Ves grinned so darkly that Calabast and Arnold both looked disturbed.
The mutated beast shivered and used his eight legs to crawl behind Calabast's boots.
"Squeak!"
After the clan patriarch finished indulging in himself, he quickly regained his composure.
"How many prisoners?" He asked.
"We are currently holding 734 Ferril servicemen in our cells." Calabast answered. "We used to hold several hundred more, but when our stealth shuttles and disguised rescue parties retrieved them from their broken mechs and ships, their condition was poor and our medical personnel failed to save them. The good news is that the survivors have all pulled through. Even the most heavily-injured ones have returned to health after receiving intensive treatment from our Lifer doctors. I'm not sure whether it was worth the expense to go so far, though. These dwarves…"