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.That is the nature of war, after all.”Downing felt as though the large, dark pupilless eyes were dissecting his words, his intents, his psyche.Then they blinked.“So it is.My apologies, Mr.Downing.”“Your apologies? For what? For asking about the degree of risk?”“For forgetting what it feels like.”Downing felt his eyebrows rise.“It must be nice to live in a world where that’s something you can forget.”“Nice? Perhaps.But worrisome, also.”“Worrisome?”But Alnduul had turned to look out the small window to his right, the blue and white of sky and clouds a roiling concave moiré reflected upon his eyes.Downing waited, but the Dornaani did not speak again.Presidential Palace, Jakarta, Earth“Have you contacted our ships yet?”“We have not, Darzhee Kut.”Urzueth Ragh moved closer to him, hummed his query softly.“I do not understand.If you are determined to keep the fleet from scuttling itself, why are you so eager to contact them with news of Hu’urs Khraam’s death?”“Because if they hear of our capitulation without also learning that the Final Directive is rescinded, the ship masters will presume it is in effect and destroy their ships.”Urzueth’s answering buzz was anxious.“It may occur anyhow, Darzhee Kut.If our rock-siblings are boarded before they can restore their systems, they are likely to destroy themselves, probably with humans aboard.And soon, down here, they will start finding some of our fully isolated troopers becoming sluggish, sick.And you know what they will find.”Darzhee Kut nodded.“Within forty-eight hours, all their potential prisoners will die of a noncontagious virus that first renders them unconscious and then kills them by producing fatal toxins out of body tissue.”“And because we have no way of reaching all of them, thousands will die within the same day or two.The humans will, as you say, realize that it is not a disease at all, but a suicide method.So let us reconsider.Why not be safe and destroy the ships, as well? If we cannot prevent the humans from discovering our planetside force’s commitment to suicide, then we might as well destroy the concrete answers the humans might find on our spacecraft.”Darzhee Kut snapped his claws.“No.If we can keep the planetside casualties to a minimum, we can explain that the troopers who killed themselves simply feared capture and torture.We must spend all our energies striving to contact our units.To that end, ask the humans to find Riordan and bring him back here.”“Why?”“Because he will help us, and the humans still have radios.We can use those to contact our rock-siblings.If we can prevent even half of our units and ships from following the Final Directive, the suicides of the remainder may appear to be more an aberration than a plan.”Urzueth Ragh’s antenna snapped erect as he spun away.“I shall inquire after Riordan with all speed.”“Delegate Kut.” It was the first time anyone had ever addressed him with that honorific; it was thrilling and horrible at the same time.“Yes, Communications Master T’yeen?”“I have the ship Greatvein.”“Who is on the channel? Fleetmaster R’sudkaat?”“No, Delegate Kut.As you requested, Senior Sensor Master Tuxae Skhaas.”“Excellent.Tuxae Skhaas?”“Yes, Speak—Delegate Kut.”“I must first sing a song of mourning.Hu’urs Khraam’s voice no longer echoes in the rocknest.”There was a very long pause.“We are ill-fated to be alive to hear such notes, Delegate Kut.” The sorrow in Tuxae’s voice was deep and genuine.“I have a very new song for your antennae alone, Tuxae Skhaas.”“I listen, ready to harmonize, Delegate Kut.But your radio has very limited range, and the path of our orbit will soon carry us beyond each other’s reach.”“So I will be frank.We must not scuttle the fleet.”“We—have I heard you correctly, Delegate Kut?”“You must unlearn the hymn we all sang together when we left Homenest.And you must teach this new atonality to all the other ships that you can reach: we must not follow the Final Directive.”Chapter Fifty-ThreePresidential Palace compound, Jakarta, Earth“Trev?”“Hmm?” Trevor Corcoran kept his eye on the scope of the Remington M167 he had retrieved from Gavin’s body.Almost eight minutes since I’ve seen a Sloth, but I’m in no rush.Six bagged and counting.And that last one—Stosh would have been proud of that shot: four hundred eighty meters if it was a centimeter.Single round, center of mass.The bastard went down like a poleaxed ox.Welcome to Earth, motherfucker.“Trevor.” Tygg’s voice was subtly more insistent.“Yeah, what is it?”“A report, Captain.”Yeah, that’s right.I’m a captain now.Probably will keep my rank after this shindig.Glories and medals, too.O, be still my beating heart—“Heart.” “Heart” made him think of Opal, which made him stop thinking [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]