Chapter Three: Seven Hunters

【Opening bid: 1 celestial credit.】 【Seller’s return: unknown.】 Lu did not own the right to keep Prism alive, but he could sell the fate attached to it. The Celestial Exchange did not trade legal title. It traded who was willing to bear a possibility. Ten seconds after the lot appeared, an anonymous bidder offered one hundred thousand. A second bid three hundred thousand. White Crow raised it to three hundred ten thousand, then stopped. Prophet did nothing. Lu turned the ice pack over. Instead of watching the price, he watched the cabin. Under Exchange rules, any transaction above one hundred thousand credits left a temporary silver mark on the participant’s body. Three valid bids had just been placed.