Walter Jon Williams Dread Empire's Fall 01 The Praxis

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. I meant no disrespect, my lord.Page 167ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.htmlJarlath s tone was savage. To me? Or to thelawn? Lord Richard watched the confrontation in awe, his nerves urging him to fightor fly.The Naxids were descended from predators who ran in packs, but theTorminels had once been solitary, nocturnal hunters of the heavy forest,pugnacious, persistent, and utterly fearless.Lord Richard thought Jarlath hadbeen angry before, confronting the dockyard superintendent, but now it wasclear that Jarlath had barely scratched the surface of his rage.May Inever piss this one off, Lord Richard thought.For the first time, Jarlath seemed to notice the crowd of Naxids behindElkizer, the unusual mixture of high-ranking officers and senior noncoms. What are these folk doing here? he demanded. What is your purpose? My lord, Elkizer said, it s an orientation tour.For new personnel.Jarlath panned across the party with his huge shaded eyes. I see JuniorSquadron Commander Farniai, who has been with the Home Fleet for six years.And Captain Tirzit, who was once second officer here at Ring Command.CaptainRenzak you re on your second tour here, are you not? His huge eyes swung backto Elkizer. I m surprised that these officers require orientation to a ringstation they ve inhabited for so many years. My lord, it s the others, Elkizer said quickly. We are orienting& theseothers. Petty officers? Jarlath said. Constables? He did the head-bobbing again,zeroing in on Elkizer s throat. Please surrender the impression that I amyour dupe or yourlawn.What are youreally doing here, Lord Commander?During the long silence that followed, it became clear to Lord Richard thatElkizer had fired all his ammunition and had nothing left in the shot lockerbut rust and scale.file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/harry%20kruis.Dead%20Empire's%20Fall%2001%20-%20The%20Praxis.html (238 of 310)19-2-2006 4:01:18Williams, Walter Jon - [Dead Empire's Fall 01] - The Praxis My lord, we mean no disrespect, Elkizer finally said. We thought you wouldbe in theCommandery.All Jarlath s white-bleached fur stood on end, burying once more his facialfeatures, and hesqualled the high-pitched yowl his prehistoric ancestors had used to freeze theirvictims while they pounced.LordRichard was aware of personnel a hundred paces around stumbling with shock atthe sound and turning to stare. No disrespect! he screamed. By this vilemendacity! By thisassembly, whichyou refuse to explain!By sneaking aroundbehind my back, while you thought I was in my office onZanshaa! Jarlath raised a heavy white fist. You are up to something, mylord.Elkizer s black-on-red eyes rolled. My lord, I I don tcare for another of your pathetic explanations, Jarlath said, evenif this time it s the truth.It is clear to me that you and theseother individuals are involved in this scheme, whatever it is, because youhave too little with which tooccupy your time.Therefore your squadron andthat of SquadcomFarniai here will depart the ring station at 1701 today in order toparticipate in maneuvers.Which willbegin with a six-gravity accelerationtoward Vandrith, followed by a slingshot maneuver and a full series of wargames between your two squadrons, all of which will be designed by my stafffor maximum stress on all ship systems the crew in particular. My lord! Elkizer said. We have crew on liberty! Recall them! They have four hours to report. Jarlath bared his fangs again. Get moving!The Naxids began backpedaling, their booted feet beating at the roadway sPage 168ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.htmlrubberized surface while their trunks remained erect. My lord, Elkizer tried again, you forget the dinner Fuckyour dinner! Jarlath pronounced with satisfaction, and watched as theNaxids turned and sped away as fast as their thrashing feet could carry them.For the next hour, trapped with Jarlath in the skyhook car as it plungedthrough the atmosphere to the surface of Zanshaa, Lord Richard and Jarlath sstaff had to listen to the fleetcom fume about the reek of dishonesty hesmelled in this command, the general rottenness of everything at thedockyards, and the way the rot had spread to the Naxid squadrons. Discipline! Jarlath said. Order! Obedience! Theseshall be the watchwords ofthe Home Fleet from now on!file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/harry%20kruis.Dead%20Empire's%20Fall%2001%20-%20The%20Praxis.html (239 of 310)19-2-2006 4:01:18Williams, Walter Jon - [Dead Empire's Fall 01] - The Praxis I ll never think of Torminel as cute, furry pudge-pots ever again, LordRichard told Terza that evening. My dear, the sight of Jarlath in fury wasabsolutely blood-chilling.The two Naxid squadrons, obeying Jarlath s orders, detached from Zanshaa sring after four hours, oriented themselves toward Vandrith, and began thepunishing acceleration that Jarlath had commanded.Elkizer had no choice.His timetable called for the revolt to begin in fourdays time, all Naxids in theFleet rising at the same moment throughout the empire [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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