One of them was dispatched and ran off into the dusk. “He will fetch the others,” Mataoka explained. “We talk English; none of these know Englis...h,” she added helpfully.The next morning there were now two dozen braves. The whole raiding party, sat around our camp. Now that yesterday’s ingots had cooled enough, they would often pick one up and pass it around in wonder. Some of the new braves spoke Mataoka’s language well enough to talk to us, but they gave us no information on our fate. They gave. He wasn't there. How could he be? Jim was dead. In that brief moment, she had fully expected to see him slouched across the settee in his boxers. It was a shock that he wasn't and then a deeper shock when she remembered why he couldn't be.She picked up the remote and pressed the power switch and wondered how the set had come on without her pressing buttons. Perhaps it had a timer or switched on when certain programs were scheduled. The screen went black and reflected her dim outline. Suddenly,. ‘Yes, I do.’ He said softly. ‘I never outright attack anyone. I just look for victims.’ ‘Victims?’ ‘Victims of crime, car accidents … people that are already beyond hope. I’ve lived like this for years and have never had a problem.’ ‘Until the ‘Crimson King’?’ ‘He showed up about two hundred years ago and has been creating victims. I’ve tried to catch him but I’m always seconds too late.’ ‘Have you ever been close enough to recognize him?’ ‘Once. He had just finished feeding and I had smelled. For female High Lords the time between their menstrual periods is approximately one standard terran year. Because of the longer life span some of the biological cycles are similarly extended. The reproductive cycle is much slower which is why even at the end there were only a few of us." Mev told her."So there is really nothing to worry about?" Kathleen asked"Yes, I think it would be safe for you to make that assumption." Mev told her.Kathleen's body continued to change, becoming slightly.