Contents
CHAPTER 11: Port Massy
Overview
Anden arrives in Port Massy to live with the Hians, begins an immersion language program, and struggles with culture shock and isolation. He witnesses brutal Crew extortion and learns about Boss Kromner, highlighting differences from Kekon’s clans. A street incident reveals Espenian jade users, reshaping Anden’s assumptions and offering a sliver of hope.
Summary
Anden flies to Port Massy after Kaul Sen’s funeral, feeling exiled and fearful. He’s met by Mr. and Mrs. Hian, Kekonese immigrants who host him in their Southtrap row house. Over dinner, Anden offers gifts from No Peak, and the Hians discuss rising Espenian involvement in the Oortokon conflict and how Espenia may seek jade through Kekon. Anden admits he was of rank but was sent abroad by his Pillar cousin.
Enrolled in an intensive Espenian program at Port Massy College, Anden starts far behind but resolves to excel. He struggles with reading and writing, improves quickly in listening and speech, and avoids social ties. At home he repays the Hians’ kindness with repairs and errands, while mapping the mosaic of nearby Kekonese, Tuni, and Espenian neighborhoods.
Walking home one day, Anden witnesses two men extorting a shop owner. He hesitates and leaves shaken. The Hians warn him about the Crews run by Boss Blaise Kromner, explaining they extract money without offering protection or patronage—unlike Kekon’s clans. The incident underscores Port Massy’s harsher, cash-only power structure.
Later, during a violent domestic dispute, a bicyclist uses Strength, Lightness, and Deflection to save a woman from traffic and repel her husband. When Anden calls out in Kekonese, the man jeers and rides off, revealing that jade users exist in Espenia as well. The sight challenges Anden’s assumptions and leaves him with a tentative sense that life here might not be entirely alien.
Who Appears
- Emery AndenExiled to Port Massy; begins language study; observes Crew extortion; realizes jade users exist in Espenia, gaining cautious hope.
- Mr. HianElderly host; guides Anden, explains Oortokon tensions and Port Massy Crews under Boss Kromner.
- Mrs. HianKind host; cooks, worries for Anden’s safety, warns him away from Crew-controlled areas.
- Blaise KromnerPort Massy crime boss; leads Crews that extort businesses without clan-like patronage.
- ShopkeeperCorner store owner extorted and assaulted by Crew enforcers; receives no protection.
- Crew enforcersTwo men who threaten and beat the shopkeeper while collecting money for Kromner.
- Bicyclist jade userUnknown local who uses jade disciplines to save a woman and drive off her husband.
- Quarreling husband and wifeDomestic dispute spills into the street; wife nearly runs into traffic before rescue.