Chapter 4: The Painted Man

Samir leads Marlowe, Switch, Greenlaw, Ilex, and Crim to an elegant tea house built on a derelict starliner. Expecting a den of criminals, Marlowe is instead unsettled by the public setting and by the Painted Man’s monstrous, androgynous homunculus form, whose voice and presence inspire dread. The Painted Man refuses names and titles, insisting it has no masters.

Marlowe opens by asking for information rather than mere weapons, steering the talk toward contacts with Extrasolarians and “unnatural” requests. The Painted Man boasts of providing illicit services—atomics, arms, ships, even banned AIs—while denying any Extrasolarian hierarchy. Marlowe pivots to xenobitic artifacts and the rumored market at Vorgossos, startling the Painted Man. When pressed, the homunculus mentions the Undying and mocks Marlowe’s ignorance, then claims Vorgossos cannot be found without its master’s leave, calling it a sunless world.

Growing impatient, Marlowe declares his intent to trade for atomics and the location of Vorgossos. The Painted Man cuts him off, dismissing him as a noble on holiday and, finally, as an Imperial spy. Thugs move to eject Marlowe while Switch urges withdrawal; Marlowe resists, escalating the confrontation.

A rifle shot kills one thug, and Ghen’s cloaked soldiers vault over the railing to strike. Marlowe ignites Olorin’s highmatter blade and kills the second thug, ordering the Painted Man to surrender. Instead, the homunculus moves with inhuman speed and dives into the crowd, which eerily continues dining, then collectively falls silent—suggesting the Painted Man’s psychological or technological influence over bystanders.

Amid the frozen calm, the Painted Man taunts Marlowe—“You don’t know what we are”—and escapes into the mass of people. The failed capture leaves Marlowe with confirmation of Vorgossos’s existence, hints about the Undying’s rule there, and a chilling demonstration of Extrasolarian capabilities.