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Round nine carried a two-year tenure bonus for the loser, and the prospect of much more for the winner. He glanced up at the clear moonlit sky and saw a bank of dark cloud building up on the northern horizon. The victim was on her back near a melting drift of snow, a look of horror forever etched on what remained of her face.
There was a timeless instant-then a tremendous wave of sound, a roaring, stunning concussion smote the ship, shaking it with unrestrained fury- to cease as abruptly as it came.
After the lights dimmed for the last time, the cast returned to the stage and deservedly received a long ovation, taking several curtain calls.