"The Vyton" - 20 short SCI-FI stories - Two more Tasters - A bad day crystal mining... and a not-great day wheen you're out for a walk

Hey! Seven beauties in one shift! Great finish to the season, huh?

I’m working down the seam next day, all dust and arc lights in the low gravity and no-air. Been a good session; caz-bag containing gorgeous crystals – seven beauties fresh from the workings. And I’m returning to the living module to change out my airsuit for the off-shift.

Yukkk! People in the cabin. Trio of raiders wrecking the place, searching. I’m straight shot with a faza stream – sliced my suit open… and bits of me splurting, too. Happened so fast. I probably just caught them leaving.

Laughing, with all my superfine jewels from the season… our beautiful corondine crystals. Pure and clear, flawless. Shugsit. I was dropping back, fading…

Saw one smash the rad unit… no calling for help there. One tossed me a pouch, ‘Take one if it gets too painful, eh?’

They left; could have left the airlock open, finished me off quicker, but they pushed it shut – locked me in...

Who'd expect an alien army to just stand up and march all over them? Well, yes, right on schedule...

There I was, perambulating down the lane, as I frequently am wont to do. When I was trampled by a cohort of aliens that suddenly started up. I mean, just like that. I was perfectly within my rights and usual routine to perambulate along there. Public footpath. Right of Way.

A moment before, they’d been standing around, sort of relaxed – for an alien battalion – with no indication that they were going to abruptly leap to attention, yell something that was probably obscene in Kiggish, and just come marching straight at me. All over me. Six boots each!

I don’t recall much after the first six rows. Three dozen steelite-capped boots stomping me. As if they didn’t care. Or even notice. And that was just about the right number to crush me, break me, split me apart and lay me out, very flattened. But not as dead as might be expected under such circumstance.

They’re Kiggs. They claim it is Occupier’s Law nowadays. Not ancient Earthene rules and customs about access, freedom of movement and through-ways.

‘No such thing as Rights and Right now,’ their commissar ambassador SanMigg L claimed when my case was brought to his attention, when it looked possible that I might survive...

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