures loyalty by elevating Koben Ato and rewarding the Iwe family.